Giving Back to the Planet With Wilderness Volunteers
Did you know that last year nearly 327 MILLION people from all corners of the globe visited America’s National Parks? I believe that’s because the United States (via the National Parks System) has set aside some of the most spectacular natural and historical locations on the planet and they’re right in your backyard. With recent budget cuts, our parks and wilderness areas are starting to show signs of disrepair. Giving back to our parks through volunteer service is a great way to enjoy the outdoors and do our part for the planet.
I recently discovered a volunteer organization that provides a variety of opportunities for giving back to the parks and wilderness areas in the U.S., while enjoying an adventure too! Wilderness Volunteers (WV) donates thousands of volunteer hours to our public lands, worth over $500,000!
Our mission is providing opportunities for everyone to participate in the hands-on stewardship of public lands. Working in cooperation with the National Forest and Park Service, the BLM and the US Fish & Wildlife Agency, you’ll be inspired and invigorated when you see how much a group can accomplish in a few days.
wilderness volunteers
How Long is Each Project?
Each project is 7 days. This doesn’t include travel time to get to the project’s starting location (trailhead or trip meeting spot). You must provide your own transportation to and from the project. It’s not included in the cost and not provided by the Wilderness Volunteers organization. Their trip season typically runs from March through October.
Who Can Participate?
If you’re physically fit you can participate. Projects are rated by physical difficulty, but there are rarely any “easy” projects. The lowest rating is “Active”, which is defined as: “Shorter backpacks, car-camping or lodge/dormitory living with long day hikes often on uneven ground. Work projects requiring lifting, bending and working several hours each day with tools. These trips are for people in good shape ready for a full day of activity.” More difficult trips are rated as “Strenuous” and “Challenging”. You can find out more about the ratings here.
The minimum age is 18 years old, but all ages above that are welcome, as long as you can do the work that needs to be done. Teens age 16 and up can participate if a parent or guardian is there as well. The average age is about 45 with a range of 18 to 75+.
How Much Does it Cost and What’s Included?
Wilderness Volunteers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and the goal of the project is to cover the actual trip costs of those giving back through volunteering. They’re not trying to make a profit. The 2020 Project Fee is only $375! Wow.
All project guidance and oversight is included. All food including meals and snacks are provided. They offer a wide variety of destinations with a range of service projects. Transportation to and from the project is up to you.
Where are the Projects Located?
WV generally announces the projects for the following year in the fall. You can search for projects on a U.S. Map by location or search by date.
Depending on the extent of the restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, they hope to be going to places like Zion National Park in Utah, and Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont. Two projects are planned in Alaska at Denali National Park and Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, plus many other destinations around the U.S. It looks like the more unique destinations fill up pretty quickly so check out the list here and see if there are any projects that you’d be interested in helping with.
2020 COVID-19 Update
WV is monitoring the situation in the midst of the ever-changing requirements for social distancing due to the Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. As of the publish date of this post current plans are going forward for the projects listed on their website. They’ve temporarily revised their cancellation policy to help you make and adjust plans with more confidence. Check for a link on their home page for the latest details.
Giving Back by Working With Your Hands
Wilderness Volunteers don’t charge the agencies for the volunteer work and the various parks and agencies supply tools and supervision for the projects. As a participant, you would provide their own backpacking or camping gear (a list specific to each trip will be mailed with registration confirmation). Bring along a sense of adventure, and a willingness to contribute time and energy to the project.
It’s incredible how much work a group of helpful volunteers can do in a week’s time! All trips are led by volunteer leaders. Trips are one week long and partial attendance is not accepted. Each project is limited to 12 or fewer participants which provides a perfect size group to feel comfortable and still be manageable. Are you wondering if you’d be up for the task physically? Here are more details about who can volunteer.
Participants share camp chores. Most trips include extra time to explore and enjoy the area in which they are based. Wilderness Volunteers teach and follow “Leave No Trace®” outdoor living skills and ethics.
Most of all, with the help of folks like you giving back, Wilderness Volunteers are making a difference in addressing the backlog of maintenance on public land in cooperation with partner agencies. Thank you to all who are participating in keeping America beautiful for our next generation of explorers.
If you enjoy meaningful travel, you might also like this post about “Lifelong Learning Opportunities Through Travel”.
Category: Camping, Mid-Atlantic States, Midwest States, New England States, Northeast States, Pacific Northwest States, Rocky Mountain States, Southeast States, Southwest States, United States
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This is so cool Nancy – thanks for sharing! I had no idea these opportunities were available. Rod and I feel inspired and wonder if the new knees when healed would be up for one of the less strenuous trips. You definatelly have us thinking!
Sound great Deb! You wouldn’t believe all the great opportunities there are out there.
Excellent web site. A lot of helpful info here. I am sending it to a few buddies ans
additionally sharing in delicious. And certainly, thank you for your
sweat!
This is quite a beautiful gesture!
And can I say wow, 327 million people that visited the parks… if even half of them would donate just a small amont to the park, say just a dollar, imagine the amont!
Our parks are largely paid for by tax dollars, but lately, their budgets have been cut. I love how these Wilderness Volunteer projects help people connect with the parks as well as helping the park too. It’s a win-win for everyone.
This is great, thanks for the information. I am on the lookout for opportunities like this once I finish my current work contract!
Cool. There are more like this on my blog too. Thanks for stopping by.
I had no idea you could do this. Fascinating, def would be interested. And delighted that unlike some volunteer work where they charge you an absolute fortune and I have no idea where that money is going. Off to investigate this more. Denali Park sounds particularly appealing.
Sarah, I agree. This organization is definitely not in it for the money. They care about the environment. The cost is so reasonable and the destinations are amazing. Let me know if you go.
What an amazing opportunity to give back. I had no idea that this organization existed and the stellar work they support, what a great idea, and thanks for bringing it to my attention. We’ve spent a lot of time enjoying the Park System and it would be great to give back to the environment so that generations can continue to enjoy their beauty.
I agree wholeheartedly! It seems like a great way to discover lesser-known areas that we might not visit otherwise too.
This is a great experience and totally worth the money. Such a brilliant way to give back! I would love to explore more on this opportunity, hence saved your post.
Great! Thanks for stopping by, Georgina. They add new projects all the time, so it is a good resource for future travel.
Great idea to help the national parks! Volunteering through Wilderness Volunteers while enjoying the adventure sounds wonderful. Thanks for this information about volunteering opportunities. 🙂
That’s an amazing amount of people travelling to the National Parks and a great idea for volunteers to give back and experience the beauty of these outdoor spaces. I have visited Yosemite twice and loved it.
Oh yes, Yosemite is amazing! If you liked that, then you would LOVE Yellowstone. It is much larger and less crowded with even more diverse beauty.
I never knew about this organization and it would be great to work as a wilderness volunteers. Even for this noble cause, I did not find the participating fee is too reasonable.
Hi Yukti, The fee that Wilderness Volunteers charges is much lower than most “volunteer” travel organizations. They basically just want to cover food and logistics costs. It’s a great organization.
I don’t know how I am JUST finding out about this… thank you SO MUCH for sharing! National Parks are my jam, and i’ve been looking to get into more volunteer work involving climate change/animals/earth preservation. This is perfect. After COVID-19 is over I’m going to reach out and see what I can do to help.
Hi Chelsea, Thanks for stopping by! You are quite welcome. National Parks are one of my favorite places to be as well and their protections and preservation seem to be dwindling right now. The more each of us can do, the better off our planet will be for the next generation.
The Wilderness Volunteers doing a great job! Thanks for sharing such information that helps in sustainable tourism. All the more important now than ever.
I agree. There are never enough funds for the parks, it seems.
What a great opportunity to help the National Parks! I can’t believe I didn’t know about this organization, as much as I visit the NPs. I will definitely check them out, thank you for sharing this information. 🙂
You’re welcome! I agree that this is a wonderful group. I think there may be others but I need to do some more digging. I think this group is very reasonable as far as costs too, especially for a chance to stay in or near such gorgeous wilderness.
Such a wonderful initiative to give back and care for the environment. Plus sharing the experience with others.