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Soda Springs Trail #306 Backpack (Santa Fe NF)

RESULTS: Eight NMVFO volunteers backpacked 2.7 miles to a campsite at Soda Springs along the Rio Grande near Buckman, NM. Over three days the volunteers brushed all the 1.1-mile Soda Springs Trail that goes to the top of a lava-flow mesa, constructed one and repaired another rock retaining wall to support the trail, closed of a social trail, and constructed 21 drainage structures to route runoff off the trail. The view from the top of the mesa was breathtaking.

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Description: Join us on a short backpacking project to improve drainage, widen tread, repair several retaining walls, clear brush, and close off a social trail along the popular Soda Springs Trail near Buckman, NM. We will hike to and set up a base camp close to the Rio Grande about 2.6 miles from the parking lot at the Buckman Diversion structure (Coord. 35.83541, -106.16170, Google map). After setting up camp, we will hike about 1.0 miles up the Soda Springs Trail with our tools to Sagebrush Flats and work back towards base camp.

You should bring along enough food for the duration of your stay and your personal stove. NMVFO will reimburse you at the rate of $15/day. Bring a daypack to carry your water, lunch, snacks, rain gear, etc. along the trail while we are working on it. We strongly recommend bringing sunscreen. NMVFO will provide camp water filters, but bring a personal filter if you desire.

The USFS requires trail workers to wear long-sleeve shirts, long pants, work gloves, hiking shoes/boots (no open-toed shoes or sandals), eye protection, and hard hats. If you have a hard hat, please bring it. NMVFO will provide hard hats for everyone else. NMVFO will provide the tools, which we all will get to carry to base camp.

While the project starts on the morning of Friday, October 1st, you are welcome to join us on Friday night or Saturday morning and spend as much time working with us as you can. Please let the Project Leader know if you will be joining us later.

We will adhere to the Covid-19 protocols in effect at the start of the project. Specific details will be provided prior to that time.

Reminder: Pets are not allowed on NMVFO projects.

Please sign up below: Closing date for signups is September 28th, 2021.

Difficulty: Pulaskis

Group size: Up to 15

Meet at: Buckman Diversion Structure parking lot at 35.83541, -106.16170

For more information: If this is your first NMVFO project, you can find more information about difficulty ratings and what to expect at our Volunteer FAQ’s, or email the project leader.

Skyline Trail Backpack (Santa Fe NF)

RESULTS: On July 15th eleven NMVFO volunteers and a US Forest Service intern backpacked up the Winsor Ridge Trail to a campsite at Stewart Lake in the Pecos Wilderness. In three days, the volunteers cleared 151 trees on 3.5 miles of the Skyline Trail from Stewart Lake towards Horsethief Meadow despite getting rained out on two afternoons by thunderstorms. The Backcountry Horsemen of America supported the project by packing in NMVFO’s tools and equipment.

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Description: Join NMVFO on a four-day backpacking project to clear downed trees and improve drainage and tread along the popular Skyline Trail. NMVFO will be setting up a base camp at the Intersection of Trails #251 and #271 near Stewart Lake. The Backcountry Horsemen of America will be supporting the project by transporting our tools and equipment to the base camp. The base camp will be about 5.8 miles from the Winsor Ridge trailhead (#271) located near Cowles, NM. While the project starts on Thursday, July 15th, you are welcome to join us on Friday or Saturday and spend as much time working with us as you can. NMVFO will supply the tools, water purification equipment, a portable toilet, and a campstove to heat water for rehydrating meals and for hot drinks. Volunteers will need to bring their own food but will be reimbursed at $15/day.

NMVFO will be practicing the then current Covid-19 protocols on this project. Specific details will be provided prior to the start of the project.

Reminder- Pets are not allowed on NMVFO projects.

Please sign up at NMVFO.org by July 10th, 2020.

Meeting Location: Parking area next to Pecos River at 35.81224, -105.65910

Difficulty: 3 Pulaskis

Group Size: 15

For more information: If this is your first NMVFO project, you can find more information about difficulty ratings and what to expect at our Volunteer FAQ’s, or email the project leader.

Please read our volunteer guidelines before signing up for this project.

This project is full but you can still sign up to be put on the waitlist.

Winsor Trail #254 (Santa Fe NF)

RESULTS: 11 volunteers removed protruding rocks and roots and levelled tread on 4,220 feet of the Winsor trail.

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Description: Join us on a car-camping project to improve drainage and tread along the popular Winsor Trail. We will be setting up a base camp at the Aspen Basin area adjacent to the lower Ski Santa Fe parking lot. The work area will start about 1.7 miles from the Winsor trailhead, which is located near the restrooms on the north side of the parking lot.

All tools will be provided. USFS rules require us to wear heavy boots, long pants, long sleeves, hard hats (provided) and eye protection (sunglasses okay) while working. Please also bring a large daypack to carry lunch, snacks, sunblock, rain gear, and a full-day’s supply of water.

Volunteers will need to provide their own camping gear, including tent, sleeping bag and pad, camp chair, headlamp, etc., plus a cooler/beverages if desired. Breakfasts and dinners (except for Thursday evening) will be provided; volunteers will supply their own lunches and snacks. Please bring your own plate, bowl, utensils, and coffee mug. There is room at the parking lot for RVs. There are pit toilets but no potable water, so please bring as much of your own water as possible. The cooks and project leader will also bring several containers, as well as filters to take water from the creek.

We will adhere to current Forest Service Covid-19 protocols. Specific details will be provided prior to the start of the project.

Reminder: Pets are not allowed on NMVFO projects.

Meet at: Aspen Basin at the Santa Fe Ski Basin Lower Parking lot, GPS Trailhead Coordinates N35° 47.698’ W105° 48.262’ Please contact the project leader with any questions.

Difficulty: 2 Pulaskis

Group Size: 15

For more information: If this is your first NMVFO project, you can find more information about difficulty ratings and what to expect at our Volunteer FAQ’s, or email the project leader.

Please read our volunteer guidelines before signing up for this project.

This project is full but you can still sign up to be put on the waitlist.

Skyline Trail Backpack (Santa Fe NF)

RESULTS: Thirteen hardy folks, including a ten-year-old boy and his father, volunteered for a four-day backpacking project into the Pecos Wilderness in the Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF) The group cleared 67 downed trees (deadfalls) using crosscut saws and removed brush using loppers and pruning saws along 2.5 miles of the Skyline Trail from Puerto Nambe to Penitente Peak. They set up a base camp in the meadow at Puerto Nambe surrounded by spruce-fir forest. The Pecos Chapter of the Backcountry Horsemen of America supported the group by transporting tools and equipment to and from the base camp. In accordance with SFNF COVID-19 protocols, the group was split into four-person work crews. Each crew was led by a USFS-certified sawyer. The crews worked so hard that the trail was cleared by the end of the second day. Most of the group spent the third day climbing Santa Fe Baldy and visiting Lake Katherine.

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Description: Join us on a four-day backpacking project to clear downed trees and improve drainage and
tread along the popular Skyline Trail. We will be setting up a base camp in the beautiful meadows at
Puerto Nambe surrounded by spruce-fir forest. The Backcountry Horsemen of America will be
supporting us by transporting our tools and cooking equipment to the base camp. The base camp will be
about 4.2 miles from the Winsor trailhead at the Santa Fe Ski Basin. While the project starts on
Thursday, June 25th, you are welcome to join us on Friday or Saturday and spend as much time working
with us as you can. Reminder: Pets are not allowed on NMVFO projects.

We will be practicing social distancing on this project. Specific details will be provided prior to the start
of the project.

Meet at: Winsor Trailhead at the Santa Fe Ski Basin Lower Parking lot, GPS Trailhead Coordinates N35°
47.698’ W105° 48.262’

Please sign up below. Closing date for sign-ups is Saturday June 20th, 2020.

Difficulty: 3 Pulaskis

Group Size: Up to 15

For more information: If this is your first NMVFO project, you can find more information about difficulty ratings and what to expect at https://nmvfo.org/volunteer/volunteer-faq, or email the project leader(s).

This project is made possible by a grant from the National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance.

Lagunitas Area, Carson NF CDTC

This Project is FULL. If you would like to be Wait Listed go to https://continentaldividetrail.org/volunteer/

Work Difficulty: Easy

August 28th – September 2nd

Crew Chefs: Ross Pope and Carole Owens

CDTC is partnering with New Mexico Volunteers for the Outdoors in a remote frontcountry project to work on rehabilitating five miles of CDT south of the Lagunitas Campground. Maintenance needs include tread work, building cairns, sign installation, corridor clearance, and drainage maintenance. Join us in one of the longest-running CDTC volunteer efforts in the Carson National Forest. This project allows for a half-day in the middle for volunteers to relax and explore the area. To register for this project go to https://continentaldividetrail.org/volunteer/.

Taos Ski Valley Trails (Questa RD)

RESULTS: Over five days, ten volunteers removed 9 downed trees, cleared 17 stream, and worked on 30+ drainage features spanning 6.75 miles.

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Join us in the Carson National Forest along Ski Valley Road (Hwy 150) near Taos, for camping and trail work in the area. Volunteers are welcome to join for as many days as they like (please inform the trip leader of your plans so we can match meals to participants). Sorry, no pets.

There is a lot of deadfall in the area, and plenty of brush-work needed to clear trail corridors (we’ll use loppers and pruning saws). Trails are also eroded in spots, so we will work to redefine tread and shore up some steeper sections (likely including a bit of rock work). Some of the work will take place a few miles up the trail, with significant elevation gain. The four potential trails we’ll work on will be the Yerba, Manzanita, Italianos and Gavilan, in the Questa Ranger District. Tools will be provided. The USFS requires hard hats (provided), sturdy boots, long pants, work gloves and eye protection (sunglasses). Please also bring a large day pack, lunch/snacks, rain gear, sunblock and plenty of water. There will be water along the trail, so a small water filter could be useful (but not required).

Camping and port-a-potties will be available from the evening of June 26^th through the morning of July 3^rd in a meadow near a historic USFS cabin (map). Green NMVFO signs will point the way to this location. We’ll work from 8:30am-4pm each day, including hiking time. Breakfast will be provided Fri 28^th-Tue 2^nd. Dinner will be provided Fri 28^th-Mon 1^st.

Volunteers will need to bring their own tent (tiny RV’s okay), sleeping bag/pad (and pillow), DINNERWARE, camp chair, headlamp, WARM CLOTHING. Camping at 8,500 feet, it will be cool! Other recommended items: insect repellent, in-camp shoes, extra toilet paper, a cooler for beverages (adult and other). Taos is approximately 15 miles from our campsite.

Please contact Jenny to sign up, or with questions. It should be a fun, challenging project, and a great time of year to camp in the area. Hope you can make it!

Puerto Nambe (Santa Fe NF)

RESULTS: Nine volunteers backpacked into the Puerto Nambe area in the Pecos Wilderness to improve a ¾-mile stretch of the Winsor Trail that was badly eroded and rocky. The Backcountry Horseman of America packed in the tools, cooking equipment, and supplies for the project. Over these four days the crew rehabilitated or constructed 52 existing or new diversion structures to direct surface water runoff from the trail; constructed or improved 150 feet of trail; closed six unauthorized trails; and removed rocks, tree branches, and bushes that protruded onto the trail.

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Come join us on a four-day backpacking project as we improve drainage and tread along the popular Winsor Trail and close off user-created trails. We will be camping in the beautiful meadows at Puerto Nambe, lulled by the many small streams in the area and surrounded by spruce-fir forest. The Backcountry Horsemen of America will be supporting us by transporting our tools, cooking equipment, and food to the campsite. The campsite is about 4.2 miles from the Winsor trailhead at the Santa Fe Ski Basin. While the project starts at 9:00 am on Thursday, June 20th, you are welcome to join us on Friday or Saturday and spend as much time working with us as you can.

For more details or to sign up, contact Mike Timmer at mjtimmer52@gmail.com or (281) 622-6858.

Please contact us by June 13th, 2019 if you plan to attend. Hope to see you there!

Start 9:00 am, Thursday June 20, 2019

Finish: 2:00 pm, Sunday, June 23, 2019

Meet at: Winsor Trailhead near the Santa Fe Ski Basin Parking lot.

How to find us: Look for the green NMVFO signs starting at the entrance to the parking lot

GPS Trailhead Coordinates N35° 47.698’ W105° 48.262’