Search Results "Alex ertaud"

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September Stewardship Round-Up by Stewardship Director Alex Ertaud

The aspen leaves are making their annual change from green to orange/yellow/red, electrifying our Eastern Sierra landscape. Sadly, that means the all-important summer stewardship work of our Trail Ambassadors has come to an end. September marked the last month our Trail Ambassadors (TAs) were out and about on the trails of our Eastern Sierra Forest Service lands, from Lone Pine to Bridgeport (a close-to-150-mile stretch of public lands).  Here’s just a bit of what they have been up to during the past several weeks: Lily Emerson closed out the season with a super-successful cleanup at the fourth annual Bridgeport Trails…

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Stewardship Round-Up: Haiku Edition!

Throughout the summer, the Trail Ambassadors do a variety of things: clearing water bars and sawing out downed logs on trails, obliterating illegal fire rings, chatting with visitors, picking up trash, logging all these stats, even…penning haikus! Wait, what?! You read that right. Stewardship Director Alex Ertaud asked each Trail Ambassador to collect their thoughts after each day of work, and come up with a little poetic musing in the 5-7-5 syllable style of a haiku. While they found it a bit odd at first, the TAs came to enjoy plugging into their creative sides during and after long days…

TA End of Season Campout
Stewardship End of Season Round-Up

Well, it’s official. The calendar page has been flipped to October, the leaves they are a changing, and our Trail Ambassador season has come to a close. Reflections and a Compilation of Staff Reports by Alex Ertaud, Stewardship Director Closing out the season is bittersweet, as I am so proud of the amazing work the TAs have accomplished this summer, and yet I am sad to see them go off into the fall, no longer helping us lead interpretive hikes and volunteer events, do important trail work out on the ground, and be a friendly presence out on the trails….

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Stewardship Round-Up: August 2022

Yee-haw: It’s time for another edition of Stewardship Round-Up! Though this is our penultimate issue of this monthly dispatch, never fear and shed no tear, for we have a great re-cap for you this month. Recap compiled by Alex Ertaud, Stewardship Director for Friends of the Inyo August is always a great month for the Trail Ambassadors (TAs) to sink their teeth into some meatier projects they may have been eyeing and scouting in June and July. So, without further ado, here are some highlights of what the TAs have been up to this month: From Bradley Olson, Trail Ambassador…

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Stewardship Round-Up: July 2022

Read some exciting progress notes from our Trail Ambassadors, with an introduction and post-note from Stewardship Director Alex Ertaud. “We’re thick into the Dog Days of summer, hitting the midway point of our season, and the Trail Ambassadors (TAs) just keep on rolling! Alongside our Forest Service partners, our TAs have been up to some amazing work. But don’t take my word for it: Let’s hear it from the TAs themselves! Here are some highlights from their last month of work in north-to-south order depending on the Ranger District to which each of them is assigned.” From Bradley Olson, TA…

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Stewardship Round Up – June 2022

June Stewardship Round Up Compiled by Alex Ertaud, Stewardship Director The solstice has passed and summer is truly here, which means  Friends of the Inyo’s Trail Ambassadors have a month of work under their belts and are firing on all cylinders out on the trails of the Eastern Sierra. I could tell you what our TAs have been up to, but why not let them tell you themselves? Below are some updates from the field where our TAs share some of the highlights of their season so far. Lindsay Butcher, Trail Ambassador for the White Mountain Ranger District of the…

Photo from Jean about volunteer cleanup in Mammoth
Volunteering, Hiking, Learning: Summer Is Always Better with Friends…of the Inyo!

Friends of the Inyo’s Summer Stewardship Program is Off to a “HOT” Start! By Alex Ertaud, Stewardship Director (Middle-Right in photo) As the days grow longer and the last remaining bits of snow melt away, it can only mean one thing: Friends of the Inyo’s Summer Stewardship Season is upon us!  Our Stewardship Team spent the month of May getting ready for the exciting summer season we have ahead of us. We’re thrilled to announce that we are able to staff each Ranger District of the National Forests of the Eastern Sierra with a dedicated Trail Ambassador (TA) this year….

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Geology and Volcanology Interpretive Hike in Mammoth with Tess Irving-Ruffing – 8/7/2021

Join Tess on a hike around Horseshoe Lake and learn more about the geologic history of the Lakes Basin and of Mammoth Mountain. You will learn about the basics of the formation of the Sierra Nevada Range, the history of local volcanic activity in the area, and other interesting geological facts that continue to impact the local natural and human environments. Where: Horseshoe Lake (Mammoth Lakes) (meet at the visitor’s sign) RSVP required When: start 10:00am (roughly 1-1.5 hrs) The Hike: 1.7 mi around Horseshoe Lake. 114ft elevation change This hike is now full. If you would like to be…

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Volunteer Backcountry Stewardship Week | Cottonwood Creek

Join Friends of the Inyo and the White Mountain Ranger District of the Inyo National Forest for a spectacular three days of stewardship in Mono County. We’ll be working to restore roads in Wilderness and removing obsolete cattle exclosures, and we’ll also save plenty of time for hiking, sharing stories, and enjoying a beautiful place. Trip dates are August 6-9, 2021 Check back soon for more trip details. This trip is now full! If you would like to be placed on the waitlist and notified if a spot opens up, e-mails Alex Ertaud at alex@friendsoftheinyo.org. Participants are responsible for all…