Volunteer Backcountry Work Week: Chiatovich Meadow Restoration
Join Friends of the Inyo and the Inyo National Forest for a backcountry volunteer trip in the White Mountains from September 4-7, 2026!
The mission!
Volunteers will spend three days helping restore a degraded meadow by constructing low-tech restoration structures in small stream channels. This will consist of hauling rocks, cutting and moving logs and shoveling dirt in a mountain meadow and constructing small structures such as rock dams, beaver dam analogs, and bank reinforcements within a stream channel. This work will help revitalize meadows in the remote White Mountains, a key source of water and forage for deer, antelope, bighorn sheep and other species.
For an idea of what the work will look like, watch this short video on restoration structure construction.
There will be plenty of opportunity for exploring during the afternoons and evenings following each work day. Attractions nearby include Fishlake Valley Hot Springs, Red Rock Mine, and the Boundary Peak Trail. This project is open to volunteers local to Inyo County and beyond.
Project Timing and Travel
Volunteers will meet in Bishop the morning of September 4 th at approximately 8am. Gear and equipment will be loaded into multiple vehicles that will drive to the work site. Travel to the site will require a high clearance 4wd vehicle, which will be provided by the Inyo National Forest and Friends of the Inyo staff. Volunteers with a suitable high clearance 4wd vehicle may drive themselves. The crew will drive approximately 2 hours to the camp site, on upper Chiatovich Creek. We will set up base camp here, and travel in vehicles to the work site. Work days will mostly be from 9:00am – 4:00pm with plenty of breaks.
Work will be completed over the course of three days and will require daily hikes of approximately. The work site on Chiatovich Creek site requires about 3 miles of round trip hiking each day, in addition to the physical labor each work day.
Coordinates of Meadow: 37.80395, -118.28776
Coordinates of Camp: 37.80546, -118.26842
Gear
Volunteers will be provided work gloves, shovels, wheelbarrows, and all other equipment necessary for this work. Volunteers should bring their own camping equipment, food, cooking supplies, and appropriate work clothes and boots. Work will be done in relatively hot sun in a small stream channel with little shade. While work days will be warm, nights will be cool given the high elevation of camp (8,000 feet). Cell reception is available for some carriers near camp but will not be available at camp or the work site.
Email izzy@friendsoftheinyo.org with “Chiatovich Project” in the subject to get more information and sign up
To support effective project planning, we ask that volunteers commit to a work week only if they are confident they can participate as scheduled. Last-minute changes can impact the success of the project, and we appreciate your reliability and consideration.
