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Backcountry Trails Program, Eureka, CA (2026)

08/18/2026

July Overview – Inyo

At last!! Perhaps as an early Independence Day celebration, we break free of gas-powered motors and pavement and haul our monstrous packs up our trail to our new home, serenaded by our accordion-playing crewmate, Javi. With a gem or a lake, trees for shade and hammocks, a creek nearby for water, and space for our kitchen to be more comfortable, we set about making ourselves at home. Dish line stringers & a H-brace and shelves for the kitchen; a sump for our grey water; coolers dug down into the sandy soil to help keep food more chilled; and a latrine for our daily needs, are all part of our camp blueprints. We also create seating for mealtimes; despite not being able to have a fire, our community spaces bring us together for classes, meals, and social time. Tool tarp and pack rack also find homes, for proper equipment storage. We dig and saw and knot and bind and build, and in a matter of a couple days we have the basics established; the “frills” come shortly after. Camp set-up gets helping hands from some fresh faces, too: Kai and David, the Inyo’s 2-person trail crew, come by for a few days to help with camp and some trail work in the area; Jackie, 2014 BCTP Trinity Alps alumna and now Army medic, comes to visit and immediately rolls up her sleeves and pitches in wherever she can. All are full of smiles and can-do attitude, which we love and appreciate.

With no rest for the wicked, trail work starts right up again the following week, and we attack our new territory with rigor. First order of business is maintenance in this new segment, and we tackle that, a change of pace from the rock work of the last several weeks. In our excitement, we brush, de-rock, fix drains and small problem areas, and generally clear trail from below the first dam to the PCT junction, miles past the third (and last) dam on our trail: a whopping 8.5 miles of maintenance in the last four days has us proud of our efforts. With the trail cleared, we return to project work; the next two and a half weeks see us building check steps, walls, and a staircase up some treacherous slick rock. We finish the month with a few days of maintenance QC, as well as a smashing party, to try to break and eliminate slip/trip hazards in the middle of the trail for both humans and stock. We are pleased with our work.

With a new jumping off point, weekend trip opportunities open wide. We start the month with some ambitiously crossing Donahue Pass to tiptoe into Yosemite, and others exploring the lovely Alpine Clarks Lakes area. Halloween arrives to our camp the following weekend, and costumes showcase ingenuity and creativity as we craft disguises out of whatever we have on hand. Trick or treating, courtesy of care-package goodies from our beloved friends and families, means that everyone gets some sweet treats. Another longer distance weekend finds us all at Garnet, embarking on—hooray! Holy moly!—our first cross-country adventure! Learning to watch for landmarks, use our compasses to orient, and to travel only on durable surfaces, we make an easy loop from Garnet up and over a ridge to 1,000 Islands Lake, and back. We take turns leading the group, to share both the fun and challenges of being the route-finder. Wildflowers, tadpoles, and mosquitoes keep us company, and we run into some patches of snow up top that give us a small family of snow-people.

Amidst the successes of the trail, we have sadness as well as our cook, full of smiles and warm food, parted ways with us. We wish her, and camp cat Figgi, the best; they will be missed. And so, we learn a new set of skills: menu planning, food ordering, and storage/ inventory. Some are more excited than others to spend extra time in the kitchen, but we all expand our skill sets by necessity.

And so, as our third full month draws to a close, we find ourselves with yet more new perspectives, both literal and figurative. What more can we draw out of ourselves, and out of each other? How much farther can we push? Is that extra push worth the end result? Who are we removed from lights and motors and electricity, friends and family, and old expectations? Do we know what we stand for, when we’re stretched to our limits? How do we give, and what will we take, for support? Will we cling stubbornly to old habits, or loosen our grip to better reach for healthier ones? What more can we do in our remaining time here in the backcountry?

With a pair of months left to explore answers to these questions and more, we dig into our new home and work, eager to find what else we can learn.

08/17/2026

Yosemite Crew
July Overview by Tessa Kopp.

While crews are allowed to split up on weekends, Yosemite has developed a tightknit weekend strategy. With a strong preference to stay together, the crew visited and found a home at Johnson Lake and then we strengthened our cross-country skills with a trip to Ostrander Lake. Classes have varied; ranging from lectures from state parks bay area crew, trying not to die in DnD, and the endless learning opportunities here in the wilderness don’t end!
Along with a visit from the Bay Area SP Crew, we had the chance to spend time with our supervisor Logans family (Hey Cara, Ryan, and Miles!) Which was a great reminder of how special it is to be out here after experiencing the camp all over again with them. Weve also had the pleasure of sharing meals and Buena vista lake with our packers who do the critical work of supplying Yosemite crew with all the things we need. Yosemite continues the glory work that is caring for and maintaining the trails around camp. Weve gotten faster, stronger, and more devoted to being the best wilderness stewards possible.
Though some days are harder and the trail work isn’t always easy, Yosemite is steadfast and is truly in it for the love of the game. Bonds between the crew, sponsors, and our supervisor continue to get deeper and solidify. Each day is an opportunity to feel gratitude for the chance to be here in this park and with one another. A few crew members share a favorite poet, and one poem in particular speaks to us louder out here:

When I am among the trees, especially the willows and the honey locust equally the beach, the oaks and the pines, they give off such hints of gladness I would almost say that they save me, and daily.
Fun so distant from the hope of myself in which I have goodness, and discernment and never hurry through the world but walk slowly and bow often.
Around me the trees stir in their leaves and call out “stay awhile” The light flows from their branches
And they call again, ‘its simple” they say “and you too have come into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled with light, and to shine”
-Mary Oliver

08/17/2026

July Overview. Yolla Bolly/Klamath Crew 2026
Relief Supervisor/ Robert Zekanoski

Greetings followers fo the Yolla Bolly/Klamath crew for Backcountry 2026. Our weekend adventures have expanded to new terrain. In the Southern end of the Yolla Bolly’s (Ides Cove) we have tapped what little water remains at Backcountry camp sites like Cedar Basin and Kingsley Lake. Eventually we left this rugged wild country for water abundant sites like Horse Flat, where we got a good power washing, knocking off the perma dirt collected these last two months. With gratitude and ambition for opportunity we are now indulging at sites like Hancock Lake and Pine Lake in our new home and legacy.. the Klamath National Forest.

It was sad to bid farewell to our Yolla Bolly sponsor Mike McFadin. His wilderness awareness and ethics classes left an impression on us and extended outside of class time. Mike discovered an indigenous Kiln for heating red churt, during the hike back from work. Still intact from many years ago. We left it undisturbed for others to appreciate and reflect on. Allen Schroeder taught a packing class for mule loads and all got to participate. Ken Graves and Matt the packer held a delicious cook out for us upon our last day before moving to the Klamath and delivered some touching and inspiring feedback about our experiences in the Yolla Bolly’s. Now in the Klamath we are learning the new trail standards and safety protocols for this National Forest. T-shirt planning continues as well as crew mates sharing their life stories in the dwindling light, leaving us much to reflect on.

Our cook Jojo and Trails Trainer Allen Schroder continue to join us and support us on this epic trail crew Odessey. However, we have also been graced with the experience and well-seasoned Jess Walsh and Ellen Andrews. Both are passionate supporters of the CCC Backcountry Trails Program. Our gratitude and appreciation for their planning and preparation for our arrival cannot be expressed enough.

After a long slow dirt road drive from Ides Cove to the interstate; we continued driving for several hours for our camp move. We took a rest day at Horse Flat campground and enjoyed the moving water of Eagle Creek, while gorging on backpacking food. The following day the crew arrived at Mule Bridge Trailhead and began to organize gear in preparation for tomorrow’s hike. A two day hike to Upper Abbots meadow with all their clothing and gear. The trip would be 11 miles. The crew arrived safely to the sights of lush meadows, big trees, grazing stock, and a hardy lunch meal prepped by their cook JoJo.

Let’s not forget productions totals! This past moth of July. 26 sqft. Of multi-tier wall. 2 linear yards of causeway. 80 logs removed from the trail. 2,473 feet of new trail built and 7 miles of trail maintained.

A special thank you to all the behind the scenes folks who have work hard to provide us with this special immersive experience. THANK YOU!! Ken Graves, Matt, Dan, Robyn, Aaron McBride, Mike McFadin, and Eric in the Yolla Bolly’s! THANK YOU!!! Olivia, Karen Hack , Dan, Sarah Borman, Jess Walsh, Ellen Andrews, Sarah Borman, and Shelby Weister.

Thank you for your continued interest on our work journey, and hearing about our trials and triumphs in the Backcountry. If you are reading this and know us, we are probably thinking of you often. Please write us using the address below. We would love to hear from you.

08/17/2026

July Overview
Shasta-Trinity Crew
Supervisor: Michelle Lopez Lorenzo
Overview written by Max Lasswell

The Shasta -Trinity crew started our July saying goodbye to our temporary sandy camp, to finally make it to our Backcountry camp. It was a grueling 5-mile hike with our full packs, but we made it. We now have a beautiful meadow that’s full of lovely corn lilies to call our home for the second half of the season. We were delighted to see the mules deliver our supplies for the first time at our new camp, seeing our 5 miles of trail maintenance was paying off. Weve been working diligently, having removed 98 logs and rehabbed 15 linear yards of trail. We have picked up some new skills in the backcountry, including rock work through Brandon’s rock school, felling dead trees, building camp structures such as the fire pit, backpack rack and tool rack, and we were even given superpowers thanks to Brandon. The whole team even became cross-country trained, venturing past our weekend lake to make our way up 1,150 feet to the tippy top of a mountain pass. Corpsmembers reported enjoying making their way past giant rocks on the journey. We had many fun events to look forward to throughout the month, including our first potluck and silly caricature night, Christmas and Secret Santa in July, a goofy improv class led by max, inspiring life stories told by Bryce, Julia, max and justice, a creative poetry class led by Emily, and an open mic night led by the “Quang” (the Teams gender neutral version of a king/queen) David. The open mic included a dance by Nora and 2 delightful guests, David and Anna, sea shanties from Julia and ben, a music performance by our supervisor Michelle, a notorious dethroning of the Quang by Max after challenging David to a ninja duel, a coin talk from Bryce, and many more. We were happy to welcome Miguel and Aaron as visitors to our camp. We are especially thankful to Aaron for helping to locate the meadow where we set up our backcountry camp. We are thankful for everything July had to offer us, and look forward to more productivity, excitement and memories to be made in august and the rest of the season.

07/24/2026

Got some mail to send to a BCTP corpsmember? Addresses are below! (Packages no larger than a shoebox, please.)

BIG BASIN / INYO CREW: Sam Boutelle, Crew Supervisor
July 4th - September 22nd
PCTA CCC Backcountry Crew
YOUR NAME
Mammoth Ranger District
P.O. Box 148
Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546

KINGS CANYON CREW: Luz Lara, Crew Supervisor
April 30th – September 17th
CCC Kings Canyon Backcountry Trail Crew
[Corpsmember Name]
PO Box 928
Kings Canyon National Park, CA 93633

YOLLA BOLLY/KLAMATH CREW:
July 13- September 22nd
CCC Backcountry Trail Crew
Salmon/Scott Ranger District
11263 N. Hwy 3
Fort Jones CA 96032

INYO CREW: Cedar Long, Crew Supervisor
April 30th – September 22nd
CCC Inyo Backcountry Crew
[Corpsmember Name]
Mammoth Ranger District
P.O. Box 148
Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546

SHASTA-TRINITY CREW: Michelle López Lorenzo, Crew Supervisor
April 30th - September 22nd
CCC Shasta-Trinity Backcountry Crew
[Corpsmember Name]
PO Box 1518
Weaverville CA 96093

YOSEMITE CREW: Logan Brockbank, Crew Supervisor
April 30th – September 22nd
National Parks Service Trails Office
England Crew, Attn: CCC
[Corpsmember Name]
PO Box 700 - Trails office
El Portal, CA 95318

07/20/2026

June Overview, Kings Canyon Crew
By Luz Lara, Supervisor

We keep saying how time feels like it’s moving so slowly, yet the weeks continue to fly by. Before we knew it, June had come to an end. It’s a bittersweet feeling. We packed up our frontcountry camp and said goodbye to a place that had become home for the past two months. In doing so, we also left behind parts of ourselves that no longer served us while continuing to build upon the foundation we’ve created together, growing stronger as a crew with each new challenge.

At the beginning of the month, we got our first real taste of backcountry life by packing up our gear and hiking into a temporary spike camp to maintain and log out the surrounding trails. Throughout the week, we cleared the trail leading to our future backcountry camp and continued toward the nearby pass, completing trail maintenance while removing more than 35 fallen trees. We divided into multiple teams to tackle steep switchbacks and long days of work, then reunited each evening over incredible meals (thanks, Peter!) It was rewarding to experience a new landscape while accomplishing every goal our sponsors had set before us.

June was also filled with opportunities to learn. The crew earned Wilderness First Aid certifications and completed Swiftwater Awareness training. (thank you, Ian!) Our packers, Tate and Bailey, introduced us to the world of stock packing through a hands-on packing class that ended with each of us getting the chance to ride. It quickly became one of the highlights of the month, and we all felt incredibly fortunate to take part in such a unique experience. Around camp, John brought everyone together through Dungeons & Dragons campaigns that gave us something to look forward to after long workweeks. Meanwhile, a special handcrafted gift was quietly taking shape for the Yosemite crew.

We wrapped up the month by completing our final frontcountry trail maintenance and celebrating with a surprise ice cream treat before loading up our packs for the journey ahead. The heaviest pack tipped the scale at 92 pounds. After hours of hiking on the trail, we arrived at our new home in the backcountry. The very next day, we began building camp from the ground up, using the natural resources around us and each contributing in our own way to create a place we’ll call home for the coming months.

Life in the backcountry comes with more discomforts, more challenges, and a lot more dirt. But also more laughter, stronger friendships, and bigger appetites. As we settle into camp, we’re excited to explore the incredible beauty surrounding us, continue caring for these trails, and discover what the rest of the season has in store.

07/17/2026

June Overview - Big Basin-Inyo Crew
By Sam Boutelle, Supervisor

June churns us each season. We’ve learned the basics and now struggle to climb the technical, logistical, and social heights of our time together. These thirty days saw us leave the coast and its redwoods behind and reach the heights of the Northern Sierras. Along the way, we shared many laughs, adventures, and met more remarkable allies in our quest to build ourselves, our crew, and our season’s trails.

We started June with a feast! A CCC spike crew from Monterey Center lived in the next campground over, and one another’s calls and power tool roars occasionally meandered between the trees. We made the most of this proximity, and several Monterrey corpsmembers helped Rosio and Sam M. prepare a banquet of carne asada fries, guacamole, and a slew of salads on the 1st. We enjoyed sharing experiences from our season with our guests as we ate, and Juan, an administrator for the Stanta Cruz District, shared lessons from his career in public service and talked about opportunities with State Parks in a way that touched us all.

At work, we started improving the walking surface of Timm’s Creek Trail, and we begin to assemble the materials to replace the ruined foot-log with a forty-five-foot bridge. This translated into daily trips with decking boards and handrails. Our shoulders bruised, and our forearms tired of their loads, but we persevered and carried over 2,000 lbs. of bridge components to their future home.

Our progress on Timm’s Creek allowed us to pinch hit on the Monterrey Crew’s Sunset Trail project. We spent a few hot, sunny days running dollies loaded with fiberglass bridge beams and webbing slings bearing wooden handrails down to their own set of bridge sites. We organized into teams of five or more and developed a rollicking, charged style of communication to navigate the turbulent terrain of a trail in progress.

The crew’s final outing in the Santa Cruz Mountains brough them to the old growth niches of Portola Redwoods State Park. One truly massive redwood, with robust burls, held them spellbound on the Peters Creek Loop Trail. Upon their return to civilization, and the visitor center, the words, “there are drumsticks in the freezer”, broke a fast and opened a world of ice cream that had everyone had been missing.

Rosio’s fried chicken started a great, celebratory evening that ended with a dance party and light show. Daisy, Solly, and Sam M. stepped up as backup cooks this month. Sam’s sweet potato bread and bottomless pad Thai filled our bellies and our cookpots with delicious leftovers. Solly seared chicken and brought forth a banger quinoa salad. Daisy played sweeper and helped bring our Big Basin kitchen in for a landing by making chicken for lunch on one of our last days out west.

We enjoyed our Wilderness First Aid training in our last weekend in Big Basin. Our instructor Lynsey’s “honey bunnies” had us striving to make our best slings and conduct safe carries. She treated us to a night scenario on Saturday that saw us caught in the chaos of a regrowing redwood forest and our own commands as we rescued two of our peers from the hypothermic wild. In our final day together, Lynsey introduced us to creek crossing techniques and the finer points of throw bags. We enjoyed the water, and the crew left the weekend feeling much more prepared to tackle the safety challenges ahead.

California State Parks delivered two great final guest instructors. Diane, a longtime volunteer docent, swept us off our feet with her love of the natural world and its snakes. Mike stepped away from his work as a law enforcement ranger to teach us about his role in protecting park resources and the people who recreate amongst them.

Big Basin deserved a Big Banquet, and Rosio delivered! We feasted with the help of some treats from our sponsor, Morty. We worked a last quality control run back up our trail and put the final touches on our rehab work as we celebrated a triumphant last day on Timm's Creek Trail. Ravens raided our camp as we broke down our kitchen and living spaces. We chased them off time and again as they circled and watched for an opening. Our foreman, Matt, stepped up for a grand finale and treated us to a passel of pies from Pizza My Heart. We ended our last day with a slumber party in our original burrow.

We drove away from Big Basin early on the 20th, but before we left the Santa Cruz Mountains, we made a quick stop to solve the mystery of Kellysville. The crew faced their Memorial Day dilemmas and came out with a stronger sense for navigation. We then raced across California with stops for ATMs, laundry, banh mi, and a doctor's appointment along the way. We reached our new home at Mill Creek Campground as the sky started to turn gold with sunset’s start. Luis, our new foreman, had established the bones of our camp, and he and Rosio welcomed us to Stanislaus National Forest.

On Sunday, we toured the finery of Stanislaus’s frontcountry with stops at Donnell Lake Vista and the basaltic Columns of the Giants. The scale and openness of our new surroundings wowed the crew as we took in granite expanses and new forest and meadow ecologies. We bedded down early that night to prepare for a tough new 4/10s schedule we’d chosen to adopt to beat the heat and balance our new two-hour commute. We saw the stars in a new light as we awoke to a pre-dawn inky black sky each day.

The sun reigned over a cloudless sky as we worked the Westside Railroad Trail. Loppers and hand saws cut into stocky manzanita and prolific poison oak. A Forest Service archeologist named Kim taught us about the history of the trail and the larger archeological context of a forest that covers almost 900,000 acres. Within two days we’d cleared a mile and a half of this popular local trail. Luis had seen enough of the on-site hazards to be confident that our best work could be done at higher elevation, to avoid the heat, and closer to camp.

We finished our time in Stanislaus by clearing the logs and fire followers that choked the Wheats Meadow Trail. We got to know the crosscut saw on this trail, and the crew dug into this new work with tenacity. Stanislaus also introduced us to a prickly neighbor called white thorn ceanothus. We preferred it to poison oak, but it definitely left its mark as we cleared mile after mile of brushy burn zone. We celebrated our progress with a visit to Wheats Meadow and the ruins of rancher cabins that dated back to before the forest’s founding. Luis taught us the art of axe and lopper sharpening, and we put that to good use in our final days in Stanislaus. We adapted to higher elevation and held to our 4/10s schedule so we could see as much of Stanislaus on our two weekends there as possible.

Our first Stanislaus weekend broke the crew in two. Four of us headed to Kennedy Lake up a long valley towered over by 11,000’ peaks. Backcountry cows hassled this group, but they delighted in a day of lakeside rest and relaxation. A host of hikers shared the trail, and the lake itself was like a dream. They enjoyed getting in for a backcountry bath at almost 8,000’.

The rest of the crew turned their ambitions to two iconic peaks in Stanislaus’s Emigrant Wilderness. They saw their first bear along the way up Granite Dome as it bounded over a far-off rise, and they reveled in views from the top that took in a new world of ridges, lakes and mountains near and far. On the horizon, Banner Peak and Mount Ritter beckoned from Inyo National Forest across a sea of Yosemite summits. The group wrote their names into the first summit register of the season and then traversed a rolling, rocky landscape to the top of Black Hawk Mountain. After braving a snowy descent and drinking the freshest water of their lives, they made it back to the trail and safety. Some toes lost; the weekend won.

We shared the final days of June with members of the CCC’s Lavender Coalition and marked Pride with a listen to the history of the Stonewall Rebellion and a celebration of the flair that makes us each special. June pushed and pulled us, and we reached for new heights in spite of the weariness that comes with a season like this. We’re learning valuable lessons, experimenting in fun ways, and creating a nurturing, whimsical community one day at a time. Wish us luck with our move to Inyo in July! We’re backcountry bound!

07/17/2026

This weekend we started doing group hikes of 6 without Logan. We went to 10 Lakes, a very nice place with many switchbacks. It was a hard push, but our crew got to see many animals like bears, deer, fish and some birds. We also met many hikers, including a Ranger named Nick who checked our paperwork. I didn't get to speak with him but my crewmates did and reported he was a good person. The other group of 6 had a great hike as well. They also saw a bear, which was pretty cool. For last weekend in the front country, we ate some leftovers, sewed our patches back on, and got our personal gear ready for the camp move.
A notable feat our crew has done is finding ways to talk to one another even if we disagree. There are moments where I can have very heartfelt conversations with the whole crew and feel really respected and safe. This has been important. Since I lost someone in my family, I was hurting, and having this crew’s support has helped me a lot.
The main project we've been working on is the Mono Meadows Trail. This trail. Pushes us at the end of each day to hike fast uphill. I, Nasaje, have been timing myself and I'm very happy with not only my time but the whole crew as well. -Nasaje Richards, Corpsmember

Hello Instagram, Itzel, Silvia, Ali, Gia, Cam1, Miss Rachael, Jawnae, and my future Backcountry crew reading this from the past. Oh and the yarls and mayors of the Backcountry Program like Karlson and Bobby Z. It is not that easy to be out here. Well, it is? The living is easy and wonderful when it's warm. When it is cold... misery. But no matter how cold and wet and agitated, I still find the beauty around to be grateful for. You are stuck with the crew 25/8. You lop for 25/8. We've been working on this trail and averaging around 8 miles a day, almost 40 Miles a week, depending on the weekend. Every day we bathe in cold water. Sometimes it's nice and refreshing, other times…nope. So I've adapted and found my method. A song from Mulan. On the weekends we are strongly encouraged to hike. There’s a lot of beauty. I’ll admit, sometimes I just want to be alone and sleep all day. But I know I will miss this based on how alumni make the background like the state of lives. Anyway, the weekends. Yikes. One time my friend said I have 999 mosquito bites just on my face. Just on my face! We wake up at 4:00 AM sometimes on the weekends. Now sleeping in is almost 6:00 AM. It’s been over two months without a phone! There is hope for humanity. It's not that hard. Goodbye. – Josephine Moore, Corpsmember

It's already the end of June, two months since we started. Time flies when I'm struggling every day on an uphill hike with a heavy pack. This month is also the month of my birthday and my second year in the CCC. All that and with the camp move into the Backcountry, this month is definitely a transitional one to another era. So much of my perspective has changed. Of nature, of what's hard, of wilderness and conservation, and what I'm dedicating my life to. People that say Backcountry changes their life - I've always thought they were being a little dramatic - but I understand now. This program offers a chance at accelerated growth. By testing you in every way. It helps that I'm in such a beautiful place as Yosemite. It amplifies any profound changes in my psyche. I think of all the people I left behind and how I can't wait to see them. I should tell them I love them. I think of the person I used to be, those that I failed and moments where I squandered my youth. I can't go back to who I was. But I can lift up those around me. This is the hardest thing I have done and I signed up for it. I have a lot more to do still so I'll hold my analysis until after Debriefing. So for now, I want to thank anyone and everyone who has ever helped me in the slightest and in the most. I'd also like to thank my mom, who never gave up on me. My dad, who never stopped helping me. And to my brother who was my world, and to my sister who I protect, and to my friends who have seen me at my worst and in all my glory. And to my teachers who saw the potential. To my ConSup, who gave me opportunities and who recommended me here. And lastly for my late grandparents, Mama y Papa, who had the forethought to move to America for a better life and for loving me. I miss you so much. Rest in peace. -Ivan Hernandez, Corpsmember

07/17/2026

June Overview, Shasta-Trinity Crew
By Emily Baylock, Corpsmember
Wake up! Wake up! It's the Shasta Trinity Crew 2026 June Recap!

We spent the first week of June finishing our work on the East Fork New River and Jim Jam trails. While it was sad to say goodbye to those beautiful spots, learning brushing and saw techniques at East Fork along with treading on Jim Jam’s gnarly hills prepared us for the spike ahead. After learning our essential knots and how to move thousands of pounds in our grip hoisting class, we packed up camp for our first spike.

Starting at Hobo Gulch, our first spike taught us how to overcome challenges as a crew, how to panic-dance away our jitters, and just how many deer want to lick our salty clothes. None of us were braver than Alexa chasing down the deer, charging into the woods to rescue our work pants. When hiking was tough along the 17-mile trail, we tuned into the Ella Podcast where her stories kept us laughing all the way to Grizzly Meadows where our spike ended. One weekend group ventured up Grizzly Scramble to the wonderful Grizzly Lake there with the help of our supervisor Michelle they continued cross country to a pass below Caesar's Cap Peak where they were rewarded with a view of Mount Shasta new
Spike was punctuated with a camp move to the trailhead of our future backcountry camp. Maya brought with them an electric razor to crown 3 new baldies in camp as Josh, Julia and Emily shaved their heads. We were soon treated to a visit from Chelsea, who brought ice cream to surprise the crew. Sadly, we said goodbye to two corpsmembers this month and we wish them all the best in their many future adventures. With corpsmembers starting to teach classes as well, Josh taught everyone in camp how to bird whistle while Mason gave us the rundown on landscape drawing. As last weekend adventures before entering the Backcountry, groups visited Big Bear Lake and Tangled Blue Lake, fueled on their journeys by Kevins Ibarra hot chocolate and Ben's homemade bread. Both were sumptuous. Justice’s Tea and Game Night event gathered us all back at camp as we anticipate our next spike starting the first week of July.
We can't wait to move to our Backcountry camp! With the help of Bryce and his new friend Priscilla the Pulaski, we maintained over 25 miles of trail and removed 155 logs in June. We look forward to an active and adventurous July!

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