Dates
Mar 14th - Mar 20th 2010
Service Project
Trail maintenance & invasive plant control 
Free Days
Hiking, exploring, photography, wildlife viewing
Accommodations
Tents in designated group campground
Trip Rating
Active : Bending, lifting, lopping, digging, shoveling, raking
Leaders
Richard Johnson
Ruth Rosenstein
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Massive canyon walls ascend toward a brilliant blue sky. To experience Zion, you need to walk among the towering cliffs, or challenge your courage in a small narrow canyon. These unique sandstone cliffs range in color from cream, to pink, to red. They could be described as sand castles crowning desert canyons. Zion's unique geographic location and variety of life zones combine to create a variety of habitats for a surprising array of plant and animal species including bighorn sheep and deer. Located on the Colorado Plateau, but bordering the Great Basin and Mojave Desert Provinces, Zion is home to plants from each region.
In 1909, Zion Canyon was practically inaccessible to outside visitors; and while only a few had laid eyes on the towering cliffs, the country still understood its significance and established Mukuntuweap National Monument. In 2009, National Park Service has celebrated the Nation's commitment to preservation and protection of the natural and cultural resources and providing visitor enjoyment in Zion National Park over the past 100 years. Evidence of Ancestrial Puebloans, known as the Anasazi, date from 2,000 years ago; Paiutes from about 800 years ago to present. Mormon settlers arrived in the 1860s and planted orchards along the Virgin River towns of Springdale, Rockville and the now ghost town of Grafton.
This alternative spring break service project is an exclusive partnership for University of Minnesota students only. Of the 50+ service projects that Wilderness Volunteers organizes in 2010, this is one of three all-student projects in wild lands all across the country. The service project, which takes place on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, consists of seasonal trail maintenance on several popular Zion backcountry trails, and invasive vegetation removal and planting of native species. The trail project is mostly digging, raking, lopping, shoveling and generally clearing and stabilizing trails for the upcoming season. In addition to the work with plants, the vegetation project may involve fencing to protect native plants. We'll drive short distances to the project sites daily from our base camp in either Park Service vehicles or your vehicle. Wednesday is a free day to explore the park.
Our campground is subject to late change, depending on visitation, but is likely to be in The Watchman group site. It has bathrooms, wash sinks and running water. Alternatively, we may stay in the Volunteer Campground, which is the result of a service project in 2008 where student volunteers built tent pads and placed tables for use by volunteers lending a hand to the park. The site is located in Oak Creek Canyon, a small, lush and private canyon behind the park staff residential area. It offers great hiking opportunities, quiet, and dark night skies, but not a lot of sunlight.
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