Volunteers sought for National Public Lands Day events

| September 6, 2022 1:00 AM

The Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation is seeking volunteers to help with trail maintenance at Harriman State Park, graffiti cleanup and vegetation planting at Castle Rocks State Park/City of Rocks National Reserve, and invasive species removal at Round Lake State Park.

The projects are part of the 29th annual National Public Lands Day, the nation’s largest, single-day volunteer effort on public lands. The effort is organized by the National Environmental Education Foundation and sponsored by Toyota Motor North America.

At Idaho State Parks, there will be four opportunities to help:

• Castle Rocks — 9:30 a.m. to noon; volunteers needed to help clean graffiti off of Comp Wall, one of the park's most popular granite climbing wall.  • City of Rocks (3035 S. Elba-Almo Road/Highway 77 Spur, Almo, Idaho) — 9:30 a.m. to noon; volunteers needed to plant native vegetation at the Old Stone House.

Those interested in helping at either City of Rocks or Castle Rocks, should contact Sophia Bates. She can be reached via email at sophia-bates@partner.nps.gov, or by phone at 208-824-5916. • Harriman (3489 Green Canyon Road, Island Park) — 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; volunteers needed to help improve trails, including weed/brush removal and resurfacing. Volunteers should wear close-toed shoes, gloves, sun protection, and bring water. Contact Kirsten March at Kirsten.March@idpr.idaho.gov, 208-558-7368 if you are interested in helping.

• Round Lake — volunteers for invasive species removal of Chinese mystery snails/trapdoor snails, knapweed, curlyleaf pondweed, Eurasian milfoil, and mullein. Contact Cole Ross via email at Cole.Ross@idpr.idaho.gov or by phone at 208-263-3489.

Calling ahead is not mandatory for participation.

Over the last decade, more than one million volunteers have donated nearly five million hours of time as part of Nation Public Lands Day, an effort valued at $133 million.

Learn more about National Public Lands Day at NEEFUSA.org/NPLD. Everyone is encouraged to follow and participate in the conversation on social media using the hashtag #NPLD.