Location: Wright’s Lake, CA
Strenuous. 7.5-mile hike with ~1500′ gain
Backpacking with pack support.
This is a high-elevation project: 8,000+ ft.
Spend a week volunteering with trail work, campsite restoration, and more surrounded by alpine lakes and stunning granite features.
Service Project Details
Mostly spared by 2021’s Caldor fire, we’re excited to head back to Desolation Wilderness. Our service project includes trail work and campsite restoration by removing illegal campsites and fire rings. The work could also include building a turnpike through a seasonal stream-wet meadow crossing between Lake Doris and Lake Lois, as well as clearing down trees from the McConnell Loop. We’ll also maintain trails in the area by improving trail tread, improving stream crossings, and building rock stairs. The project will require doing a fair bit of rockwork. The Forest Service will provide pack animals to carry tools, group food, and kitchen supplies to our base camp. You will get the opportunity to work closely with Wilderness Rangers and Desolation Wilderness Volunteers on this exciting project.
Our base camp will be at Lake Lois, elevation 8,320 ft. That’s a 7.5-mile hike from the trailhead at Wright’s Lake, elevation 6,940 ft. About 6 miles from the trailhead the trail crosses Rockbound Pass, elevation 8,520 ft., then descends 200 ft. for the last 1 mile to Lake Lois. The elevation gain to the pass is 1,580 ft. over a distance of 6 miles. Some campsites are too close to the lake, and our task is to remove those illegal camps and naturalize the area.
Project Leaders: Kathleen Worley and Mark Lewis
Check out the photo gallery from our past projects in Desolation Wilderness.
Agency Website
Itinerary:
Saturday, August 12th. The Volunteer group meets in the afternoon at a time/place TBD. The group will go through check-in, introductions, orientation, and assist in gear organization for the pack team if necessary.
Sunday, August 13th. The group will hike into basecamp and will help set up camp in preparation for the work week ahead.
Monday, August 14th. Workday.
Tuesday, August 15th. Workday.
Wednesday, August 16th. Day off.
Thursday, August 17th. Workday.
Friday, August 18th. Workday.
Saturday, August 19th. Break down camp, hike out, goodbyes, and depart.
Nearest Cities
Meyers, CA
Pollock Pines, CA
Nearest Airports
Sacramento International Airport (SMF) – ~98 miles away
Reno International Airport (RNO) – ~119 miles away
Free Time Details
Hike to the nearby Rubicon River or Lake Schmidell, multiple lakes and peaks are accessible from this area. Fishing, swimming, photography, and general relaxation opportunities abound.
Accommodations
Backpacking with pack support.
Difficulty
Strenuous. 7.5-mile hike with ~1500' gain
Task Details
Bending, cutting, hauling, swinging, digging, throwing, pushing, lifting, leveraging, repetitive motion, etc.
Equipment List
View Equipment List