Celebrate Public Lands by Volunteering at Great Sand Dunes

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve and Friends of the Dunes are
seeking volunteers to help celebrate the nation’s system of public lands by
assisting park staff with one of several projects on Friday, September 12,
announced Superintendent Art Hutchinson. “We’re scheduling a work day
several weeks before the official National Public Lands Day,” he said. “We
hope folks will come out to work on September 12th, and come out to the
park again to play on National Public Lands Day, Saturday, September 27.”
Entrance fees will be waived for all park visitors on Saturday, September
27. Entrance fees for people volunteering on September 12 will be waived,
as well. Friends of the Dunes will provide food and beverages for all
workers.

Volunteers are needed for three projects. Two of the projects are located
near park headquarters on Highway 150, while the third project will occur
in the Baca District, located in the northwest corner of the national park,
near Crestone, Colorado.

The Baca District project involves removing old fences and fence wire from
areas now within the national park. Volunteers should be prepared to work
outdoors most of the day doing moderately hard physical work. Volunteers
should bring sturdy work gloves and wear long sleeves and long pants as
protection from barbed wire and sun exposure. Lunch, snacks, and beverages
will be provided. Transportation from the Liberty Gate to the work site is
by park vehicle or escorted private 4WD vehicle; advance sign-up for this
project is required. For details and to sign-up, call Volunteer
Coordinator Libbie Landreth at (719) 378-6342 by September 10.

The other projects are cleaning litter up from the lower portions of Medano
Creek, and attempting to remove several unused shallow research wells from
the creekbed south of the Dunes Parking Lot. Participants will hike 2 - 5
miles and may carry equipment and bags of trash. Volunteers should wear
sturdy hiking shoes and bring sun protection, gloves, day packs, and water.
Advance sign-up is requested by September 11. For information and to sign-
up for these projects, call Volunteer Coordinator Libbie Landreth at (719)
378-6342.

Volunteers in any of the projects will receive a coupon good for a one-day
waiver of the entrance fee at any site managed by the National Park
Service, Bureau of Land Management, US Army Corps of Engineers, US Fish and
Wildlife Service or U.S. Forest Service. The coupon will be valid from
September 28, 2008 through September 26, 2009.

For more information, call Volunteer Coordinator Libbie Landreth at (719)
378-6343 or the Visitor Center at (719) 378-6399.