for the Siskiyou Hiker
20 APRIL 2018 | GRANTS PASS, ORE. — Siskiyou Mountain Club is hiring six crew members for our 2018 Wilderness Conservation Corps. Corps members are tasked with hiking into the most remote Wilderness Areas in the lower 48. That is where they spend 10 days at a time on work hitches to restore trails damaged by wildfire and threatened by neglect. Interns use crosscut saws, axes, clippers, and a swinging tool called a Pulaski to remove downed trees, cut back brush, and re-cut miles of trail fading from the landscape.
They are paid a $40 per-diem which amounts to $1,600 over the summer, and are eligible for up to $2,000 in tuition reimbursement toward an accredited nonprofit private or state college, as well as community colleges. As part of the required program, Corps members also produce videos, write a series of essays, and participate in a mid-summer enrichment session during which they explore the area without tools in their hands.
For recruits from out of the area, the Siskiyou Mountain Club offers improved camping not far from their headquarters in Ashland, Ore.
This year, crews will find themselves deep in the Marble Mountain, Siskiyou, and Kalmiopsis Wilderness Areas tackling demanding trail projects in remote, rugged, and unique terrain.
Some interns are recruited to work as paid staff and crew leaders. “We’re always looking for talent,” says field director Aaron Babcock. “It can turn into a good job for some.”
Valentin Chavez was a 2016 intern and returned to lead crews in 2017. “It was a good job, you know,” he remarks. “I learned a lot. It makes you tough.”
The Club’s executive director, Gabriel Howe, says this is the most challenging and demanding internship the club offers. “It’s a chance to see what you’re made of,” he says, and admits the experience isn’t for everyone.
“We’re not one of these programs that will take anyone with a beating heart,” he explains. “This is an internship that carries a degree of prestige.”
That resonates with Chavez. “I’m doing what I went to school for, but I miss the woods.”
Financing for the work is provided in large by grant agreements with the Rogue River-Siskiyou and Klamath National Forests.
