The Bureau of Land Management is inviting Idahoans to show their nearly 12 million acres of public lands in the Gem State some love by participating in one of the 13 in-person or virtual National Public Lands Day events that will be held in September and October.
The theme of National Public Lands Day this year is “More Ways to Connect to Nature.” While the BLM has traditionally commemorated National Public Lands Day by holding large, in-person events on the last Saturday of September, this year the agency is offering in-person events on various dates over the next few weeks where individuals will participate in small groups, as well as virtual events.
In-person events include trash cleanups and debris removal, trail and boat ramp improvements and sagebrush seedling planting, while virtual events include a tour of the Craters of the Moon National Monument and a film about the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area.
“BLM Idaho is pleased to continue our National Public Lands Day tradition of offering hands-on opportunities for members of the public to explore, care for, and maintain connections with their public lands, while also providing a chance to participate virtually and discover areas they may not be familiar with,” said John F. Ruhs, BLM Idaho State Director. “We strongly encourage members of the public to take advantage of the many opportunities to participate.”
These are the events coming up:
Challis Field Office Virtual Trash Challenge
Location: Challis, Idaho
Date: 9/25/20
Time: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Description: The Challis Field Office is hosting a virtual “trash challenge” in which small groups will compete to see who can collect the most trash.
Contact: Angela Beley, 208-879-6247, abeley@blm.gov
Soda Hills Cleanup
Location: Soda Springs, Idaho
Date: 9/26/20
Time: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Description: This will be an in-person event, and participants will meet at a public location in Soda Springs, near Pocatello. Participants will collect trash that has accumulated along the valley bottoms of Soda Hills and remove livestock drift fences and troughs that are no longer in use.
Contact: Charles Patterson, 208-478-6362, cpatterson@blm.gov
Area west of North Menan Butte Cleanup
Location: Menan, Idaho
Date: 9/26/2020
Time: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Description: Participantswill clean up trash and debris at the area west of North Menan Butte.
Contact: Danielle Winterholler, 208-524-7500, dwinterholler@blm.gov
Red Road Cleanup
Location: St. Anthony, Idaho
Date: 9/26/2020
Time: 8 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Description: Participantswill pick up trash, remove burned debris, and clean out fire rings at dispersed camping and day use areas along Red Road.
Contact: Mike Setlock, 208-524-7529, msetlock@blm.gov
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve/Laidlaw Park 360 Virtual Tour
Location: Online, link will be available soon athttps://www.blm.gov/blog/2020-09-04/show-your-public-lands-some-love-national-public-lands-day[blm.gov]
Date: 9/26/20
Time: 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Description:This virtual tour explores and interprets both the well-known volcanic features along the 7-Mile Loop Drive, as well as the rarely seen volcanic features of the Laidlaw Park area, located within what is thought to be the world's largestkipuka, anisland of older land and vegetation surrounded by younger lava flows.
Contact: David Freiberg, 208-732-7271, dfreiberg@blm.gov
Salmon Field Office Cleanup, Fence Removal, Recreation Site Work
Location: Salmon, Idaho
Date: 9/26/2020
Time: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Description: Participantswill clean up and remove trash from several sites 8 miles southeast of Salmon, near Withington Creek, improve river access and day use near the boat ramp at Morgan Bar Campground, and remove a fence that is no longer being used to improve rangelands for wildlife and livestock.
Contact: Travis Seaberg, 208-756-5412, gseaberg@blm.gov
Crystal Lake Trail Litter Cleanup and Trail Improvements
Location: Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Date: 9/26/20
Time: 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Description:Volunteers will clean up trash and perform minor trail work along the Crystal Lake Wild and Scenic Area trail and dispersed camp sites. This event is being hosted in partnership with the Spokane Mountaineering Club.
Contact: Jake Bachtel, 208-769-5041,jbachtel@blm.gov
Indian Springs Cleanup
Location: Kimberly, Idaho
Date: 9/26/20
Time: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Description: Volunteers will collect trash that has accumulated along roads, parking lots, trailheads and shooting areas.
Contact: David Harper, 208-677-6600, dharper@blm.gov
Celebration Point/Kuna Butte Sagebrush Seedling Planting
Location: Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, near Kuna
Dates: 10/3, 10/10, 10/17, plus a few weekdays in between
Time: 8 a.m. – 12: p.m.
Description:Volunteers will plant sagebrush seedlings and remove invasive vegetation. Volunteers will need to register ahead of time.
Contact: Cory Roberts, 208-384-3485, cjroberts@blm.gov
Virtual Tour -Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area (NCA)
Location: Online, Golden Eagle Audubon Society Facebook Pagehttps://www.facebook.com/GoldenEagleAudubon[facebook.com]
Date: 9/26/20
Time: 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Description:The event will include a Binoculars Tutorial, eBird App Tutorial, Meet a Raptor program, and introduction to the educational resources and virtual tour film of the NCA. The “Feathers and Frontiers” film will showcase the NCA’s rich cultural, natural and scientific history, and the birds of prey that call the area home.
Contact: Cory Roberts, 208-384-3485,cjroberts@blm.gov
*PHOTO COURTESY BLM*
