Whats Going On In Your Area: Mountain Region

The Leave No Trace Backyard Sessions program educates people about taking care of the outdoors in their communities. Through Leave No Trace training and volunteer engagement, the Center delivers the Backyard Sessions program through outdoor service projects for the general public.

The Center conducted over 80 Backyard Sessions across the country this year. Check out the Backyard Sessions in the Mountain Region this year.

- Colorado State Advocate, Kristin Libberton, introduced the Seven Principles to 37 individuals as they relate to youth with PEAK modules “How Long Does it Last” and “Trek and Track Say” in Boulder, CO.

- Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers, Frank and Quinn, conducted 2-45 minute presentations of the Seven Principles to Middle School age youth at Shining Mountain School in Boulder, CO.

- 7 Principles, Trash your Trash, River Corridors

- In Buena Vista, CO, in conjunction with the Fourmile Hotspot program, staff of the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics facilitated a 4 hour Awareness Workshop to 15 representatives of various community organizations.

- Outreach Manager, Dave Winter, and Education Director, Ben Lawhon, conducted a trash clean-up following the Lyons Outdoor Games in Lyons, CO.

- Education Director, Ben Lawhon, presented the Seven Principles to 88 high schoolers at Wyoming Territorial Prison State Park and facilitated “How long does it last?” and discussed career choices in recreational and environmental fields before the youth set off on a clean-up of the park grounds.

- Corrie Holloway, of Glacier Guides/Montana Rafting Co. worked it 54 volunteers to clean up 40+ miles of Wild and Scenic river, including 6 river access points and 6+ bags of trash plus random pieces of metal/plastic removed in

- In Dolores, CO, Master Educator, Jay Loschert, conducted a river clean-up in conjunction with Trout Unlimited with 7 volunteers and discussed “Dispose of waste properly” and the Seven Principles for River Corridors.

Here is what our WY state advocate had to say:

My name is Sara Kirol of Sheridan, WY, where I work as the Bighorn National Forest Trails Coordinator and am the Wyoming Leave No Trace State Advocate. Wyoming is a big state with a lot of wide-open space providing us with amazing, seemingly untouched, natural places to recreate and spend time in. These wonderful traits can be both challenging and beneficial for promoting Leave No Trace. There are a good number (for our population size) of Master Educators scattered across the state. For 2013, my goals include connecting our Master Educators to share ideas, triumphs and defeats, and to form an alliance that will better support the Leave No Trace message statewide. I plan to look into utilizing social networks such as Facebook to better connect these folks. Locally, I am making contacts in the schools at all age levels, including colleges. I hope to travel to festivals to set up booths and engage local Leave No Trace supporters to become more involved. I am open to invitations from schools across the state and to meeting many of our amazing Wyoming people. Hope to see you soon!

Sara Evans Kirol
Bighorn National Forest
Trails/Special Uses

Travelling Trainers:

Along with work by Mountain Region State Advocates and volunteer educators, the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers conducted educational workshops, trainings and other outreach events all over the Mountain Region this year. Below is a sampling of the work they did in your region:

Arizona:

Northern Arizona University Outdoor Trip Leaders –Flagstaff

Red Rock Ranger District – Sedona

Alpine Leadership Academy – Flagstaff

PEAK Training at REI – Tempe

Orangewood Elementary School – Phoenix

Girl Scout AZ Cactus Pine World Thinking Day – Phoenix

Catalina Boy Scout Venture Crews – Tucson

REI – Tucson

Miraval Resort & Spa – Tucson

Volunteer Southern Arizona – Tucson

Colorado:

International Sportsmans Exposition – Denver

Boulder Backyard Session – Boulder

Community Prep School- Colorado Springs

New Belgium Brewery - Fort Collins

The Wildlife Experience -Parker

National Park Service Earth Day Event – Lakewood

Coleman Factory Outlet – Castlerock

Wild Bear Mountain Ecology Center – Nederland

Red Hawk Elementary School – Erie

Shining Mountain School – Boulder

Wildflower Elementary - Colorado Springs

Friends School – Boulder

Conservation Camp - Buena Vista

Clean Up Green Up – Salida

Camp Chief Ouray – Winterpark

Fourmile Hot Spot Visit & Training - Buena Vista

SOS Outreach – Edwards

Telluride Bluegrass Festival – Telluride,

RockyGrass – Lyons

North Boulder Park Classic – Boulder

Gore-Tex TransRockies Run - Buena Vista

Rocky Mountain National Park BioBlitz - Estes Park

Eddie Bauer Speaker Series - Lone Tree

The North Face Adventures Denver – Denver

Front Range Community College - Fort Collins

Flagstaff Academy – Longmont

Adventure Elementary School – Denver

The North Face Outdoor Nation Signature Summit- Denver

New Emerson School - Grand Junction

Watershed School – Boulder

The North Face Speaker Series – Breckenridge

Warren Tech High School – Lakewood

Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day – Lakewood

The Cottage – Aspen

Aspen Elementary School - Aspen

New Mexico:

REI - Santa Fe

Cielo Azul SAFE Before & After School Academic/Recreation Program - Rio Rancho

Utah:

Winter Outdoor Retailer - Salt Lake City

Churchill Jr. High School - Salt Lake City

Utah Valley University - Orem

Legacy Preparatory Academy-Woods Cross

Guide Summit - Moab

Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge - Brigham City

REI - Salt Lake City

Summer Outdoor Retailer - Salt Lake City

Wyoming:

Curt Gowdy State Park - Cheyenne

Wyoming Territorial Prison Historic Site - Laramie

C5 Bridges - Hyattville

Grand Teton Lodge Company - Moran

We are currently building the Traveling Trainers’ 2013 outreach schedule and would love to offer Leave No Trace training in your community. Request a visit from the Team for 2013 here.

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