STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
A clean sweep across the Sawtooth National Recreation Area is being planned beginning mid-September.
Volunteers are wanted to take part in the second annual cleanup at their convenience between Sept. 12 and 25.
Last year’s inaugural cleanup, created to address trash left behind by the immense number of pandemic campers and trail users, resulted in 300 pounds of trash picked up and 150 campsites restored. Volunteers tallied more than 900 hours.
Activity at trailheads remained busy this summer, but Forest Service workers and others identified only a third of the abandoned campfires of the previous summer, said Kurt Nelson, district ranger for the Ketchum Ranger District.
Individuals and small groups who would like to volunteer for the cleanup are encouraged to sign up for a self-guided cleanup effort at https://tinyurl.com/snracleanup21
Choose a project and indicate when you plan to go and where you would like to pick up your cleanup kit. You will receive an email with additional instructions.
Those who complete a brief report about their cleanup efforts will be entered into a raffle for a set of Hydroflask insulated coffee containers donated by the National Forest Foundation, a Steri Pen water purifier donated by Backwoods Sports and a gift card donated by the Elephants Perch.
The effort is spearheaded by the Idaho Conservation League, Sawtooth Society, Sawtooth Interpretive and Historical Association, Environmental Resource Center, Pulaski Users Group and the National Forest Foundation.
Questions? Contact Stevie Gawryluk at sgawryluk@idahoconservation.org or 208-345-6933, extension 202. Or, contact Dalton Warr at dalton@sawtoothsociety.org or 208-899-9244.