Meadow Rover and Interpretation training scheduled

Dear Meadow Rovers:

Spring is on its way and we are looking ahead to a busy summer. We want to make you aware of some training opportunities that will be taking place in June. Our seasonal training will happen on May 31-June 4 and June 8-June 10. The first week will be for the interpretive staff and for those volunteers that will be presenting programs. The second week we will be bringing in subject matter experts and is open to all that are interested in attending. The training schedule will be sent out once it has been finalized.

Training for Meadow Rovers will also take place in June. We will be doing things a little differently by having training for new meadow rovers on Saturday, June 25 in the park. Meadow Rovers that have not attended training in the past are also invited. An agenda will be sent out with a request to RSVP.

Specialized training for experienced meadow rovers will take place on Sunday, June 26. We are currently looking to have this training take place at the Mountaineers’ facility in Tacoma. We will be bringing in a representative from Leave No Trace to talk about the concepts of minimal impact to the resources and how to share that information with visitors. Once the agenda has been developed we will send it out asking you to RSVP as we will be limited to 40 people.

As we look ahead, we would like to begin offering more specialized training for returning meadow rovers. If you have any suggests for topics and/or types of training you feel would be beneficial please email Mora_Meadow_Rovers@nps.gov. Please put “Training” in the subject line. We will use your ideas as we plan for trainings in the future.

Stay tuned for more information on the June trainings.
 
- Christine Czazasty
East District Interpreter

Trails Work Party April 30th

From John Titland of the Mount Rainier National Park Associates, one of our most dependable volunteer partner groups:

Greetings,

The first Mount Rainier National Park Associates trails work party for 2011 will be on Saturday, April 30th. That's the Saturday after next. The project will be to work on the Boundary Trail which begins right at the Carbon River entrance. We will meet at the Carbon River entrance station at about 8:30 AM and be ready to move out by 9:00 AM.

Be prepared for uphill hike to the work site. As always, bring your lunch and plenty of fluids to drink, work gloves and safety glasses, and a full set of rain gear. During April it is common to have rain or wet snow falling, so bring some warm clothing too.

If you plan to attend this April 30th trails work party and have not yet contacted me, please write to volunteer@mount-rainier.org indicating that you are coming and give me the number of volunteers you expect to accompany you. I need an estimate of the number of volunteers so that Park staff can be sure to have enough tools for us all.

There are safety equipment requirements for all MRNPA trail work volunteers. (These rules apply to all trail workers.) Anyone using an aggressive tool - like a Pulaski, ax, shovel, etc. - or anyone working near them - is required to wear a hard hat and safety glasses. People working with or near a less aggressive tools are not required (but will be encouraged) to wear a hard hat. If you own a hard hat that you can wear, please bring it. If you do not have a hard hat, we have hard hats that we loan for the day the day.

Wearing safety glasses is encouraged at all times. Not all safety glasses are comfortable for everyone and some will not fit over eye glasses. Because of cleanliness issues, some people don't like wearing safety glasses that have been worn by other people. For these reasons, and probably many others, please purchase (acquire, find, dig-up, whatever) a pair of personal safety glasses that you will wear. The local hardware store is a good place to start shopping. A serviceable pair or safety glasses will cost about $10. And be advised that shatterproof eye glasses do not meet the requirement for safety glasses. Safety glasses all have side protection which eyeglasses do not.

John Titland
Volunteer Coordinator
Mount Rainier National Park Associates

Meadow Rover Brunch set for May 7

From Meadow Rover volunteer and Tacoma Mountaineers member Amy Mann:

May 7, Sat., 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. - Potluck Brunch hosted by the Tacoma Branch Hiking & Backpacking Committee and the Mt. Rainier Volunteers In the Park (VIPs), at the Tacoma clubhouse, 2302 N. 30th Street, Tacoma, WA 98403. All Mountaineers members, as well as Non-Members, are welcome to attend this event to find out about volunteering at Mount Rainier National Park and to help the Park VIPs kick off the 2011 Meadow Roving season. There are a number of Tacoma Mountaineers who volunteer at Sunrise during the summer, as well as other Mountaineers who volunteer at Paradise and in the backcountry on a year-round basis.

Opportunities at the Park abound - check out the volunteer opportunities listed on the Park website, http://www.nps.gov/mora/supportyourpark/volunteer.htm, and at the VIP blog http://rainiervolunteers.blogspot.com/. It's a terrific job! If you have just a couple of days a month (weekends or weekdays) there is something for you to do at MRNP. If you've done all the trail maintenance and rebuilding that your body can handle, meadow roving might be just the ticket to get you out and let you give something back to the Park.

Bring something yummy to share for brunch. We'll plan to start serving food at 9:30 a.m. Doors will be open by 8:00 a.m. if you want to come early to slip your treat into the oven to heat it up. Coffee, tea, juice, tableware will be provided. Questions or for directions, contact Carol Berry, busbuster@aol.com, 253-845-9297, Amy Mann, agmann@comcast.net, 253-759-2796, or Martha Scoville, garyandmartha@harbornet.com, 253-752-5014.

[This is an annual event and always fun. Check out our previous blog entries for more information. - Ed.]

New features added to blog!

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