PLEASE NOTE: Volunteers on these projects will be based with ACE Arizona in Flagstaff
Gila National Forest Trails: (July - September 2007)
The Gila National Forest has spectacular scenery ranging from high cool mountains with aspen and douglas fir to warm semi-arid lowlands with juniper, oak and cactus. It is one of the more remote and least developed National Forests in the southwest. Covering 3.3 million acres of publicly owned forest and range land, the Forest is the sixth largest National Forest in the continental United States. The Forest is also home to the first designated Wilderness area in the United States. For the past three years and continuing in the summer and fall of 2007, ACE crews have partnered US Forest Service professionals reconstructing trails damaged by fire and/or years of neglect. The project will take place in a remote section of the Gila Wilderness, requiring a difficult 12 mile hike to reach base camp. Expect cold nightime conditions, spectacular scenery, and limitless opportunity to challenge yourself in a truly isolated environment. In many senses, Gila National Forest Trails may be ACE's most demanding and most appreciated projects, with hikes of up to 35 KM to the project site. Gila projects are intended for corpsmembers endowed with a sense of adventure, a spirit of determination, and strong set of legs and lungs!
