SH Architecture employees are joining us once again to take care of Nevada's wild lands!  This time we're heading to Cathedral Rock Trail to take care of any damage from winter snows.  SH Architecture is a phenomenal partner and supporter of Friends and we're thrilled to be teaming up again in 2019!

This is a private event.  Friends of Nevada Wilderness coordinates private volunteer opportunities for businesses and other organizations.  It's a great way to give back to the community and increase the camaraderie of your team.  If you'd like to coordinate a similar event for your group, contact us at (702) 515-5417.

Black Rock Rendezvous!

This memorial weekend (May 24-27th) join the community of organizations and individuals who are taking care of the Black Rock Desert for a weekend of stewardship, tours, presentations, and dutch oven cooking. Friends of Nevada Wilderness will be partnering with the Bureau of Land Management, Friends of Black Rock-High Rock, and Nevada Outdoor School to host this event. 

- More details coming soon -

Get Involved!

Join us in giving back to our hiking trails this National Trails Day

Every National Trails Day, we take a group of hard-working volunteers out to Steven's Camp, Nevada (north of the Black Rock Desert and High Rock Canyon) to maintain the High Rock Canyon Trail. This is a great opportunity to see a beautiful part of Nevada and give back to the hiking trails you enjoy year-round. Reserve your spot today!

- More details coming soon -

Staying on Trail in Trail Canyon for National Trails Day 2019!

Join Friends of Nevada Wilderness at Trail Canyon and support our Trail Etiquette program on National Trails Day! We'll be repairing switchbacks and maintaining the trail as we ascend towards the Trail Canyon and North Loop saddle. With an influx of recreationists discovering hiking for the first time each year, there is more need than ever for educating hikers about conservation and trail etiquette, including staying on trail. We will work to reinforce trail boundaries near switchbacks where hikers are more likely to cut the trail. We will also have a National Trails Day chat and look forward to your input on how we can promote conservation on Mt. Charleston to visitors during the 2019 hiking season. 

This project involves hiking 3 to 4 miles with gear and tools at high elevation on a moderately strenuous trail in warm weather. Be If you are unsure about your ability to participate, please feel free to contact us for more details.  We can always recommend a practice hike!

(Due to active weather, last winter and this spring, event location is subject to change. Stay tuned for any updates.)

Every first Thursday of the month, Friends of Nevada Wilderness hosts a local environmental expert at REI Boca Park in their Community Room. This is a great event for folks who are interested in the outdoors to learn more about hikes, local habitat, and ways to get involved with conservation efforts.

Doors open at 6:45 giving you enough time to socialize and grab a snack before the presentation begins at 7 pm.

Please join us at REI Boca Park every first Thursday for a new speaker every month!

Help us take care of the Hunter Creek Trail! 

The Hunter Creek Trail is one of the most-loved and most-used trails in the Reno area. Because of this, it is also one of the most impacted areas in the Mt Rose Wilderness. Join us in giving back to Reno's backyard wilderness by maintaining sections of the hiking trail and removing invasive weeds from the area. It's going to be a fun day of volunteering with great people and rewarding projects. 

We are partnering with Keep Truckee Meadows Beautiful, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, REI Reno Staff, and Mesa Rim Climbing Gym staff and members to take care of the Hunter Creek Trail. 

We will begin work at 7 am and go until around 1 pm. 

 Join us as we work on removing invasive weeds from the Mt. Rose Wilderness. Invasive plants upset the delicate balance of nature by crowding out native species and reducing wildlife habitat. The work is extremely rewarding and you get to experience some beautiful country, all in our backyard wilderness.

We start each Weed Pull at the Hunter Creek Trailhead with a 2-3 mile hike and spend the cool hours of the day digging up Musk Thistle. If you haven't experienced Mt. Rose Wilderness, this is the perfect introduction. Join us for a great outing and RSVP today!

Enjoy alpine meadows, open vistas, and wildlife while helping build Griffith Peak Trail!

Be a part of the volunteer trail crews that will rebuild Griffith Peak Trail this summer!  Sleep under the stars, breathe in the mountain air, experience Mt. Charleston Wilderness up close, and appreciate trails in a new way.  Building trail side-by-side with other outdoors lovers is a fun and immensely rewarding way to give back to the places you love.  Lace up your boots and join us!

For this project, we’ll camp along South Loop Trail, 4.2 miles and 2,900 ft. up from the trailhead.  Each day we’ll put on our day packs and hike to Griffith Peak Trail.  Trailwork will consist of using pick-mattocks and mcleods to cut and level trail tread.  There's truly no better way to get to know Mt. Charleston Wilderness!

Volunteers for this project must complete a Trailwork Volunteer Application.  You only need to fill this form out once a year and will receive a confirmation email within 10 working days of submitting your application.

New to overnight trailwork?  Click here to get a better idea of what it’s like to be a Trailwork Volunteer.

Difficulty Level: Strenuous - This project involves daily hikes of up to 6 miles on challenging terrain, at elevations of 7,500 - 10,800 ft, while carrying tools and all of your gear for the day.  Participants need to be of a high general fitness level to move at a pace that will allow the group to reach trailwork sites by a set time.  Participants should have some experience in the outdoors. This trip will be physically strenuous and extremely rewarding.

About the Trail - Located in Mt. Charleston Wilderness, 5.6 mile Griffith Peak Trail has been closed since being decimated by the Carpenter One fire and successive flooding in 2013.  The trail is currently under an array of logs and, in some places, non-existent.  Before wildfire, the trail provided a quieter alternative to South Loop Trail and offered views of the back of Red Rock Canyon.  Reopening Griffith Peak Trail will give hikers additional access to alpine Bristlecone Pine forests, Griffith Peak (11,059 ft), and Charleston Peak (11,916 ft).  We'll be approaching Griffith Peak Trail from Kyle Canyon, via the South Loop Trail.

About the Trailwork - This project doesn’t require any prior trailwork experience.  You’ll receive a safety and training session before working, including proper techniques and tool use.  We typically leave camp at 8 am and return by 4 pm. Be prepared be away from camp all day by carrying a day pack with lunch and at least 3 liters of water.  We'll be on the trail Thursday - Sunday.  We hope you can join us for the whole hitch, but you can also come for as little as two days.  If you arrive part way through, you’ll need to meet us on the trail.

What You'll Need - Sturdy closed-toe shoes, long pants, and a long-sleeved shirt are required for this project.  You’ll need a day pack and the capacity to carry at least 3 liters of water.  You're responsible for your own camping gear and snacks as well as transportation to and from the project.  Because there’s limited packing space, we’ll be asking some volunteers for this project to use tents that have already been packed up the trail.  

What We'll Have - We'll provide tools, gloves, and hard hats.  We'll have group camp gear, including ample water and cooking gear such as stoves and tables.  We'll be making dinner for everyone at night, have a breakfast bar and coffee in the mornings, as well as basic sandwich fixings so you can make lunch for the day.

Camp - We'll be camping along South Loop trail, 4.2 miles and 2,900 up from the trailhead.  We strongly encourage you to make use of our pack support to get your gear up the trail on Thursday.  That way, more of our energy is spent building the trail rather than hiking up it.  We’ll share more information with you about how to prep your gear to be packed. Otherwise, you are responsible to backpack your gear up to camp.