The snow has fallen, temperatures have dropped, and our annual Volunteer Appreciation party is just around the corner! Join us for our seventh annual "Wilderness Wingding" celebration Tuesday, December 17th. We have an amazing evening planned for you so be sure to bring a friend or two to partake in the festivities and raise a toast to our incredible volunteers! As always, live music, raffle & silent auction items, and delicious food & refreshments awaits. Be sure to come hungry...this year, we are providing a full catered dinner, generously donated by the Law Office of Demetras & O'Neill.

Don't miss out! Tuesday, December 17th
6pm-9pm, Awards Ceremony Begins at 7pm.
California Building in Idlewild Park
55 Cowan Dr.
Reno, NV 89509

Western attire encouraged: come dressed in your Western wear finest - cowboy boots & hats, bolo ties, and perhaps a splash or two of turquoise for good measure.

For information, visit our Wilderness Wingding page, call (775) 324-7667, or email [email protected].

Congratulations to our award winners for 2013:

Please help us in thanking our generous donors for our raffle & silent auction items! For a complete list, visit our Wingding page!

If you'd like to let us know you're coming, RSVP here!

The Perfect Holiday Gift

The 2014 Wild Nevada calendar

We've had such a great response this year to our Wild Nevada calendars - so much so that we only have 200 calendars left in stock! Don't wait to grab your piece of "Wild Nevada" before it's gone.

Click here to find out where to get yours today.

Or, call our office at (775) 324-7667 and we'll be happy to take your order over the phone. We will also be selling calendars at the Wilderness Wingding!

Updates in Wild Nevada

Lost Fire Seedling Plantings

Last month, we partnered with Friends of Black Rock/High Rock, the Nevada Department of Wildlife, and the Cedarville BLM Office on a seedling planting project in North Washoe County. Twenty intrepid volunteers - braving chilly weather and biting wind - came out to plant 9,300 bitterbrush and sagebrush seedlings in areas impacted by the Lost Fire that occurred in August of 2012.

The number of seedling planting is truly astonishing when you think about the hard labor involved. "It's a very difficult task to plant these seedlings since you're up and down all day long," says Pat Bruce, our Stewardship Director, "my hat goes off to these volunteers for their incredible hard work."

Due to the light snow fall during the plantings, coupled with the wet weather immediately falling, we have high hopes for a higher-than-normal survival rate for the seedlings. A big thank you goes out to our fantastic partners for this project and our hardworking volunteers!!

#GivingTuesday

On Giving Tuesday, people like you donated over $3,000 to Nevada's public lands and our wilderness future through Friends of Nevada Wilderness. That is $3,245 towards boots-on-the-ground stewardship, education about the special places that need protection in our state, and fostering the next generation of wilderness stewards.

Gettin' Wild & Scenic in Las Vegas

The 1^st Annual Friends of Nevada Wilderness Wild & Scenic Film Festival was held in Las Vegas in mid-November at the Historic 5^th Street School. We showed a variety of award winning adventure and outdoor films - from "Moonwalk", an intrepid daredevil crossing a slack line in front of an incredible full moon to "Not Yet Begun to Fight", a touching story about veterans, the challenges they face on their return home, and the restorative power that wild lands can provide.

The southern Nevada conservation community turned out in numbers to enjoy the films and participate in the event. Over 10 conservation groups, and businesses tabled in the schools' community room. Kurt Kuznicki, the Associate Director of Friends raved about the event, “Our conservation partners made this event such a huge success that we're planning to host an even bigger and better event next year to celebrate the 50^th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act!"

This event could not have been a success without such a great turn-out and all of our generous sponsors' support! Thank you!!

LUSH Charity Pot Party

Our Southern Nevada Technician, Jesy Simmons, has been quite the busy gal lately! She's been tabling alongside our stellar outreach volunteers at the Tivoli Farmer's Market every weekend in Summerlin, raising awareness of what we do throughout the state and getting more people signed on to support our wild lands.

She also recently had the pleasure of meeting LUSH customers face-to-face at a Charity Pot party they hosted for us. Jesy had such a great time meeting new faces at their Mandalay Bay LUSH store and informing them of our stewardship work near-and-far, as well as the importance of designating Gold Butte as a National Conservation Area. Customers were so enthused that they took time out of their busy holiday shopping spree to sign some Gold Butte postcards to show their support!

For those not familiar with LUSH or the "Charity Pot", be sure to check out their Las Vegas store at the Mandalay Bay. The recipient of our "Corporate Partner of the Year" award, LUSH are the nicest folks you'll ever meet & are HUGE supporters of Friends of Nevada Wilderness and our Gold Butte campaign. Plus, if you purchase a Charity Pot at the shop, the proceeds will go to the work we do for wild Nevada! Pretty cool, huh?

Wovoka & Pine Forest Update

wovoka_0509_bbeffort_(37).jpg

We'd like to thank Congressman Amodei and Congressman Horsford as they continue to work hard with the House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings to move both the Pine Forest and Wovoka bills. In true bipartisanship spirit, these bills remain a top priority for both Congressmen.

Yesterday, Doc Hastings indicated both of these bills could be marked up as early as January of 2014. This next year looks like it could be a great one for a number of our wilderness bills! We'll continue to keep you posted as events unfold and, until then, be sure to call Congressmen Amodei and Horsford to thank them for their bipartisan work for Nevada's wild lands.

We'll Be Hiring!

Thanks to the Mt. Charleston License Plate grant, the Southern Nevada team will be hiring a four person professional trail crew to maintain the Bonanza Trail in the Spring Mountains. The Bonanza Trail is a fifteen-mile trail that mostly meanders through the Mt. Charleston Wilderness, which starts in Lee Canyon on its southern end and ends in Cold Creek to the north. The trail is popular with equestrians and backpackers since it's the longest trail that has easy access to water just about half way through. Over the years, remote sections of the trail have been deteriorating due to lack of maintenance, making some sections hazardous to visitors.

Starting in June, the trail crew will hit the ground running getting this great trail up to standard. Keep an eye out on our website and facebook page for a job announcement soon if you are interested in being part of the crew!

We'll Miss You Brian!

After 12 years of dedicated service, an infectious passion for wilderness, an accomplished run of spring monitoring trips, a keen eye and talent for breathtaking photography, and an artistic flair for producing the best-selling "Wild Nevada" Calendar, with a tear and a smile, we bid farewell to Brian Beffort.

Brian is moving on to new challenges in protecting public lands across the west as he shifts into his new role as Director of Operations at the Great Basin Institute. We wish him all the best on his new job and look forward to seeing him and his wonderful family at our stewardship events in the future!

Upcoming Events

South

December 14, Tivoli Farmer's Market Stop by our table from 8am-1pm while you're purchasing your fresh veggies at the Tivoli Farmer's Market. Jesy will be there with some Friends of Nevada Wilderness stickers and information on what's going on in your wild lands! While you're there, be sure to sign a Gold Butte postcard to show your support to designate Gold Butte as a National Conservation Area.

North

December 15, Boughs and Decoration Making Party, Reno You can help us celebrate and thank our awesome volunteers by helping us put together decorations for the event! Spend just a few hours on Sunday afternoon as we put together center pieces and other decorations for the party. We'll be providing some yummy treats for volunteers who come out! For details and to RSVP, click here!

December 17, Wilderness Wingding, Reno It's finally here! Our seventh annual Wilderness Wingding will take place on Tuesday evening. Join us to thank our amazing volunteers and the outstanding work they do for our wild lands!

55 Cowan Dr.
Reno, NV 89509

January 11, Winter Trails Day This is the 19th Annual Winter Trails Day hosted by REI and we need your help! Join us in this national celebration of winter fun and help us pass out hot coco, meet new folks, and talk about what we do throughout the year for our wild lands. At Tahoe Donner Cross Country Ski Center in Truckee, CA from 11am to 3pm…what better opportunity to start spreading the word about the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act? E-mail Shevawn at [email protected] for more information and to RSVP!

For a complete list of upcoming events, click here.

Donate to Keep Nevada Wild

This giving season, think about the wonderful things our beautiful Earth provides. Make a point to give something back. Donate today to support clean air and water, wildlife habitat, and opportunities for people to get out and enjoy the wonders of nature.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TODAY

Thank you!

Like us on Facebook!

There's a lot going on in Wild Nevada. Monthly e-newsletters aren't enough to keep up with it all.

Head over to Friends' Facebook page and like us there to get all the latest news, favorite photos from wild places, giveaways and more.

Seventh Annual Wilderness Wingding