February 1st, 2022 | This year the Forest Service started a major reconstruction project on the popular Cathedral Rock Trail. This project is tackling deferred maintenance on a trail unlike any other on the Coconino National Forest. As the Forest’s second busiest trail, and located in a sensitive place by Oak Creek, the project is needed to protect watershed health and to provide an enduring high-quality experience for trail users.

January 20th, 2022 | The 18 people spending their day (or days, in some cases) with the trees included civilians from all walks of life, members of the Arizona and Nevada Conservation Corps, and a group of women who brought along two pack camels to help carry baby Joshua trees through some of the more treacherous terrain. Joshua trees typically have a lifespan of 150 years; if all goes according to plan, these saplings will become a fixture of the preserve for a long, long time.

December 26th, 2021 | Climate change was again a major focus in Flagstaff in 2021 and the region saw the effects firsthand with a summer of extreme wildfires. The community moved forward on critical climate regulations and worked proactively to curb the severity of future issues, with some drawing public criticism.

Dec 22, 2021 | After Bighorn burned almost 120,000 acres between June 5 and July 23, 2020, the Forest Service closed the burn scar area to the public including almost 207 miles of trails. A combination of nonprofit group work, grant-funded conservation corps, and Forest Service staff work has steadily opened more trail sections over the past year.

November 10th, 2021 | Arizona Conservation Corps crew members are working with Cocopah to reduce the risk of wildfires and restore the habitat on the west reservation.

November 10th, 2021 | When a group of Arizona Conservation Corps workers were performing trail maintenance in upper Oak Creek Canyon last month, they came upon a rare sight next to an unofficial trail: Five olive gray snakes with faint reddish spots intertwined in courtship.

October 22, 2021 | "This week, a group of Arizona Conservation Corps (AZCC) members completed the second phase of a project that officials hope will rehabilitate many areas along the corridor that have been hit hard by visitors, improve water quality in the creek and protect habitat for the threatened narrow-headed garter snake.

The project, a collaboration between countless groups including the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, National Forest Foundation, Coconino National Forest’s Red Rock District and the AZCC, seeks to close hundreds of unofficial social trails that crisscross the area between the highway and the creek."

August 26, 2020 | Last year, the National Park Foundation provided over $3.5 million to service corps programs at more than 30 national park sites. These crews accomplished critical maintenance projects like habitat restoration, trail maintenance, historic building restoration, and more, all while gaining work experience and hands-on skills. In all, these service corps members helped to remove over 70 acres of vegetation and restore 700 acres of natural habitat.

August 7, 2020| PAYSON - During the week of June 15, Friends of the Tonto National Forest board member Scott Wood worked with Angie Abel of the Payson Ranger District and the Arizona Conservation Corps (AZCC) to clear brush and noxious weeds and repair trails at the Shoofly Village Ruins.

July 7, 2020 | COTTONWOOD – The Verde Valley Cyclists Coalition was recently awarded a $102,000 trail building grant from the Catena Foundation for Phase 2 of the Blowout Wash Trail System.

The Blowout Wash Trail System is a three-year construction project within the Verde Ranger District of the Prescott National Forest. It’s a 27-mile stacked, loop system to facilitate recreational opportunities, both close-in and farther-out, located on the east slope of Mingus Mountain adjacent to the communities of Cottonwood, Clarkdale and Jerome.

According to VVCC President Marty Glinsky, the project’s second-phase construction will build nine miles of loop trails utilizing Arizona Conservation Corps youth crews, volunteers and Forest Service personnel.