EAST CHARLESTON — The NorthWoods Stewardship Center has begun hiring local conservation crew leaders and members for the 2019 field season.
The NorthWoods Stewardship Center, now in its 30th year of operation, runs youth conservation crews in partnership with US Fish & Wildlife refuges in six states, and hires 2-3 crews locally, working on trail and watershed improvement projects on public and private lands throughout the Northeast Kingdom.
Vermont crews will be based at the Silvio O. Conte Fish & Wildlife Refuge, Nulhegan Basin Division in Brunswick and at the NorthWoods Stewardship Center home campus in East Charleston.
Projects vary by season and refuge but can include the building or improvement of public access trails, habitat improvement, and wildlife monitoring.
Last year, crews at the Nulhegan USFWS Refuge installed 11 bog bridges on the Mooseway Trail and constructed 2.5 miles of new trail from the Lewis Pond Overlook to the summit of Gore Mountain.
Local NorthWoods crews completed a Universal Access Trail at Moose Bog and Sentinel Rock and cut over 6 miles of new trail over the Bluff Ridge.
Crew leaders and members aged 15 through 20-years-old are hired to work 40 hours per week for 6-8 weeks from June through August.
“This is a great opportunity for local youth interested in environmental conservation to be paid to gain training and hands-on experience in the field,” said NorthWoods Conservation Corps Field Coordinator, Dusty May.
“Even for those who don’t plan on pursuing a career in conservation, the YCC and NorthWoods crews provide valuable skills in learning to persevere, work hard, and tackle projects as a team.”
Many of the alumni consider their work on the crews to be some of the most rewarding and influential work experiences of their teenage years.
Hiring for local crews opened in January and continues through April.
Interested applicants should visit northwoodscenter.org to learn more and apply, or contact [email protected], or 802-723-6551×304.
Photo caption: 2018 Backcountry Crew member Tony Barnett clearing trail on the Bluff Ridge.
