Background: Over the past several years gill nets have been set in this lake over the winter to remove hybrid fish that are a threat to the CGT found downstream in the Golden Trout Creek watershed. 

Activity: We will assist CDFG personnel in removing the nets and will backpack them out to the roadhead at Horseshoe Meadow. We will camp at Horseshoe Meadow Friday night, walk in Sat. morning, remove and load the nets, and hike out at the end of the day, approximately 5 mile hike each way.    

What to bring: Bring a large, empty pack to use to carry out the nets. Bring all your own camping gear (car camping) and food. 

Volunteers: Twelve (12) volunteers are needed.

Activity: Help put up the fence at the wildlife area and the USFS Olivas pasture to keep the cattle out and protect the habitat along the South Fork of the Kern River and Monache Creek.  We will also assist CDFG by fishing in the Kern River above and below the Schaeffer Barrier to collect fin samples for genetic monitoring purposes.  Pot luck and barbecue Saturday night with meat and homemade ice cream provided by Orvis & CDFG.   We will meet at Blackrock, 4x4 carpool in Friday night, possibly another group can drive in on Saturday morning.  Plan on a full work day on Sat., 1/2 day Sun., potluck dinner on Saturday.

What to bring: Volunteers need to bring their own food, including a contribution for the potluck, and your own camping equipment.  Be prepared for very cold nights and warm days.  Bring work gloves and pliers, all other tools will be furnished. The road into Monache requires 4 wheel drive — we will coordinate car pooling so that everyone does not need their own vehicle.   Early morning and afternoon fishing for golden and brown trout in the South Fork of the Kern.

Volunteers: 20 - 30 volunteers total.

Camp Friday and Saturday nights at Beach Meadow, and hike from Blackrock Saddle, 1.75 miles to Nine Mile Creek for all training activities.  Everyone must arrive Friday night and bring all their own food and camping gear for car camping.  Outhouse facilities and potable drinking water are available at Beach Meadow.

Each team will need a GPS unit, and digital camera.  If you don't have this gear, we will supply it for project use.

Background: As part of the effort to determine what constitutes a "pure" California Golden Trout, and to locate transplanted populations that may exist outside their native range, CDFG is conducting a systematic collection of tissue samples from trout throughout the southern Sierra in various waters.  Tissue samples collected in 2004 will later be used for DNA analysis which will help toward a better understanding of  the genetic composition and geographic distribution of remaining populations of California golden trout.

Activity: Volunteers, in teams of two to four persons, will hike in to remote areas to catch fish and collect genetic samples by taking small fin clips.  Fish will not be harmed and will be returned to the stream after sampling is completed.  Volunteers participating in this monitoring work must attend one training session (see dates above) before they will be assigned a specific monitoring area.  Once you attend a training and receive a monitoring assignment, you go out to do the sampling anytime you wish during the summer and early fall.  Complete information on sampling, along with maps of your assigned area, will be furnished to participants.  There will be opportunity for up to 40 people total to participate in these monitoring trips.

Training content:

• Protocols for collecting samples, recording data, handling fish, etc.
• Wilderness orientation, basic first aid, GPS & compass usage

What to bring: In order to participate in this work you must be able to catch fish and have your own fishing gear and net, have adequate wilderness skills and gear, be in good physical condition, and be able to follow basic data collection procedures. This activity is dependent on receiving a collecting permit from CDFG, which we have no reason to believe is not forthcoming.

Volunteers: 40 people total (10 teams total, 2 - 4 people per team)

LOCATION:  Headwaters of the Kern

Activity: This will be a group trip that will be primarily backpacking.  A packer with mules will bring in and drop our gear at Anvil Camp, the first night's campsite and a 4000 ft. climb from the trailhead. We will be carrying full packs with all our gear after the mules leave on day two, as we climb another 2000 ft over Shepherd Pass (12,025 ft. elev.).  The group, under the direction of CDFG staff, will hike and fish the high county taking samples and moving into a variety of subbasins over the course of the trip.  We will meet Friday evening 7/24 at the Shepherd Pass Trailhead (west of Independence), get organized the next morning and begin walking.  We will be out to the cars by afternoon of August 1.  Some meals may be organized as a group.  Cost for food is expected to be approx. $10 per day.

It is NOT necessary to complete a training session to participate in this trip, as we will train participants once we begin sampling. 

What to bring:  All of your backpacking, camping, fishing and food supplies.

Volunteers: There is room for 12 volunteers on this trip.

This work day is an annual event, coordinated by Sequoia National Forest, up to 75 volunteers can participate in stream bank and meadow restoration work.  We'll have more details by mid-summer, as we get organized around this project.

Activity: Templeton Barrier is critical as it separates pure golden trout upstream of the barrier from non-native fish downstream on the South Fork of the Kern River.  This work party will monitor trout by electrofishing in the area of the Templeton Barrier to ensure that fish are not moving upstream over the barrier. Nearby Strawberry Creek will also be electrofished to remove non-native trout because these fish could potentially move around the barrier when conditions are favorable.  Volunteers will assist  CDFG personnel with electrofishing and data collection, and will help with camp preparations, etc.  We will meet Fri. afternoon at Horseshoe Meadow (west of Lone Pine), walk in about 10 miles via Trail Pass Saturday morning -- an all day hike -- and camp at Lewis Stringer.  The USFS packer will bring in our personal gear, equipment and supplies and return at the end of the trip to pack our gear out.  All food will be coordinated and purchased for the group -- there will be $40 per person charge to cover food costs.

What to bring: All of your own backpacking, camping and fishing gear.

Volunteers: We need 10 volunteers for this project.

Activity: Help take the wildlife area fence down for the winter.  Pot luck and barbecue Saturday night with meat and homemade ice cream provided by Orvis & CDFG.  The road into Monache requires 4 wheel drive -- we will coordinate car pooling so that everyone does not need their own vehicle.  Early morning and afternoon fishing for golden and brown trout in the South Fork of the Kern.  Work full day Sat, potluck dinner on Saturday night, drive out (fish) on Sunday.

What to bring: Volunteers need to bring their own food, including a contribution for the potluck, and your own camping equipment. Be prepared for very cold  Bring work gloves and pliers, all other tools will be furnished.

Volunteers: 10 volunteers total.

Location note:  All activities will take place in the Sierra Nevada mountains, where we will be at elevations from 7,000 to 12,000 feet.  Remember, we will have warm days with potentially very cold nights.  A good sleeping bag is critical.  The main access point from the west is from the city of Bakersfield, with most roadheads for our activities about 2.5 to 3 hrs. additional driving time from Bakersfield.  For some trips, such as the Chicken Springs Lake trip, access is from Hwy. 395 (south of Bishop), which is on the east side of the Sierra.