The
Student
Conservation
Association
Desert Restoration Corps
Owens Peak Wilderness
Scott Nordquist, Project Leader
9/28/2010-5/17/2011
Table of Contents
Introduction
Project Overview………………………...…...……………………………………………..3
Site…………….....…………………………………………………………………………..3
Project Goals………………………………………………………………………………..4
The Crew………..…………………………………………………………………………...5
Description of Work Projects
Hard Barriers & Fence.………………...…...……………………………………………...6
Restoration………………………...…...……………………………………………………8
Outreach……..………………………...…...……………………………………………….9
Overall Project Accomplishments…...…………………………………………………..10
Team Highlights………………...…...…………………………………….………………11
Field Operations
Schedule………………………...…...…………………………….………………………13
Transportation…………………...…...……………………………………………………13
Equipment & Supplies…………...…...…………..………………………………………13
Housing………………………...…...……………………………………………………...13
Resources & Contacts
Primary Contact………………...…...……………………………………………….……14
Enrichment Opportunities……...…...…………………………………………….………14
Acknowledgements
Thank you……………………...…...…………………………………...…………………15
Data Maps
GIS Shape files…………………...…...………………………………………………..…16
Cover photo: A view of “base camp” in Indian Wells Canyon, from the Five Fingers
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Project Overview:
The Desert Restoration Corps is a growing project in southern California conducted
through a partnership between The Student Conservation Association and the Bureau
of Land Management. The mission of the project is to inventory, physically restore, and
then rehabilitate illegal off-road vehicle routes in designated wilderness or critical
habitat areas in the California desert. Tracks caused by illegal OHV use last for
decades without active restoration efforts. They scar the wilderness, fragment sensitive
wildlife habitat, prevent re-growth of native vegetation, degrade scenic values, and
encourage continued use.
Though DRC crews have worked in the Southern California since 1999, this was the
first season for a crew to be based in the Owens Peak Wilderness. The major
emphasis of the work was building fences to stop vehicle use on closed routes and in
wilderness. The crew working on these projects included a Project Leader and six
Corps Members. The Project Leader coordinated with the agency contact, Wilderness
Specialist Marty Dickes, to prioritize work projects.
Site Intro:
The Owens Peak Wilderness is located 15 miles northwest of Ridgecrest, CA and
encompasses the rugged eastern face of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and its valleys,
canyons, and alluvial fans. It is a transition zone between Great Basin Desert, Mojave
Desert, and the Sierra Nevada ecological zones. Vegetation varies widely, with
creosote scrub, cacti, Joshua Trees, cottonwood, oak, annual wildflowers in the lower
elevations to pinyon-juniper woodlands and digger/grey pines in the upper elevations.
Wildlife includes rodents, lizards, rabbits, snakes, coyotes, mule deer, bear, prairie
falcon, raven and numerous bird species.
The wilderness is popular for camping, hunting, hiking, horseback riding, rock climbing,
bird watching and wildflower-viewing. The Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail runs the
entire length of the wilderness from Walker Pass in the south to Lamont Meadows in
the north. Other popular hikes include the Owens Peak trail as well as routes up up
Short and Sand Canyon. The wilderness is enjoyed by equestrians who combine
closed vehicle routes with other trails to complete circuits of the area.
Schoolhouse/Heller Rocks and Five Fingers are common rock climbing locations. Bird
watchers frequent the riparian corridor of the various canyons. Sand Canyon is home
to SEEP, the Sand Canyon Environmental Education Project associated with local
elementary schools.
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Project Goals:
To manage the wilderness in accordance with national wilderness goals:
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To provide for the long-term protection and preservation of the area’s wilderness
character under the principle of non-degradation. The area’s natural condition,
opportunities for solitude, opportunities for primitive and unconfined types of
recreation and any ecological, geological, or other features of scientific,
educational, scenic or historical value present will be managed so that they
remain unimpaired.
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To manage the wilderness area for the use and enjoyment of visitors in a manner
that will leave the area unimpaired for future use and enjoyment as wilderness.
The wilderness resource will be dominant in all management decisions where a
choice must be made between preservation of wilderness character and visitor
use.
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To manage the area using the minimum tool, equipment, or structure necessary
to successfully, safely, and economically accomplish the objective, the chosen
tool, equipment, or structure should be the one that least degrades wilderness
values temporarily or permanently. Management will seek to preserve
spontaneity of use and as much freedom from regulation as possible.
To manage nonconforming but accepted uses permitted by the Wilderness Act
and subsequent laws in a manner that will prevent unnecessary or undue
degradation of the area's wilderness character. Nonconforming uses are the
exception rather that the rule; therefore, emphasis is placed on maintaining
wilderness character.
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Purpose:
The work completed was necessary to meet the requirements of the Wilderness Act of
1964, the California Desert Protection Act of 1994, BLM regulations and policies
regarding use and administration of designated wilderness areas, the Federal Land
Management Policy Act of 1976, the California Desert Conservation Area Plan as
amended in 1980, and the West Mojave Plan Amendment of 2005.
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The Crew
Diana Portner
A 25-year-old Illinois native, she recently graduated from the University of Wisconsin –
Madison with a degree in Psychology and a certificate in Environmental Studies. Since
then, she has been pursuing her love of the environment through various internships.
Her next adventure will take her to the University of Michigan as a grad student in the
School of Natural Resources and Environment.
Brogan Tooley
Straight out of high school, Brogan flew 3,000 miles across the country from Maine to
California. Brogan found the desert the perfect place for personal growth and learning.
She enjoyed teaching her crew about the constellations, chiseling perfect notches and
never stopped laughing. Her next step will be college, to further pursue her love of art
and of the environment.
Jonathon Hallemeier
Growing up in the Midwest, his interest in deserts and desert restoration was a fairly
recent development, stemming from a few early hikes in Utah and then two years of
trekking in Egypt and the surrounding region while studying Arabic and Arab oral folk
traditions. In the future, Jon hopes to combine his interest in Arabic and the Middle East
with his passion for conservation issues.
Ryan Hughes
After spending a summer on a trail crew in eastern Washington’s Umatilla National
Forest, Ryan ventured to the California desert. For the summer, he plans to head north
again to the Umatilla National Forest, where he will be working on a Forest Service fire
crew. With help from the SCA, Ryan has been given the opportunity to explore the
Western lands far from his native Oklahoma, and he is not turning back soon.
Michelle Ort
Michelle was born in Toronto, Canada, but grew up in the American Midwest. In coming
to the Desert Restoration Corps, Michelle traveled far outside her comfort zone.
Straight off of a year in northern Russia and never having camped before in her life, for
Michelle this was season of new experiences. She loved it all, from learning to build
fence, to doing push-ups every morning, to sleeping under the stars every night.
Scott Nordquist – Project Leader
Before coming to the Desert Restoration Corps, Scott worked a summer in his beloved
Washington Cascades and guided hikes around the highlands of Guatemala. Though
he missed the trees and water of the Pacific Northwest, he quickly fell in love with the
wide open spaces and harsh conditions of the Mojave. He hopes to continue working
and living outside throughout the Americas.
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Description of Work Projects
Hard Barriers & Fence
Most of the season was spent
working on various fence projects.
Bollard and wire fence was built
using four strands of smooth wire,
with each wire set at a designated
height to accommodate wildlife
such as jackrabbits, deer, and
tortoises. Metal T-posts were
placed 10 feet apart to ensure
strength and dead men, or single
bollards, were incorporated to
support T-posts on uneven terrain.
Each change in direction required
a corner H-brace. Independent
breakaway fences were
constructed across washes to limit Jon & Matt pounding T-posts along the Aqueduct fence
damage caused by storms.
Five Fingers Fence
A 290 meter fence, including one breakaway fence, was built to prohibit access to an
illegal hillclimb leading into the wilderness near Five Fingers. Previous closure
attempts using signage and vehicle barriers had proven ineffective. The former
trespass route totaled 852 meters.
High-Bank Fence
A 178 meter fence was constructed across a
large wash parallel to CA Hwy 178 at the
south end of the wilderness. Though it is
surrounded by private property, riders
accessed the wash where it crossed the
Aqueduct Rd, utilizing it to connect to an illegal
network of routes on the north side of the
highway.
Golden Valley Wilderness Fence
The agency contact encouraged the Owens
Peak Wilderness crew to partner with the Golden Valley Wilderness crew on each
area’s respective fence projects. The Owens Peak crew spent two hitches assisting
with the five-mile fence along the southern border of the Golden Valley Wilderness.
The High-Bank Fence crossing the wash
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Aqueduct Fence
The crew’s main project was a continuous
3282 meter (~2 mile) fence built along the
wilderness boundary, south of Indian
Wells Canyon. The fence paralleled the
Upper Aqueduct Rd, with a standard of
125’ given as right-of-way for the Los
Angeles Department of Water & Power.
The fence blocked off five incursions,
closing approximately six miles of illegal
routes. The importance of building a
high-quality, aesthetically pleasing fence
was stressed by the agency contact. To
meet this expectation, the fence had an
impressive 37 dead men, 23 corner H-braces, and five breakaway fences. The rough
terrain and compact soil made this fence especially challenging and time consuming.
Michelle, Brogan and Ryan finish an H-brace,
leaving a gap for an equestrian step-over.
Golden Valley Project Leader Shannon Waldron and Jon ensure a straight section of fence
despite the difficult terrain along the Aqueduct Fence.
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Site definition
An August 2010 wildfire exposed a set of hard barriers along the wilderness boundary
near the popular Owens Peak trailhead. Without vegetation to define a natural parking
zone, the entire area was at risk of becoming a parking lot. The crew’s first project of
the season was to relocate the hard barriers and define a logical parking zone to allow
for optimal post-burn vegetation recovery and minimize the area impacted.
Restoration
Vertical Mulch
Illegal routes were restored by combining vertical mulch with horizontal mulch and seed
bank transfer. The concept behind vertical mulch was to plant dead plant matter upright
in the ground so that it resembled live plants. Bouquets of mulch were constructed
from branches of dead plants still in the ground of whole plants occasionally found in
washes. Horizontal mulch, such as broken Joshua Tree limbs, was used as ground
cover in empty spaces along the incursion. It allows the soil to be enriched from
decomposing mulch and promotes future growth in that area. Matching mulch to the
size, color, and density of the surrounding plants caused the incursion to blend with its
surroundings to the point that it virtually disappeared. Along with disguising the route,
these dead plants will continue to catch seeds in the wind and provide shade for
animals and new plants. The last step, seed bank transfer, was completed by collecting
seeds from the base of live plants and transferring them into shallow pits under the
piece of vertical mulch. The amount of restoration on an incursion was based on the
line of sight from the legal route of travel.
Restoration - before
Restoration - after
In addition to the typical restoration goal of making a route disappear, two former Jeep
trails were restored into hiker/equestrian trails. This proved to be a unique combination
of trail building and desert restoration completed with the use of berms, soil
decompaction, and the techniques described above with vertical mulch.
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Illegal Jeep trail leading through wilderness
to Schoolhouse Rocks
Restored to hiker/equestrian trail with a stepover incorporated into the fence design
Erosion Control
The crew performed erosion control on three different areas, the hillclimb leading to
Five Fingers, and two All-Corps project in Blythe, CA, and the Jawbone-Butterbredt
ACEC. Steep routes compact soil and encourage the channelization of water. To
eliminate these ruts, the crew installed check dams across the incursion to slow the
speed of water and redistribute soil. On a particularly rocky, wide and deep incursion,
the crew employed a different method of harvesting rock and soil and filling the
incursion to match the surrounding landscape.
Outreach
Finding engaging and productive
opportunities for public outreach in the
Ridgecrest area was a challenge. The
crew was still able to enjoy a variety of
different events, including educating users
on the Rand Mountain Permit, participating
in a cleanup project in Sand Canyon,
teaching along with the Sand Canyon
Environmental Education Project (SEEP),
and tabling at an Earth Day event hosted
by Cerro Coso Community College.
Diana, Ryan and Scott at Earth Day
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Overall Project Accomplishments
Restoration
# of
Incursions
Line of
Sight
(m)
Linear
Meters
Restored
Area
Restored
# Dead
Plants
# Seed
Pits
# Live
Plants
Berms
(m)
6
611
692
1450
370
363
58
3
Check
Dams
47
Hard Barriers
Fence constructed (meters)
Other hard barrier (#, meters)
Active trespasses closed (miles)
3750
76, 178
8+
Outreach
Contacts Made (#):
Events Led & Attended (#, #):
Number of People Reached:
SCA materials distributed (type,
#)?
Other materials distributed
(type, #):
3
1, 2
135
Fliers,
65
Friend of Jawbone maps,
15
Scott examines the erosion control
project below Five Fingers
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Team Highlights
The Owens Peak crew spent most of the season taking pleasure and pride in building
high-quality fence each day. Flush
notches, plumb & level H-braces,
and straight T-post lines aside,
they enjoyed these highlights:
Golden Valley crew member Marko Capoferri (right)
accompanies Jon hiking through the Golden Valley
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 Trained as Wilderness First
Responders
 Visited the Indian Wells
Valley Water District
 Hiked to the top of Owens
Peak (elev. 8452)
 Certified S-212 Power Saws
Learned about birding at the Kern Audubon Preserve
Worked with the three other Ridgecrest crews in their work areas
Took a field trip to the US Forest Service Fire Ecology Burn Lab in Riverside
Trained to operate ATVs
Completed a three day Leave No Trace Trainer course in Joshua Tree NP
Joined a group of dedicated locals to clean up the Sand Canyon ACEC
Walked five miles while carrying over two tons of fencing supplies during one
epic day of work in Golden Valley
Went on a spring Wildflower Walk in the Desert Tortoise Natural Area
Created a unique time zone to mentally avoid 4:30 a.m. wake-ups.
Subscribed to a box of fresh produce through Community Supported Agriculture
Hosted each of the other Ridgecrest crews for at least one work day
Survived the cold, dark winter to enjoy the emergence of spring wildlife
Challenged each other to meet personal goals throughout the season
Endured the unpredictable, tent shredding winds of the Eastern Sierra
Participated in two arduous All-Corps projects with the other DRC crews
Witnessed the smoke clouds and strange aircraft of the China Lake NAWS
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Brogan holding a gigantic
Daikon radish from the CSA
Jon and Ryan finish an H-brace on the
Five Fingers Fence project
“No matter what the weather, we always managed to enjoy our evenings singing,
reading stories, or having deep discussions, and most of the time slept like babies
under the stars after our hard work.” –Diana Portner
Jon, Ryan, Michelle & Diana relax on Cuddeback Lake after a day’s work in Golden Valley
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Field Operations
Schedule
Work was primarily based on a 10-day hitch schedule, with five days off in between.
Each crewmember had the responsibility to plan a menu and organize work for two
hitches. Day one was spent preparing food and packing up tool and supplies to head
to the field that evening. Eight full 8-hour work days were spent based out of the
nearest suitable campsite to that hitch’s work. Day ten was used to pack up camp and
drive back to town to clean, maintain and store everything that went to the field.
Transportation
A Chevy Suburban and Dodge Ram were the primary means of transportation. The
bed of the Dodge was often filled to capacity with tools and fence supplies. A 10’
trailer, complete with a 100-gallon water tank, transported everything necessary to setup a field-based base camp. Having access to an additional work trailer to haul fence
supplies would have been very beneficial to eliminate extra trips out of the field to resupply.
Equipment & Supplies
SCA provided a tool cache at the beginning of the season. This was supplemented
with purchases from our Field Supplies budget in order to have everything necessary
to:
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Build fence
Restore incursions
Collect data
Camp in the field for 10 days at a time
Housing
The crew was housed in a two-bedroom, one-bath house in Ridgecrest. Food was
prepared in the house kitchen on day one. The house had internet access and a crew
computer, which was used to write hitch reports, store data and photos, produce
outreach materials, and update the blog on the SCA website. The small size of the
house, especially the kitchen, was a prohibiting factor to get out to the field more
efficiently.
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Resources & Contacts
Primary Contact:
 Marty Dickes, Wilderness Specialist
Bureau of Land Management
300 S Richmond Rd, Ridgecrest CA 93555
Phone: (760) 384-5400. Email: mdickes@blm.gov
Enrichment Opportunities
 Alison Sheehey, Outreach Director
Kern River Audubon Preserve
18747 Hwy 178. Weldon CA 93283
Phone (760) 378-2029
 Keith Axelson, avid birder
Sageland Ranch
PO Box 967, Weldon, CA 93283
Phone (760) 371-6116
 Kimberly Schwartz, Student Activities Officer
Cerro Coso Community College
3000 College Heights Blvd, Ridgecrest CA 93555
Phone: (760) 384-6353 E-mail: kjkelly@cerrocoso.edu
 Sally Haase, Research Forester
Pacific Southwest Research Station
4955 Canyon Crest Dr, Riverside CA 92507
Phone (951) 680-1551
 Carrie Woods, Wildlife Biologist
Bureau of Land Management
300 S Richmond Rd, Ridgecrest CA 93555
Phone: (760) 384-5400. Email: cwoods@blm.gov
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Thank you…
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Marty Dickes, for sharing your love of wilderness
Keith Axelson, for showing how to enjoy living in the desert
Carrie Woods, for your plant knowledge and a great BBQ
Bob Weinbeck, for your dedication to Sand Canyon
Everyone at SEEP, for helping kids enjoy the outdoors
Sally Haase, for giving a tour of your work
Kim Schwartz, for encouraging The DRC to perform outreach
Alison Sheehey, for teaching how to make bird calls
Steve Hester, for fostering a culture of open communication and personal growth
Jill Kolodzne, for showing the value of laughing and teaching at the same time
Abundant Harvest Organics, for providing a lesson in local food with each week
Jamie Weleber and Darren Gruetze, for taking time to make site visits, helping
the crew become better teachers, and your dedication to the DRC
 Everyone we never met who gave us the opportunity to live & work in the desert!
“The view from the top was a reminder of why we love working out here and
what we have accomplished this year” – Michelle Ort
Scott, Diana, Brogan, Ryan, Michelle & Jon on top of Owens Peak
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GIS Map
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