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Field News Recap- October 2025

All ICC crews are currently wearing yellow hard hats despite the crew names due to a supplier shortage.  Idaho’s Urban and Community Forestry (UCF) crews spent the month of October doing a mix of planting, tree inventory, and community engagement projects across the Treasure Valley. Partnering with the Treasure Valley Canopy Network (TVCN), Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG), City of Meridian, and College of Idaho, crews worked to expand tree canopy coverage and restore native habitats in local parks and neighborhoods. On October 25th, UCF crews supported TVCN by delivering and distributing 180 trees to community members across the region who could not plant the trees themselves. The crews also partnered with the City of Meridian to conduct tree inventories at Kleiner Park, Settlers Park, Fuller Park and Discovery Park, gathering data that will guide future planting and maintenance efforts. With IDFG, crews planted more than 300 native saplings to restore riparian and wildlife habitat, and supported additional planting and removal projects with Boise Parks and Recreation and in the Emmett area. Read the full northwest youth corps field update! Full, monthly recap of all crews from Oregon, Washington, and Idaho Click Here

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Field News Recap- September 2025

All ICC crews are currently wearing yellow hard hats despite the crew names due to a supplier shortage.  Red Crew (YA 37) began their program with technical training before partnering with the Nez Perce–Clearwater National Forest to work along the Lewis & Clark Trail’s West Side. There, they cleared downed trees, brushed overgrown tread, and repaired sections of the historic route. Later, they joined the Idaho Panhandle National Forest to maintain the Skitwish Ridge Trail #2320, completing bridge repair and additional brushing to improve safety and access for recreation users. Orange Crew (YA 38) spent their training week learning trail construction and fireline techniques before partnering with the Idaho Panhandle and Boise National Forests. Their projects took them to St. Joe Lake, Prince Peak, and Clear Creek Road, where they maintained trails and built firelines to improve both recreation access and wildfire preparedness. Blue Crew (YA 39) trained alongside Yellow Crew (YA 40) before beginning projects with the Payette, Caribou–Targhee, and Boise National Forests, and the Central Idaho Mountain Bike Association. The crew maintained trails around Payette Lake, Big Creek, and Curtis Creek, and conducted forest and fish surveys to support ongoing habitat monitoring. They also practiced advanced trail design

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Field News Recap- End of Summer 2025

young adult camping crews All ICC crews are currently wearing yellow hard hats despite the crew names due to a supplier shortage.  Red Crew (YA 25) partnered with the Boise National Forest – Mountain Home Ranger District on fuels reduction projects to improve forest health and reduce wildfire risk. Orange Crew (YA 26) partnered with Boise National Forest – Idaho City Ranger District to construct bridges, supporting trail access and safety for the public. Blue Crew (YA 27) began the month working with Boise Bureau of Land Management (BLM), where they repaired barbed wire fencing and set up steel fencing to protect riparian habitat. Before wrapping up their session, they went to the Payette National Forest in the New Meadows and McCall Ranger Districts to conduct forest surveys. youth camping crews All ICC crews are currently wearing yellow hard hats despite the crew names due to a supplier shortage.  Blue Crew (YCC 16) served in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest and on trails managed by Idaho Fish and Game. These projects included trail clearing in the West Fork Buckhorn Creek area. Red Crew (YCC 17) partnered with Idaho Fish and Game on trails in the Salmon-Challis and Payette National Forests. Their projects included clearing the Six

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Field News Recap- July 2025

young adult camping crews All ICC crews are currently wearing yellow hard hats despite the crew names due to a supplier shortage.  Red Crew (YA 25) began July in the Boise National Forest – Cascade Ranger District, where they completed forest thinning. In the second and third weeks of the month, they continued thinning work, then moved to the Payette National Forest – New Meadows and McCall Ranger Districts to conduct forest data surveys. They ended the month with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Mill Creek, where they focused on invasive plant removal and trail maintenance. Orange Crew (YA 26) worked with the Payette National Forest – New Meadows and McCall Ranger Districts to perform forest data surveys. They then partnered with the Nez Perce–Clearwater National Forest, clearing trails by bucking logs. To close July, they joined the Caribou-Targhee National Forest – Ashton and Island Park Ranger Districts for trail maintenance. Blue Crew (YA 27) started the month with the Payette National Forest – New Meadows and McCall Ranger Districts, where they conducted forest data surveys. For the next three weeks, they partnered with the Idaho Falls Bureau of Land Management to spray herbicide for invasive species management east of Idaho

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Field News Recap- June 2025

young adult camping crews June 4 – august 15 All ICC crews are currently wearing yellow hard hats despite the crew names due to a supplier shortage.  Red Crew (YA 25) spent two weeks in Halfway, Oregon with Pine Valley Firewise conducting fuels reduction on private land. In their third week, they worked with the Boise National Forest at Clear Creek Meadow on forest thinning in a sensitive floodplain area. Orange Crew (YA 26) began the session at Mill Creek with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, clearing woody debris and improving riparian areas. In week two, they worked at Hyatt Hidden Lakes Reserve in Boise removing invasive plants from this urban natural space. Blue Crew (YA 27) contributed to fuel break maintenance and vegetation management in southern Idaho, reducing wildfire risk and improving ecological resilience. youth camping crews may 31 – july 5 All ICC crews are currently wearing yellow hard hats despite the crew names due to a supplier shortage.  Blue Crew (YCC 1) spent the first two weeks at Grays Lake National Wildlife Refuge in southeast Idaho, installing and repairing more than seven miles of fencing to protect wetland habitat from cattle intrusion. They then went on to partner with the

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Field News Recap- May 2025

Idaho Conservation corps Young Adult Camping Crews Orange Crew (YA 13) and Red Crew (YA 14) both spent their active weeks in May at Douglas Falls in northeast Washington, partnering with Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to continue a project from the previous week. The crews built three-rail wood fencing, installed wire fencing, and completed general trail maintenance to support safe recreation and protect adjacent natural resources. Internship Programs: Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument Meet Macie! This summer, Cultural Resources AmeriCorps Member Macie is supporting collections management and fossil preservation at Hagerman Fossil Beds in Idaho. She is pictured here holding a rare set of fossils from Paenemarmota barbouri, an extinct “giant ground squirrel” species that lived 3–4 million years ago. These animals were the largest known members of the squirrel family. Macie’s primary focus is rehousing and reorganizing hundreds of microfossil specimens, such as fish scales and rodent teeth.  This work is part of a larger effort to care for the park’s paleontology collections, improve storage systems, and ensure long-term access for researchers and staff. So far, she’s relocated over 500 microfossil vials to their proper homes. Macie’s internship duties include training in museum collections care, digitization, and cultural resource preservation. Training

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Field News Recap- March 2025

Idaho Conservation Corps Update: young adult camping program Orange Crew (YA 13) began their season at City of Rocks National Reserve (CIRO), where they partnered with CIRO to clear and repair roughly one mile of fencing using loppers, grubbers, fencing pliers, and wire stretchers. They were strapped up with utility belts with replacement materials to maintain the integrity of the fence. They also spliced and re-tensioned the fence where it had been damaged by weather erosion over time. These fences reroute livestock away from more recreational areas and vulnerable environments. After training, the crew traveled to Beverly Dunes Off-Road Vehicle Park, partnering with Washington State Department of Natural Resources (WA DNR), to apply their skills by constructing and reinforcing 5-wire smooth fencing. Over the next three weeks, they focused on building off existing fences and installing new H-braces. This work is essential for managing off-road vehicle access and protecting surrounding habitats. Crew members used post hole diggers, post pounders, fencing pliers, and fence stretchers to complete the work. The crew then continued repairing fencing in Douglas Falls Campground, joining Red Crew. Red Crew (YA 14) began their first week at McKay Creek in Pendleton, Oregon, partnering with Umatilla Electric Cooperative on fuels reduction alongside Northwest Youth

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Field News Recap- February 2025

Idaho Conservation Corps Update: Urban and Community Forestry (UCF) Crews UCF leader training for two leaders and one Woodsboss took place in Oregon’s Silver Falls State Park from February 19th to March 1st. The training covered saw use, fencing, trail maintenance, leadership, and day-to-day program operations. Both Blue Crew (YA Comm 6) and Yellow Crew (YA Comm 7) launched following two weeks of training, which covered structural tree pruning, irrigation techniques, and resume-building sessions. The crews received training from Nampa and Boise city arborists and attended presentations by local municipalities about seasonal job opportunities. Click Here for updates from northwest youth corps washington & Oregon!

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These students are building dams over the summer — with hopes to lure beavers back

Trout Unlimited’s Northeast Oregon Hand Crew members establish beaver dam analogues to create a habitat for the animals Laura Potter, left, and Kalon Shelden helped drive a fence post in along Sheep Creek at the headwaters of the Grande Ronde River, Aug. 7, 2024. (Kristian Foden-Vencil / OPB) (Originally posted to OPB.org on August 31, 2024) By Kristian Foden-Vencil Sheep Creek, a few miles west of La Grande, feeds the headwaters of the Grande Ronde River. Over the years, the area — nestled in the Wallowa–Whitman National Forest that encompasses northeastern Oregon and western Idaho — has been trapped for beavers, logged for timber and farmed for cattle. A group of a dozen young adults, from 18 to 28, just spent their summer trying to return the creek and its surrounding land to a more natural state. “We’re making habitat for beavers,” said Luke Hurley, a forestry student at Southern Illinois University. On one recent Wednesday, the crew pounded a row of six fence posts into the stream then threaded fir boughs in between. On top, they poured river rock and mud to weigh everything down and keep it in place. They were building, in essence, lots of little dams,

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A Summer of Service at Grays Lake

(Originally posted to CaribouCountyNews.com on June 27, 2024) The Grays Lake Refuge includes both riparian areas, which are muddy and wet, and these meadowlands, which are where the cattle are part of a management strategy. This summer, the Grays Lake National Wildlife Refuge 30 miles north of Soda Springs had a new group of visitors.  While the area is set aside as a refuge for wildlife with, in many cases, seasonal migratory habits, it also hosted a group of young people from around the country for several weeks.  In cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Grays Lake Wildlife Specialist Dana Duran, the Idaho Conservation Corps sent a group of seven individuals to help with projects related to the area’s mission to preserve the local ecology and wildlife. Conservation is also something that Fish and Wildlife’s Dana Duran places a high value on.  As the primary overseer of the Grays Lake area, she’s committed to making sure that the area stays well managed for both human and wildlife needs.   Dana Duran began her work at Grays Lake last October, and she’s still getting to know the Gray’s Lake Marsh and the ecosystem, though she seems to have

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