It is hard to believe, but the seventeenth season of the Youth Conservation Program has come to close for summer 2023. They spent their last two weeks working and learning throughout Grand Teton, and the impact they had on the park will continue to benefit visitors for years to come.
In their second to last week, YCP hiked up Paintbrush Canyon to Holly Lake. They brushed and cleared the trail of rocks and logs that had impeded travel. The group was excited to get into the alpine of the park and enjoyed the views along the way. The day after their long hike, they built new trails at Granite Canyon and Bearpaw Meadows to better align routes from the new Granite Canyon Trailhead at the south end of the Moose-Wilson Road. The crew spent the next day improving the Taggart Lake Loop trail. They removed debris from more than 100 drains! The trail will now drain water much more effectively and be less susceptible to erosion. They finished week nine with the annual sound ecology day with the park's social science team. YCP split into several groups, each going into a different canyon and recording all of the human-caused noises that they observed during the course of the day. This data helps the park better understand visitor use throughout the backcountry.
YCP's last week of the season started with the vegetation crew. They collected native seed that will be used to restore habitat in the park, and they also pulled about 20 trash bags of invasive spotted knapweed at the Gros Ventre Campground. The crew's final project of the season was at Bearpaw Meadows where they finished a reroute of a horse trail they had started the previous week, and were able to finish 400 feet of tread and rehabilitated 150 feet of old trail. Their final day was spent celebrating all of their accomplishments during the summer. The crew shared stories, created a slideshow, and relived some of their favorite memories. YCP also repaired and maintained tools they had used throughout the season. They ended their last day with a game of Trails Olympics and an end of season ceremony with awards and certificates.
The YCP leaders are proud of all this amazing group and all that they were able to achieve this summer! Thanks to our incredible supporters who make this program possible year after year. We know that the crew members just finished a summer they will never forget, all while positively impacting Grand Teton National Park. Thank you!