The oldest and largest state conservation-corps program in the country, California Conservation Corps (CCC) crews return to Yosemite this year, restoring trails and developing life skills. Crew members come from diverse backgrounds and are set on a path to success through employment training, academic education and scholarships.

National Park Service crews provide training for CCC members, teaching them valuable skills such as clearing drainages, repairing bridges and building sturdy stone walls. Young adults learn about the importance of protecting natural resources and providing for safe visitor access. They also leave with practical skills to apply to future careers. In 2014, CCC crews worked in Echo Valley and Kerrick Canyon, where they restored steps, built causeways, removed ruts and more, while also completing educational workshops with Yosemite’s trail, wilderness and interpretive experts.

Your gifts help create best-in-class youth programs and trail restoration. Visitors enjoy improved trails, while youth spend their summers learning valuable skills in the outdoors.

Partnering with CCC, a program for young adults in their late teens and early 20s, and Yosemite National Park.

Lou Summerfield

Branch Chief of Roads and Trails

Project Notes

Everything youth crews do in Yosemite results in a direct improvement to park visitors’ experiences. They build defined pathways to prevent people from wandering on sensitive areas, remove non-native berry bushes to preserve meadows, and fix fire rings to improve campsites. All this work keeps areas of the park accessible and protected.