Hand in the Dirt, Boots on the Trails: Mid-Season Wilderness Steward Update
Editor’s Note: This blog was authored by Lilia Page. Lilia joins ICL for the summer of 2025 to help with the administration of the ICL Wilderness Stewards Program and will be contributing a series of blogs reflecting on the program, on Wilderness, and central Idaho’s amazing public lands.
Cecil D. Andrus White-Clouds Wilderness. Bruce Becker photo.
“We abuse land because we see it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect." - Aldo Leopold
I believe this sentiment strikes particularly true lately. We must belong to the wilderness, not abuse it. The mission of the Wilderness Stewards Program is precisely that: to cultivate love, respect, and stewardship for the wilderness. That is where we begin to grasp the true value of the wild landscapes preserved in the American West.The Wilderness Stewards Program began in 2016 to restore, protect, and enhance wilderness character throughout Central Idaho’s designated and recommended wilderness areas. With more than a half million acres of designated wilderness in the WSP patrol zones, Wilderness Steward volunteers serve as an extension of hands, ears, and eyes for land management agencies. Between June and November, Wilderness Stewards go on independent patrols throughout our beloved Idaho backcountry, naturalizing backcountry campsites, clearing illegal fire rings, removing waste, and collecting data about trail use for our land management agencies. Let’s take a look at the fascinating details of how Stewards have been giving back this summer, in the 9th year of the program.
Cabin Creek Lake. Photo by Martha Williams
Here’s what we’ve been up to so far this summer:
- Total Patrols: 141. That’s over 3 times as many as last year!
- Active Volunteers: 45
- Visitors Encountered: 2,831
- Volunteer Hours: 961 (the equivalent of 40 consecutive days).
- Miles Patrolled: 998
Patrols by Area:
- Sawtooth Wilderness: 83
- Cecil D Andrus White Clouds Wilderness: 26
- Jim McClure-Jerry Peak Wilderness: 14
- Hemingway-Boulders Wilderness: 18
- Salmon-Challis Recommended Wilderness: 4
- Craters of the Moon National Monument: 2
Bruce Becker photo.
The highs from our volunteers:
- “Beautiful wildflowers”
- “Pikas heard in talus slopes starting around 7800’ on a hike to Amber Lakes”
- Some of the nature and wildlife sightings included sunsets, wildflowers, mule deer, marmots, bald eagles, monarch butterflies, mountain goats, and pika.
- “37 weeks pregnant and made it up to Bench Lakes!”
- “There were hundreds, maybe thousands, of butterflies flying up the upper mountain talus slopes of Thompson Peak!”
- “2 mountain goats and 2 bald eagles at Emerald Lake!”
- “Some of this burn area from the Wapiti fire will take decades to come back. It is still beautiful.”
Wilderness Steward dismantling a fire ring.
And the lows:
- 83 illegal campfire rings removed
- Oversized groups of hikers (over the wilderness regulation group size of 12)
- 86 dogs off leash in the Sawtooths (in violation of wilderness regulations, which require leashes annually between July 1 and Labor Day)
- Discarded toilet paper
- Human and dog waste
- Noxious weeds
- More than 12 lbs of trash packed out including water bottles, batteries, beer cans, fishing lines, tin foil, feminine hygiene products, lost clothes, food wrappers, dog bags, microplastics, and rolls of toilet paper and paper towels.
Photo by Dell-Ann Benson.Twelve pounds of trash and a dozen human-waste incidents stick out sharply along otherwise spotless trails. Every small piece of trash picked up and each time you practice the simple Leave No Trace principles, you are ensuring that our wilderness areas stay pristine. There’s real power in coming together, even if it’s in the solitude of the wilderness. Although individual efforts can feel small or insignificant, they add up to create meaningful, positive change. In the face of climate change and environmental degradation, we must hold on to this truth. We are incredibly grateful to our Wilderness Stewards for giving back, recreating with purpose, and making a lasting impact in Central Idaho’s Wilderness, one patrol at a time.On your next wilderness adventure, please leave the trail and your campsite better than you found it as a gift to the next person who uses it. As the old proverb goes: “Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children.” - Crazy Horse
How do I become a Wilderness Steward?
Want to join and help preserve our wonderful wilderness? The Wilderness Stewards Program is an awesome opportunity to…
- Give back
- Recreate with purpose
- Practice Leave No Trace Principles
- Deepen your connection to Wilderness
- Be a part of the ICL community
- Support the US Forest Service in maintaining Wilderness Areas
- Learn, grow, and help educate others as a backcountry recreator
- Steward and protect the land and wildlife you love
Fill out the WSP 2026 Inquiries form to keep in touch with us and learn how to become a Wilderness Steward next summer. We’d love to hear from you! Learn more about the Wilderness Steward Program here!Want to get involved even sooner? Another way to make a positive impact is to become a member of ICL. Join during our September membership drive to help ICL continue to protect the air you breathe, the water you drink, and the lands and wildlife you love.
Wilderness Steward Robin Crotteau on patrol near Scoop Lake.
SNRA End of Season Clean-Up
Join Idaho Conservation League, the Environmental Resource Center, Idaho Trails Association, Idaho Rivers United, Wood River Trails Coalition, Sawtooth Society, Sawtooth Interpretive and Historical Association, and the U.S. Forest Service for the sixth annual SNRA End-of-Season Cleanup!
- Dates: Sept 15-29
- Volunteers are self-guided – you choose the date that best suits your schedule and the locations you’d like to help out with!
- You’ll be provided with instructions, trash bags, latex gloves, snacks, and other resources to facilitate the work.
- To learn more about the SNRA, click here.
Grab your friends & family and help give back to this iconic area of Idaho by REGISTERING HERE!