Hello Charter Members of Friends of the Dillon Ranger District (FDRD)!

I’d like to introduce to you the First Newsletter of FDRD. The purpose of the newsletter is to keep us connected to each other. I hope that it keeps you informed of the activities of FDRD and that you find it interesting. Our “Nature Notes” section will include cool facts, stories, or activities submitted by our “friends”…. feel free to send your nature note to us and you may be published in our next newsletter!! I will publish the newsletter monthly, through the summer, and go from there. If you have any feedback, suggestions, and ways to improve the newsletter, please share them with me! ENJOY!!

FRIENDS OF THE DILLON RANGER DISTRICT

May 2005 Newsletter

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Saturday, May 21 – National Forest Clean-Up Day – 9:00 AM- 1:00PM – Please join us for our first service project of 2005. Help pick up trash visible after the spring snowmelt at the trailheads of your favorite trails in the county. We will meet at the following locations at 9:00:

· Breckenridge - Boreas Pass Trailhead parking lot (other potential trails throughout the day - Sally Barber, French Gulch, Golden Horseshoe)

· Frisco - Park-n-Ride parking lot at I-70 and Main Street Exit - next to Fiesta Jalisco - (potential trails - North 10 Mile, Lily Pad Lake/Meadow Creek)

· Silverthorne - Dillon Ranger District - Across from Target (potential trails - Lily Pad, Buffalo Cabin, Mesa Cortina, Rock Creek)

· Dillon/Keystone - Old Dillon Reservoir Trailhead parking lot (other potential trails - Straight Creek, Tenderfoot, Keystone Gulch, Montezuma area trails)

Please dress for a day outdoors - dress in layers, bring water, lunch, work gloves, long pants, sturdy boots, sunglasses, sun hat, rain gear, insect repellent, and sunscreen.

Snacks and beverages will be provided at the end of workday tailgate party (around 1-ish). Please contact me at guffvanvooren@msn.com to RSVP for this service project. If you are aware of trailheads that could use a good trash pick up effort, let us know and we'll consider including it in our effort that day.

If you can’t make it on the 21^st, but are interested in helping out with this effort, we could sure use your help leading up to the 21^st in the following ways: distribute flyers in your area of the county, solicit food donations for the day, pick up food donations for the day, or distribute press releases and contact the media for exposure. If you are interested in any of these efforts, please contact me at the above email.

2005 FDRD Summit County Volunteer Calendar - FDRD is compiling a summer volunteer calendar, including various efforts of twenty resource management non-profit organizations in Summit County. We are very excited about this collaborative effort with these organizations, and hope the calendar generates additional support for the wonderful efforts of these organizations. We will email this to you in the next few days.

If you are interested in helping out with this calendar effort, we will be distributing flyers throughout the county, distributing press releases and contacting the media for exposure. If you are interested in any of these efforts, please contact me at the above email.

DATES TO REMEMBER

Mark your summer calendars for these upcoming FDRD events:

· Volunteer Crew Leader Training and Trail Days (Various)

· Forest Restoration Day (Sat., June 11)

· Invasive Species Weed Pull Day (Sat., July 9)

· Wilder Gulch Trail Restoration-Dillon Ranger District/Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) (Sat.-Sun., July 30-31)

· Gold Hill Trail Restoration-Dillon Ranger District/VOC (Sat.-Sun., July 30-31)

· Fuels Mitigation Day (Sat., August 6)

· Volunteers Celebration Day (Sat., September 10)

· Make a Difference Day (Sat., October 8)

NEXT BOARD MEETING

Monday, May 16 at the Dillon Ranger District.

An executive session will run from 6:00 - 6:30 PM, and then will be open to our members and other interested parties at 6:30. If you are interested in attending, RSVP to me by May 15.

Our Board members include: Kathryn Davis Grohusky (President), Currie Craven (Vice- President), Pat Tormey (Treasurer), Carol Bosserman (Secretary), At-Large Board Members – Joe Casselberry, Troy Wineland, Advisory Board Members - Dave November, Mark Richmond, Doug Tormey, Bill Wallace, Gary Severson, Rick Newton, and Ken Waugh.

NATURE NOTES

Noticing Nature More Often - a 10 minute project to increase your awareness of the natural world

In Summit County, we live in a very nature-oriented place. The harsh weather and the tall peaks are right in our faces. People love to get outside as often as possible. Even so - we may find ourselves disconnected from time to time as all the pressures of modern life build up. One simple way to prevent such a disconnect is to create a simple, portable, set of "Nature Notes". They will remind you to look, pay attention, and simply be present when the natural world brings you interesting moments.

How To:

Grab some paper from the recycle bin.
Cut it into 3 inch squares.
Rubber band about 3 or 4 small stacks.
Stick a pencil stub or pen into each one.
Keep one in the car, one inside next to the best view in you house or near your bird feeder window, and one in your briefcase/purse/daypack.

When you see something interesting...slow down - pull over - open your eyes wide and really look close...notice a sunset, a cool insect crawling on your leg, a fox chasing mice, the first robin of Spring, or an interesting avalanche. Jot down one "Note" per square to remind you what happened! At the end of the year - pull them all out and look for patterns. The small size of each note keeps you from getting intimidated by intentions to "journal" every day. I learned this technique from Colorado Springs naturalist Ann Zwinger a few years ago and find it is a worthwhile project - easy to do and helpful in bringing me back from "To Do" lists and the daily grind. Try it and hopefully you will notice nature more often!

Kathryn Grohusky

FDRD Board President

Thanks again for your interest in FDRD. Your support of our organization is critical to our efforts to promote stewardship of the White River National Forest in Summit County through partnerships, volunteer service, education, and support. We look forward to working together with you in the future.

We hope to see you on the trails!

With sincere thanks,

Guff Van Vooren

Executive Director

Friends of the Dillon Ranger District