Tonto National Monument

As it rises over the Sierra Ancha Mountains, the sun begins to illuminate several caves near the historic Apache Trail. Between these great gaps in stone lie the relics of a once vibrant Native American culture. Here at Tonto National Monument visitors are propelled back over 700 years and invited to experience life as part of an ancient Salado society.

Guests at the monument can enjoy stunning views of Lake Roosevelt, named for Theodore Roosevelt, who in 1907 created Tonto National Monument. Inside the prehistoric cave dwellings, visitors can discover the fingerprints of those that shaped this magnificent architecture long before modern America. The bulk of the dwelling still stands today supported by the wood used by the original builders; this is a testament to the precision and skill of these ancient architects. Pottery shards and stone tools can be spotted throughout the caves which are estimated to have been occupied by 60 to 100 people.

Park rangers will lead interpretive talks about the local environment including a plethora of wildlife and utilitarian plants. Be sure to visit the monument this spring to witness some of the most magnificent wildflowers anywhere in the Southwest United States. These wildflowers add vibrant color to a landscape already rich with cacti including the prickly pear, cholla, and the towering saguaro. Many of these useful plants helped to sustain the livelihood of the prehistoric Salado people. As part of the Sonoran Desert ecosystem, the monument is also the chosen habitat of many javelina, coyotes, and rare gila monsters.

For those that prefer to escape the desert sun or monsoon rains, there is a museum within the visitor center providing exhibits of polychrome pottery and ancient clothing woven from yucca, agave, and cotton. Visitors may come across a vivid rattlesnake display as well as prehistoric hunting tools and traps. In addition, a movie portraying significant Salado themes plays in both the museum and on the observation deck.

Although visitors exploring the dwellings and museum will become more familiar with the Salado people, mysteries remain. Not much is known about the Salado, and there are no written records besides sporadic petroglyphs dotting the Salt River. No one is certain why the Salado left only 150 years after assembling their lives inside these caves.

Friends and families alike can climb the self guided trail to the lower cliff dwelling or reserve a spot on one of the ranger guided upper cliff dwelling tours. Other exciting events throughout the spring season include full moon hikes, Heritage Days, photography tours, and Junior Ranger Day. Please visit our 2010 event schedule online for dates and times of these programs.

The visitor center is open every day of the year from 8am to 5pm except on December 25th. The Lower Cliff Dwelling Trail welcomes pets and closes to uphill travel at 4pm. Each adult admission is only $3, unless you have an America the Beautiful Parks Pass. Children under 16 are always free. Campgrounds are available at nearby Tonto National Forest. Be sure to make a reservation for the upper cliff dwelling tours which run three to four times per week November through April.

Written By Joshua Sweet, Student Conservation Association Intern, Tonto National Monument

National Monument Trail Registry

To promote place attachment and identity many parks and trails use a trail sign in book. Also known as a guest book or trail registry, this book will record the date, name, hometown, and any other comments of those who choose to sign it. I have created such a registry at Tonto National Monument for the upper cliff dwelling trail and the lower cliff dwelling trail. After the first two weeks in use the book has served as a great resource providing information about visitation at the park. Although it only references a small time period, here are the results since January 1st, 2010.

After looking at the map you will be able to tell that most of our visitation comes from areas that are currently experiencing inclement weather. However it is essential to note that the map only reflects information from those who chose to sign in, not the total number of guests that visit the park. More conclusive results will develop as time passes.

Update (1/12): After placing a copy of this map near the trail registry the number of guests that sign the book each day has tripled. One third of those visitors are coming from Canada.

Update (2/6): After a month of providing a trail registry for guests we have had visitors sign in from 45 of the 50 states, 5 Canadian provinces, and 3 other countries.

Beyond Park Boundaries

Written by Joshua Sweet
Student Conservation Association

John Muir wrote that “in every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.” But what about those who reside in a classroom rather than in nature?

ROOSEVELT, ARIZONA – While participating in an internship with the Student Conservation Association I have been given many outstanding opportunities. The most noteworthy task I have been charged with during my internship is to provide outreach programs at a neighboring elementary school. I have gained insight into historical interpretation and outdoor education, in addition to being provided with a gateway into working with the National Park Service. This has granted me with knowledge that will positively build upon my past experiences.

Each week during a six week session the park rangers from Tonto National Monument visit Dr. Charles A. Bejarano Elementary School in Miami, Arizona. We provide the three fourth grade classes with valuable information pertaining to environmental and outdoor themes. Topics will range from local geology and wildlife to ancient Native American culture and architecture. This outreach curriculum contributes to the already vibrant programming provided by the staff at the monument including night hikes, photography tours, heritage days, and Junior Park Ranger activities.

My first program with the students focused entirely on aspects of outdoor survival and the importance of being prepared while participating in various outdoor pursuits. We covered essential overnight and day pack items that relate to navigation, signaling, shelter construction, fire, water, food, and first aid. Students participated in hands-on learning experiences during which they were able to use a compass, signaling mirror, and a crank flashlight. In addition, the fourth graders witnessed demonstrations on how to tell direction using only shadows on the ground, and how to use a flint stick to ignite a fire.

The focal point of the next lesson was snakes of the desert. During this program I was able to observe interagency cooperation as the U.S. Forest Service in Tonto Basin allowed me to borrow their resident king snake to give the classes a more vivid picture of this remarkable reptile. The fourth graders learned all about the life of a desert king snake during the hour long assembly. By the end they were curious to learn more about other desert reptiles, including the infamous gila monster.

In the coming weeks we will visit the classes for two more presentations based on the archaeology of Tonto National Monument. Outreach programs such as those we have provided at Dr. Charles A. Bejarano Elementary School are a perfect example of how agencies such as the National Park Service can stretch the boundaries of a park. By continuing these programs the park rangers have the ability to reach young children and educate them on principles of environmental responsibility and preservation for the enjoyment of current and future generations.

Since joining the staff at Tonto National Monument in November, I have had many exciting assignments that range from performing backcountry maintenance with law enforcement to leading three-mile hikes to a prehistoric cave dwelling. Moreover, I have developed two presentations, focusing on subjects of my choice, for the fourth grade classes. These programs are great models of how the National Park Service can expand educational experiences beyond park boundaries.

Final Evaluation Process

The closing portion of my internship deals with the final evaluation process. The purpose of these procedures is to leave a guidebook for those who may hold the position in the future, and to assess the current state of programming. The evaluation is to encompass the entire nature and camping program that I have planned and implemented over the summer of 2009.

The evaluation begins by covering topics related to environmental education. This curriculum covered topics such as local wildlife, ecosystems, gardening, and identifying animal tracks. The program outline then shifts to a summary of the outdoor education programs of the 2009 summer. Focus areas included hiking, camping, outdoor survival, as well as teambuilding. All of these activities were presented to campers during hands on programs where they were given the means to actually participate in various environmental and outdoor pursuits.

Although the program was very successful, I next broke down different areas that could use improvement and gave my own programming recommendations. The first dealt with the possibility of taking the campers on outdoor excursions to any one of the surrounding national parks. I also recommended that the camp use greater historical interpretation because of it’s location along the final stretch of the Lewis and Clark Trail. Lastly I gave sight to the fact that with the new addition of our geocache unit we are prepared for the future of outdoor recreation and should take advantage of this. All of these assets can be added within camp programming and advertising to create a much stronger program.

This evaluation also states why it is important to have a significant environmental and outdoor education curriculum at our summer camp. Similarly the program links together the connections that these programs have within the Jewish religion. The final conclusion then lies out that the goal of this program is create a love and respect for the outdoors and the world around us.

Included is a picture of the forest in Lake Sylvia State Park, and below is a link to the Camp Young Judaea West website.

www.cyjwest.org

--

Joshua Sweet

Camp Young Judaea West Nature Spedialist

Fontenelle Nature Association Summer Educator

(402) 651 0610

joshua.sweet@ymail.com

Teva Service

In addition to my major in parks and recreation management, I am also pursuing a religious studies minor with an emphasis in Jewish studies. This played a big role in the reason why I applied for, and eventually accepted this internship with Camp Young Judaea West. Part of my responsibilities as the nature and camping specialist were to help to create a Jewish service that could relate our religion to Teva (Hebrew for nature) and the outdoors. At camp we have an outdoor sanctuary overlooking the Pacific Ocean known as the “Bears’ Den,” and this is where I have requested that such a service be held. After collaborating with the unit head responsible for planning our Judaic services we have decided to have a traditional service at the “Bears’ Den” while including exerts that I have picked out to be read in addition to our customary prayers. Listed below are a few of these quotations that I have chosen to use, and many of these exerpts relate to environmentalism, sustainability, and green ethics.

Upon creating the first human beings, God guided them around the Garden of Eden, saying: "Look at my creations! See how beautiful and perfect they are! For your sake I created them all. Make sure you don't ruin or devastate My world. If you do, there will be no-one else to repair it."

- Ecclesiastes Rabbah 7:13

“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely, or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quite alone with the heavens, nature, and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be, and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature. As long as this exists, and it certainly always will, I know that then there will always be comfort for every sorrow, and I firmly believe that nature brings solace to all troubles.”

- Anne Frank

Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai said, 'Three things are of equal importance - earth, humans and rain'. Rabbi Levi ben Hiyyata said, '...to teach that without earth, there is no rain, and without rain, the earth cannot endure, and without either, humans cannot exist'.

- Genesis Rabbah 13:3

Master of the Universe
Grant me the ability to be alone;
May it be my custom to go outside each day
Among the reeds and the grass,
Among all growing things;
And there may I be alone to enter into prayer,
Talking to the one to whom I belong.

May I express there everything in my heart,
And may all the foliage of the field awake at my coming
To send the powers of their life into the words of my prayer.

So that my speech is made whole
Through the life and spirit of all growing things.
Which are made as one by their transcendent source.

- Rabbi Nahman of Bratslav

Attached to this post is a picture of the lean to shelter that I helped the campers to build in the forest. We made the roof out of moss to help protect us from the rain.

Listed below is a link to the COEJL website which is just one of many organizations that acts to link environmentalism and Judaism.

http://www.coejl.org/index.php

West Coast Typhoon

In the wake of our outdoor education field trips I can now reflect and evaluate each trip. All of the campers on each trip had an amazing time, and I have heard nothing but positive feedback from all the unit heads. Measured by these standards the trips were a huge success and can now be used to help attract future campers, as well as to enhance the experience of campers that attend each summer.

However the purpose of the blog is to write in a constructive manner in which I can provide others with helpful information. So I will refrain from writing about the successes of our field trips, and instead I will focus on what went wrong and how it was dealt with. This will ensure that my posts can be beneficial to future trip planning.

To begin with the younger campers encountered the largest issue due to transportation. We had only ordered two buses and since the oldest group was leaving in the early morning and the other was full of the 6th and 7th graders, the youngest group was left without any transportation. This was only discovered by our logistics staff one day beforehand and we had to act quickly.

Our original plan to take this group to Fort Clatsop was canceled, and instead we embarked to Cape Disappointment State Park. This park is only 20 minutes from our camp and made it possible to drive the kids in the rental vans that our camp keeps for emergencies. After canceling our reservation at Fort Clatsop I contacted Cape Disappointment to find out if they had a similar Junior Ranger Program. They informed me that they had canceled such programs last summer, but still had left over supplies that our staff could use to lead the program on our own. We did just that, and when I returned to camp I made Junior Ranger certificates myself to compensate for the awards that the kids would have received at Fort Clatsop.

The 7th and 8th graders also faced an issue as both groups got lost on the separate hikes that I had planned for them. I sent them with plenty of gear, maps, food, and water so they eventually found their way to the assigned areas without any severe problems. This problem could be avoided in the future if those who led the trips had visited the park with me when I had done the site visits earlier in my internship. Nevertheless the campers had a great trip and enjoyed seeing this beautiful state park.

In addition the oldest group was met with certain difficulties, but was most prepared due to the fact that I accompanied them on their overnight trip. Both hikes we embarked on were in the area that had been hard hit by a typhoon in 2007 where destructive winds hit the coast at over 120 miles per hour. This has left the trails littered with fallen timber making them very difficult to navigate. Each time we became stuck in a blockaded area, I left the campers with the other staff members while I investigated an equivalent route and never disappointed them.

To make matters more complicated the poles used to support the rain flies on each of our tents did not work properly. After explaining to Eureka Outdoor Gear that we could not wait 2-4 weeks for an inspection and replacement due to the fact that we only have a week and a half left of camp, they agreed to overnight us the necessary replacement gear. This will guarantee that the other campers will get to go on overnight adventures before the end of camp without worrying about the wind and rain.

Attached to this post is a picture of one of the areas on our hike at Lake Sylvia State Park that was hardest hit by the 2007 typhoon. Logging companies have recently begun to take advantage of harvesting the fallen timber.

Below is a link to a website that explains further the storms that hit the coast of Washington and Oregon.

http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/almanac/arc2007/alm07oct.htm

Outdoor Ed Field Trips

So our outdoor education field trips to Fort Clatsop, Ecola State Park, and Lake Sylvia State Park are right around the corner. Early Tuesday morning each age group at camp will leave for one of these locations and all of them except for the oldest group will return Tuesday night. The older campers will stay the night and return back to camp Wednesday night. In order to ensure that all of these trips go as planned I am reviewing the fifteen pre travel steps as laid out in Chuck Browns’ PRM 150 course.

I have spent the past six weeks working on aspects of the trips such as routing and scheduling, groups, rationale, locations, participants, accommodations, communication, and budgeting. These parts of our trips have been outlined in previous posts, and have been prepared for quite some time now. Recently I have been meeting with the various unit heads and senior staff members to go over the remaining facets such as activities, staffing, equipment, food and water, transportation, as well as safety and risk management.

Activities for the younger kids who will be attending Fort Clatsop include a hike from the fort to the ocean, exploring fort exhibits, and participating in the National Park Service Junior Ranger Program. Those heading to Ecola State Park will enjoy a much more difficult seaside hike past the Sea Lion Islands, and an afternoon swimming in the Pacific Ocean. As for the oldest group who are traveling to Lake Sylvia State Park, we have planned several extensive hikes throughout the area which will lead them to lookouts amongst the Olympic Mountains. They will also be able to swim in the nearby lake, and participate in team building activities throughout the entire campout.

Due to the fact that the staff assigned to each age group will be traveling with their own campers, the main issue of staffing relates to safety and risk management. The youngest campers will be in the hands of the National Park Service Rangers, a guide that the camp has used in the past, as well as staff certified in first aid and CPR. The group traveling to Ecola State Park will be accompanied by an EMT in addition to several staff members certified by the Red Cross. The oldest campers will embark on their excursion accompanied by myself and a former Israeli Army Officer. In addition, all of the campers and staff members are covered by the camps’ insurance policy.

All of the equipment we will be using is brand new, and was covered by the grant funds that I allocated earlier in my internship. The younger groups will be sent with hiking essentials such as a base camp first aid kit, bug spray, sunscreen, compasses, binoculars, a dry bag, and tarps. However the older group will be sent with these items in addition to much more extensive gear such as a camping kitchen, tents, flint sticks, campers tools, propane, cookware and mess kits, extra stakes, stake mallets, lanterns, rope, glow sticks, biodegradable soap, toilet tissue, and coolers.

Food and transportation were fairly easy tasks to plan for thanks in part to our camp caterer and office manager. They have arranged for a charter buses to take our campers to and from our outdoor education locations. In addition our camp caterer has arranged for all of the necessary food to be available for us to take with us on our trips. All of our sites are developed campgrounds or parks and have clean running water.

The final step in the pre travel procedures is known as triple check. This will include checking the latest weather forecast before departure as well as going over these steps again with all of the staff involved. This is to ensure that the trips go as planned, and that all of the staff are on the same page.

Attached to this post is a picture of an A-frame immediate action shelter that the campers built during one of my activities in the forest.

Listed below is a link to one of the books that Chuck used in our class text called Effective Leadership in Adventure Programming. Chapter 9 of this book includes pre travel steps, responsibilities of a trip leader during the trip, and evaluation procedures.

http://nirsa.humankinetics.com/showproduct.cfm?isbn=9780736052504