During the 2024 season, Save Our Canyons continued its partnership with the Salt Lake Ranger District to monitor recreation sites across the Wasatch Wilderness areas, including the Mt. Olympus, Twin Peaks, and Lone Peak wilderness areas. Next year we’ll begin data collection in the Deseret Wilderness Area.
Compared to last season, in 2024 we have increased our capacity on the project exponentially. a new edition to the Recreation Site Monitoring Program for 2024 was the implementation of group monitoring sessions. We wanted to create a unique and inclusive space for people looking to give back to the Wasatch through conservation and stewardship. These group sessions have given people the chance to meet new faces in the community and get to explore what the Wasatch has to offer.
2024 Wilderness Recreation Site Monitoring Program Totals:
- Conducted 6 training sessions to prepare volunteers for accurate and effective data collection.
- Throughout the season, we tracked 682 in-kind volunteer hours
- Cataloged and digitized over 300 film slides, with many dating back to 1987
- More than 150 Recreation Sites Recorded in 2024
With an end goal to cover 95% of these sites, we're thrilled to report that we're ahead of schedule and on track to complete the project by the end of 2025.
A heartfelt thank you to our incredible volunteers—you make this work possible! We also extend our gratitude to the National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance for funding this project over the past two years. Your support has been instrumental in enabling us to gather this data.
If you’re interested in getting involved in this program for 2025, please reach out to Sam at
