Recent news about opening our public lands to drilling, logging, mining — and even sale to the highest bidder or transfer to states — is enough to make all of us who love our local National Forests and wilderness areas feel overwhelmed.

Our own local U.S. Forest Service office in Silverthorne has not gone unaffected. Morale is understandably low. Our local Ranger District needs our help and love more than ever. It’s time to show them they are appreciated.

These losses will come home to all of us in the shape of blocked trails, trashed-out campsites, harm to wildlife and increased wildfire risk, to name just a few. But please don’t just feel disheartened and depressed. The last thing we should do is wait until our favorite trails become impassable or our favorite lakes get trashed out. Let’s all do something.

Fortunately, there are several nonprofit groups in Summit County that help the Forest Service maintain our local White River National Forest and wilderness areas. Without the Forest Service’s normal summer crews, volunteers with these nonprofits are needed more than ever. So, join one!

Love our four local wilderness areas — Eagles Nest, Holy Cross, Flat Tops and Ptarmigan Peak? The Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance works in both Summit and Eagle counties to help the Forest Service preserve, protect and maintain these priceless gems. Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance trains volunteer wilderness rangers to hike wilderness trails or host tables at trailheads, educate the public about protecting wilderness, convey Leave No Trace principles, protect wildlife and native plants and conduct wilderness trail maintenance and cleanup work. This year’s training day is Saturday, May 31, in Silverthorne. You can learn more and sign up at Wild4ESWA.org. The registration deadline is May 1, so please sign up today.

Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance’s sawyers help Forest Service crews clear the hundreds of the trees that fall across wilderness trails every winter. Chainsaws are not allowed in wilderness, so Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance sawyers use handsaws along with traditional two-person crosscut saws for the bigger trees. 

This summer, Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance is also offering four llama-supported backpack trips to wilderness lakes to clean up trash and illegal fire rings. Many single-day work trips are available as well. Learn more and sign up here.  

Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance is hosting an open house at The Pad in Silverthorne on April 10 from 5-7 p.m. where you can learn more about these programs and other volunteer opportunities.  Sign up at Wild4ESWA.org.

Friends of the Dillon Ranger District works with the Dillon Ranger District in Summit County to preserve the national forest lands in Summit County and maintain non-wilderness and wilderness area trails. Friends of the Dillon Ranger District offers many volunteer opportunities throughout the year. Learn more at FDRD.org.

So, let’s not sit around and stress out as our local public lands are threatened. Call and write your senators and representatives. Tell them to protect our public lands, especially our fragile and unique wilderness areas, and bring back our hardworking Forest Service rangers. And sign up to become a volunteer — you will meet like-minded folks, spend quality time in the great outdoors and feel good to be doing something proactive to help. Let’s all step up to protect our public lands.

“Get Wild” publishes weekly in the Summit Daily News. Mike Browning is a volunteer wilderness ranger for the U.S. Forest Service and the Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance.