LGBTQIA+ Service at Central California's Cotoni-Coast Dairies

The Trip

This trip welcomes YOU! Sierra Club Leaders and LGBTQ participants and allies will be interacting together to support an inclusive culture where every individual is empowered to bring his or her whole self to the service project, which includes working, camping, and eating together. Every participant will be valued and treated with respect, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. We believe that all participants deserve a safe and affirming camping environment where they can work and feel comfortable.

We will spend a week doing habitat restoration on the 5,600 acres of Cotoni-Coast Dairies National Monument land that was transferred to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from the Trust for Public Land in 2014. These sweeping vistas of the Pacific Ocean are just north of Santa Cruz in Davenport, CA. At the time of our service project, the BLM will be developing and assessing the public use opportunities of this newly acquired land. We will be camping at a primitive horse camp about 10 miles away in Big Basin Redwoods State Park and will drive from the campsite to the work project. On off days, we plan to visit the nearby elephant seal colony at Ano Nuevo, and explore nearby hiking trails or beaches.

The land on which we gather is the unceded territory of the Awaswas-speaking Cotoni Tribe. The Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, comprised of the descendants of indigenous people taken to missions Santa Cruz and San Juan Bautista during Spanish colonization of the Central Coast, is today working hard to restore traditional stewardship practices on these lands and heal from historical trauma.

The Project

Volunteers are pivotal to the success of maintaining the public lands managed by the BLM, providing much needed assistance for multiple tasks. The Cotoni-Coast Dairies National Monument tract of land was acquired by BLM in 2014. BLM will provide all equipment and supplies for work, as well as staff to supervise. We are planning to spend one day working at the campsite in Big Basin Redwoods State Park.

The trip will begin Saturday evening at our campsite in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. Dinner will be the first meal provided.

We’ll work four days during the week with two days off. On work days, we will rise early to have breakfast in camp and pack our lunches before heading out to our work site for the day with park staff. We will ask participants to volunteer to take turns shuttling fellow participants to and from the work sites each day. We will work under the supervision of BLM staff, taking breaks when needed to rest and rehydrate. We will aim to finish work in the early afternoon, in time to return to camp and enjoy dinner before nightfall.

As with all of our hiking and service this week, we will keep an open mind, knowing that whatever exploration and projects we engage in, we will be in beautiful surroundings!

The trip will end after breakfast on Saturday morning. Lunch makings will be provided for those who choose to spend extra time in the park or to depart for further adventures nearby. Those looking to extend their trip can choose from a number of must-see destinations in the Central California area, including Santa Cruz, Monterey Bay, Big Sur, or Pinnacles National Park.

Getting There

Davenport is 10 miles north of Santa Cruz, CA and 45 miles from the San Jose airport, the nearest major airport. The leaders will provide participants with an email roster of participants to help folks coordinate carpooling.

Please do not make non-refundable travel arrangements until notified to do so by the trip leader.

Accommodations and Food

We’ll stay in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. Our campsite has access to running water and toilets. There are no showers at the campsite.

Come with the attitude that food is part of the adventure. Trip menu planning considers that our only refrigeration will be camping coolers with ice, and that food must be protected from animals.

Only portable propane stoves will be available for cooking. We will provide healthy, nutritious vegetarian-friendly meals with a small amount of meat, along with dairy and soy products added to ensure there is enough protein. All participants will have their turn assisting with meal preparation and cleanup.

This area of California is considered the salad bowl of America and the options to purchase local produce are abundant. As much as the budget allows, we will use these local sources when planning our menus and purchasing our groceries. Before applying for the trip, people with food allergies and/or strong dietary preferences should contact the cook to see what accommodations are possible.

Trip Difficulty

All service trips are considered to be moderately strenuous. However, our work will involve only light-duty hand tools and there will be a variety of tasks to suit each person’s abilities. We'll each work at our own pace. Health and safety is a very high priority, and you are the best judge of your abilities. Day hikes will be determined based on conditions, and the interests and abilities of the participants.

Equipment and Clothing

BLM will provide the tools for the work project. In addition to your regular camping gear, come prepared to work with sturdy boots, long pants, long-sleeved shirts, and leather work gloves. You will need a day pack to carry your lunch, water, raingear, sunscreen, etc. You will need hiking boots while we are working on the project. 

We will provide food and the necessary equipment for cooking it. You will need personal eating utensils such as bowl, cup, and spoon. A plastic food container (preferably two) with a tight-fitting lid is necessary for carrying your lunch to the work site each day.

We will provide a first-aid kit for emergencies, but you should bring Moleskin, Band-aids, and Tylenol (or the like) for dealing with the little aggravations of life, as well as any personal medications you require. Please do not forget that all participants must have a current tetanus shot within the past 10 years. This injection is most commonly available from your doctor or at your local public health department for a modest cost. There are ground nesting bees and wasps in the area. If you have a bee allergy it is strongly recommended that you bring an EpiPen with you. Some of the work sites will be near poison oak patches, so bring long-sleeved work shirts and pants for protection. To ensure more protection, we will follow set procedures for handling clothes and tools that may contact the plants. As an additional precaution, your leader will have proven, topical first-aid products for cleansing the plant's irritant oil.

A full list of needed equipment will be sent to you after you've been accepted onto the trip.

References

• Amah Mutsun Land Trust: https://www.amahmutsunlandtrust.org/
• Some history about the land: https://www.tpl.org/our-work/coast-dairies
• Newspaper article about the land transfer: http://santacruz.hilltromper.com/article/last-coast-dairies-transferred-blm

Conservation

We will follow Leave No Trace procedures throughout our stay in the park to ensure that we are leaving it better than we found it! We will allow the beautiful setting of Central California to inspire discussions on local conservation issues, including the California drought, land acquisitions, and how to protect public lands.

Sierra Club National Outings is an equal-opportunity provider and when applicable will operate under permits obtained from U.S. federal land agencies.