At the Mammoth Lakes Sustainability Fair, concerned community members filled out almost 100 postcards (!!!!) advocating against the sell off of public lands to send to Congressman Kevin Kiley and United States Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum. THANK YOU to all who filled them out, and all who continue to call, write, and comment on social media in defense of public lands. 

JOIN US IN CELEBRATING NATIONAL TRAILS DAY ON JUNE 7TH WITH TWO AWESOME OPPORTUNITIES TO GET OUT ON THE LAND AND GIVE BACK TO THE AREAS WE LOVE

June 7th 8:30 AM-4:30 AM

 Robinson Creek Trail Maintenance

Lend a Hand, Love a Trail!
Celebrate National Trails Day the best way we know how—by giving some love to the beautiful Robinson Creek Trail! Join us on June 7th for a day of brushing, lopping, and trail TLC along the Tropics section, helping keep this beloved route clear for hikers and equestrians alike.

We’ll meet bright and early at 8:30 AM in front of the Bar and Grill Café at Annett’s Mono Village. After a satisfying day of trail work, we’ll head back by 4:00 PM, wrapping things up at the tackle shop with a cold iced tea (you earned it). 

Space is limited: please register to secure your spot!

June 7th 9 AM - 2 PM

June Lake Trails Maintenance 

Celebrate National Trails Day by giving some love to the June Lake Area with the June Lake Trails Committee and Friends of the Inyo! Join us on June 7th for a day of easy to moderate trail maintenance and modest elevation gain. The June Lake Trail Committee will provide necessary tools as well as light refreshments. 

We’ll meet at 9 AM at the June Lake Community Center Parking Lot near Gull Lake Park. Please bring adequate water, snacks, and a lunch should you get hungry. Please also bring sunscreen, close-toed boots, and weather appropriate clothing. If you have work gloves of any kind- bring them too! We will have a limited number of gloves to provide.

Registration is not capped but is encouraged to ensure you get event notifications. 

The BLM is hosting a meeting in Lone Pine on June 10th from 5:00-7:00 pm at Statham Town Hall to explain the proposed project to the public. Prior to the meeting we will gather at Friends of the Inyo’s Lone Pine office for a Protect Rally on Main Street from 2:30-5:00 pm.

Please join us for both!

Statham Town Hall - 138 N Jackson St, Lone Pine, CA 93545

FOI LP Office - 142 E Bush St, Lone Pine, CA 93545

Conglomerate Mesa Update: the time to make your voice heard for Conglomerate Mesa is now!

This wild desert refuge for Joshua trees and the Inyo rock daisy deserves to be protected and left untouched by mining companies seeking to extract its gold. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM)is currently accepting comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement regarding K2Gold’s proposal to drill 120 holes on the Mesa.

The deadline for this comment period is June 16th, 2025

Hole in the Mountain - Saving Conglomerate Mesa

Watch a powerful new documentary about Conglomerate Mesa, a stunning stretch of
BLM-managed land in the Eastern Sierra. Directed by Chris Kam and narrated by Emmy-winning actor Peter Coyote.
This wild landscape is home to raptors, mule deer, rare plants, and a vital refugia for Joshua
Trees. It’s also sacred to Indigenous communities from Payahuunadü, who continue to hunt, gather pinyon nuts, and walk their ancestral lands.

And now, once again, it’s under threat.

Thanks to YOU: Your letters, your calls, your social media pressure — the House passed the budget package without the public land sell-off provisions. In addition, the final bill removes attacks on BLM land use plans. While we know this issue is far from done, this is a major victory for all the organizations and individuals who pushed back at this stage.

Additionally, Congressman Kiley publicly spoke out in defense of public lands and the importance of community input. If you haven’t already, please take a moment to watch his speech and help amplify it by commenting. Let’s make sure these messages stand out to him.

Both the removal of public lands sell-off provisions within the bill and Rep. Kiley speaking up for public lands and their communities would not have happened without our collective voice and pressure. Thanks to the strong leadership from Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke and the newly-formed Public Lands Caucus, both of which played a key role in removing those land sales from the bill,  we have seen that outreach makes a difference. Keeping this drumbeat going, and encouraging this Public Lands Caucus to continue to stand up for public lands, is critical. 

Now, we must urge Rep. Kiley to join the Public Lands Caucus and continue to speak up for the vast and treasured public lands within his district as a member of it. 

Suggested comment: Thank you for standing up for public lands and community input. We hope you'll also join the bipartisan effort to stop the sell off of public lands.

Suggested comment: Thank you @kevinpkiley for standing up for public lands and community input. We hope you'll also join the bipartisan Public Lands Caucus. 

On May 19, 2025, this year’s meetings related to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s (LADWP) Annual Operations Plan came to an end. Throughout this month-long process, the public played a huge role: thank you for making this happen! Some of the critical successes included:

Inyo County dramatically reduced its recommendation for how much water LADWP should extract in the next year. Through robust public participation and discussion, the County’s final recommendation requested a 20,000 acre-feet (AF) reduction in LADWP’s groundwater pumping totals.

At the Inyo County/LADWP Technical Group meeting, we had about two and a half hours of public comment. While this dialogue with LADWP staff was often frustrating for the members of the public who joined, the public came together to urge LADWP to accept Inyo County’s recommendations. Los Angeles rate-payers joined Inyo County residents in a powerful collective effort to push for change. 

About seventy members of the public joined the Inyo County/LADWP Standing Committee meeting on May 19, both in person and over Zoom. Before this meeting, LADWP finalized their extraction totals at about 5,000 AF lower than their original estimates. While we were very glad to see this reduction in pumping totals, LADWP still refused to engage with Inyo County’s final pumping recommendation. Together, LA rate-payers and Inyo County residents encouraged two LADWP Commissioners and one LA City Councilmember to implement truly meaningful changes to this broken water extraction system. 

Overall, this year’s meetings saw an enormous increase in public participation and we made a real difference. Thank you to everyone who came and those who gave a public comment! We look forward to building on these successes towards an even greater impact next year. 

We are now up to five gold exploratory drilling projects in the Bodie Hills, in various stages of development, and a sixth one that was just submitted to the Forest Service. The largest project is the Polaris project. The Draft Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Polaris Project was expected in the fall and then delayed, but because it was added to the fast-track list (aka FAST-41) it is supposed to be coming out soon. FAST-41 is a policy that streamlines the review and approval process for large-scale projects that require federal authorizations and environmental reviews, and it is yet unclear what public comment will look like.

Friends of the Inyo is a proud member of the Bodie Hills Conservation Partnership.

Watch it for FREE:

LOSING PEAKS, PINYONS, AND WILDLIFE: Bodie Hills at Risk- A Presentation by Lynn Boulton of the Sierra Club Range of Light Group and Kassandra Lissenbee of Earthworks. 

Passcode: *mWV3xPj

We’re thrilled to announce that our Trail Ambassadors officially hit the ground running on May 22! The season began with a three-day training trip along the stunning North Fork of the Big Pine Creek Trail, where the crew made a big impact right away—dismantling over 20 fire rings at First, Second, and Third Lakes.

Along the way, they engaged with dozens of visitors, sharing reminders about proper bear storage, Leave No Trace ethics, and packing out trash and waste. In addition to hands-on stewardship, the crew also dove into Wilderness history and regulations to deepen their understanding of the lands they’ll be protecting and interpreting all season long.

We’re so excited about this crew and everything they’ll accomplish this summer—stay tuned for updates from the field!

John

After years as a Wilderness Ranger with Inyo National Forest and an Interpretive Ranger in the Bristlecone Pine Forest, I’m honored to continue protecting the places I love—maintaining trails, teaching Leave No Trace ethics, and preserving the Sierra Nevada’s wild heart. Every shovel of dirt, every cleared fallen log, and every conversation with a hiker is a chance to ensure these mountains stay resilient and radiant for all.  

The Sierra has shaped my career and my soul. Now, I get to give back alongside a team just as passionate as I am. Let’s keep these trails clear, these peaks pristine, and this adventure alive!

Jean

Jean’s love for the mountains and rock climbing drew her west from Kentucky to Yosemite, where she spent years immersed in the Sierra landscape—as a member of Yosemite Search and Rescue, a backpacking guide with the Yosemite Mountaineering School, and for a decade, as an Interpretive Park Ranger in Tuolumne Meadows. This is her fourth summer working as a Trail Ambassador, and she’ll be covering the White Mountain Ranger District. Jean has a deep passion for wild plants and will be leading an interpretive walk, Sierra Forager, focused on edible and medicinal plants in the Sierra. You can also join her for her Nature-Based Yoga program at Pokonobe Marina, overlooking Lake Mary, offered weekly early July through mid August. Jean’s interpretive walks and yoga classes weave in storytelling, geology, ecology, and mindfulness, helping participants feel more deeply connected to the land. She’s passionate about helping people cultivate a sense of belonging in nature—through movement, mindfulness, and curiosity. When she’s not working, you’ll likely find her rock climbing, gardening, hiking, or practicing and teaching yoga.

Bella

This is Bella’s second season as a Trail Ambassador with Friends of the Inyo. After a fulfilling season in the Whitney District, she’s excited to return—this time working in the Mono District.

Originally from the Wasatch Mountain Range in Utah, Bella brought her passion for the mountains to California. Before joining Friends of the Inyo, she spent two seasons working in Tuolumne Meadows. Her educational background includes a degree in International Studies, with minors in Environmental Studies and Parks, Recreation, and Tourism.

When she’s not working on the trails, Bella enjoys rock climbing, backpacking, birding, painting, and exploring everything the Eastern Sierra has to offer. She’s thrilled to spend another season helping care for the wild places she loves.

Jordan

I'm stoked to be back for my second season with Friends of the Inyo, now serving the Mammoth Ranger District as Trail Ambassador. After years of dreaming about the alpine climbing in the High Sierra from back home in Georgia, I finally made the move to Bishop in 2022—leaving behind a desk job in advertising to chase granite spires and big mountain days. Last summer, I explored the far reaches of the Hoover Wilderness as the Bridgeport Trail Ambassador, covering 346.74 miles and gaining over 66,000 feet of elevation—learning the land by foot, one trail at a time. Now, I’m excited to bring that same curiosity and love for wild places to the Mammoth area. Whether you’re looking for trail beta, recent conditions, or just want to nerd out about bouldering (fair warning: I will talk your ear off), I’m always happy to share the stoke and help you build a deeper connection with this incredible landscape. The more time we spend out here, the more we realize how important it is to protect these places. I hope to inspire others to care for the Eastern Sierra and get involved with the work Friends of the Inyo is doing to keep these lands wild and accessible for everyone.

Aiden

Originally from Idaho, Aiden is spending his fourth season in the Eastern Sierra. He enjoys climbing, fly fishing, and backpacking, and is always excited to explore new trails. This summer, he’s looking forward to helping keep the Sierra’s trails in great shape—and to spending time observing the region’s birds and other wildlife.

Scenic Loop Cleanup Success!

On Sunday, May 18, volunteers gathered for a rewarding day of stewardship on the Mammoth Lakes Scenic Loop. Co-hosted by Friends of the Inyo and the Whitebark Institute, with strong support from Mono County and the Inyo National Forest, the Fire Ring Restoration event brought together 13 dedicated participants to tackle an important issue: wildfire prevention.

Together, the crew reduced 10 fire rings, fully removed 13 more, and relocated 1. One fire ring was found still smoldering - an important reminder of the risks posed by abandoned or not fully extinguished campfires. In addition to fire ring work, volunteers hauled out over 100 pounds of trash, including a full bag of campsite garbage, a pallet-and-plywood makeshift toilet, a camp chair found in a creek, and even an old axe head.

Big thanks to all who showed up to protect this beloved area—we’re proud of the work and grateful for the partnerships that made it possible! We’re hoping to have a second round of fire ring cleanups in the fall, so stay tuned! 

JUNE 11TH 7:00 PM PST 

Join the UC Reserve System/Valentine Eastern Sierra Reserves for the latest edition to the end of their spring/summer seminar series in the Page Center at the Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Labratory, this time with a presentation focused on the Ecology and Management of Black Bears in the Eastern Sierra Nevada. There will be an opportunity for discussion and Q&A about bears in our region. Michael Brown, Bear Biologist for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife will be presenting. 

JUNE 18TH 6:00 - 7:30 PM PST - VIRTUAL EVENT: Songraiser

Join Walking Water for a virtual evening of song with Shireen Amini, Alexandra Blakely, Karisha Longaker, and Te Martin. The "songraiser" will feature "a sweet sharing of songs that can hold us in our reverence for and with water … in prayer, in grief and in celebration."

The evening will be a fundraiser for the Lake to Lake Community Fund and will directly support Shireen, Alexandra, Karisha and Te to bring song and music to the Lake to Lake walk in September. 

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