GICL: Our Summer Jobs

The official title of our job is “Interpretive Volunteer,” and that is primarily what we do. The position we applied for required 32 hours of work per week total, 16 from each of us. We were offered some flexibility in the days we wanted and were allowed to work entirely separately or overlap. The schedule we’ve been assigned is Sun/Mon/Tue, with me working solo on Sundays, us both working on Mondays, and TBG solo on Tuesdays. I know, it’s a rough schedule, but we’ll power through somehow.

Our first full week here was taken up by four days of Orientation during which we completed computer module training, took interpretive walks with the rangers to learn the trail and about the dwellings, and were taken on a driving tour of the immediate area to see Doc’s, the two closest non-park campgrounds, and the local commercial hot springs (where we are offered a discount to soak after hours.) We also learned how to run the VC.

 We were encouraged to do a little light reading in our off time.

This ain’t even the half of it, and I ain’t even read half of it.

Let me walk you through a typical work day.

New belts made-to-order by TBG!

It is the responsibility of those of us living in the park’s residential area to bring down a work vehicle if there are any left in the motor pool. If they are all taken care of, we can walk down on one of the short connector pathways or on the road.

Most days begin with a morning meeting at 0830 at the VC. A posted pre-printed schedule lets us know ahead of time which duties we will have daily, and if there are changes or additions to that, we will be re-directed at the meeting. VC doors and the gate to the dwellings trail open at 0900.

There are four duties to which we’re assigned: Visitor Center, Trailhead, Dwellings, or Project.

Working at the VC is pretty much like you’d imagine. We operate the cash register, start the interpretive 15-minute film, answer the phone, direct folks to the dwellings and on area hikes, and swear in Junior Rangers. We also monitor the radios, both the walkie-talkies and the regional USFS frequency. Our big screen, on which a video of the dwellings runs on a loop, can be switched over to monitor area lightning storms. That will come into play more in July and August when the monsoon season arrives and afternoon thunderstorms are common.

The next two positions, Trailhead and Dwellings, work in tandem. Two folks drive out to what is known as the Contact Station. On the way, if necessary, they will stop at both campgrounds’ restrooms to check the t.p. supply.

 Once they reach the Contact Station, they go through the opening checklist to get everything set up for the day.

Gila Trailhead Museum a.k.a. Contact Station

One of them remains at the trail head to check park passes and give a little advisory speech to those headed up to see the dwellings. The trail/dwellings is the only controlled access part of the park, all the rest of it being free of charge.

There is a list of what we are required to say, then each of us adds our own individual flair. We spent time with as many of our coworkers as possible during our orientation week to hear what they said and get a feel for it. If you were to visit, and I was working the Trailhead, I would hand you the Canyon Companion, a brochure highlighting the points of interest at the dwellings, and then this is what you would hear me say:

“OK, first things first. Only plain water can go up with you. No flavored water, no gum, no candy, no tobacco products, no food of any kind on yourselves or in your packs. If you have any, please leave it here to pick up on your way back or secure it in your vehicles. Next, after you cross this bridge, please stay on the trail. There is poison ivy here, and it is not a souvenir we’d like you to take home with you today. When you come to the Y, keep to the left, and you’ll travel the loop in a clockwise fashion. The loop is approximately one mile with a gain of 185′. Most of this first part (indicating the trail on the sign board) is a gentle grade. It gets a bit steeper and rockier as you come around this corner. If you get to that point and decide you don’t want to or can’t continue, please feel free to come back the way you went in. If you press on, you’re going to get to the really cool stuff. All we ask of you once you reach the dwellings is that you do not sit, stand, lean on or touch the dwelling walls. They have stood for 700 years, and we’d like to get at least another 700 out of them. There is also a park worker up at the dwellings to help guide you and answer questions. Is everyone excited? OK, go have fun!”

Whew, that looks a lot longer written out than it takes to say! Anyhow, most everyone listens attentively, and most everyone complies. The antics of those who don’t may well be the topic of a separate post someday.

Joseph staffs the Trailhead “office.”

 

 

 

The person working up at the dwellings sets off on the trail as soon as th

eir counterpart is good to go. Occasionally, visitors are raring to hit the trail as soon as we unlock the gate at 0900, but the Dwellings person is usually the first one on the trail for the day. It is pretty spectacular to have the trail and the caves all to yourself for a short while. My first time up alone, I was worried it might be a bit scary on the trail or a little creepy in the caves, but it was neither of those things. It is absolutely the most serene way to greet the day I could ever have imagined (minus coffee.)

 

 

 When you arrive at the caves, the first order of business is to check for footprints in the sandy dirt off the trail and sweep or rake them away to discourage others from literally following in those footsteps. Then it is just a waiting game before the first visitors round the last bend in the trail, and it’s time to greet them, answer any questions they may have, and show them interesting features of the dwellings. It is also our job to discourage those who just can’t help themselves from touching or running or doing any of the things they promised the Trailhead worker they wouldn’t do. Now that it is almost summer, we offer daily formal tours at 1 p.m. Eventually, TBG and I will lead some of them.

 

some of our “office cubicles” in the Dwellings

 

 The last formal work assignment is Project, and that is time for working on tasks we have come up with ourselves or those that need continual tending. On our first day, TBG made the faux pas of offering up my fabulous organizational skills when it was pointed out to us that the whole storage room for the VC needs to be redone. While it’s true that I am good at that sort of thing, I always get assigned that sort of thing because I’m good at it. I’d rather do something different this summer, like getting the native plant garden and the hummingbird/butterfly garden box outside the VC growing again, and I was able to officially declare that as my project, despite TBG’s efforts to pigeonhole me. Maybe on some upcoming monsoony afternoons, I will also help out in the storage room.  TBG has yet to settle on a project, but it will no doubt have something to do with mowing or trail maintenance. I have also already taken charge of keeping the hummingbird feeder at the VC filled on my own dime (pennies, really, sugar is cheap and water is free.)

 

Our favorite work days so far are those when we are working the Trailhead and the Dwellings together. We send people up and back with messages for one another like, “Tell him/her to drink more water!” People get a kick out of the fact that a husband/wife team is volunteering together. Our other favorite days are those we are not working together, and our other favorites are those we have off by ourselves. 😀

Speaking of days off, we filled our last set with a few informal hikes and outings. We headed down to Silver for a grocery run and to make some phone calls to our families.

 To make the very twisty 1.5-hour drive down worth it, we also took a short walk on The Big Ditch trail.

 The section we did was not very well-maintained nor scenic, but it was a way to stretch our legs and earn the burgers we had at Diane’s afterwards.

 On another day, we pedaled to the dwellings trailhead lot, where we stashed the bikes behind the Contact Station, changed into our water sandals, and hiked the <1/4 mile trail to the river for some splashy fun.

Don’t step on the polliwogs, please!

Our last outing was a hike along a canyon wash that one of our coworkers pointed us to. It is not a formal trail, so there is no signage, it is merely a matter of following the wash as far as you’d like to go.

Or until you get tired of doing this.

Or this. (Scanning for pumas. Really)

We surmised we did somewhere between 3-4 miles. And that concludes our second week’s adventures. I’m not entirely sure what I will spotlight in my next post, but critters are a good possibility.

What’s that? You’re so intrigued by our volunteer summer job that you’d like to know how you can find one, too? Happy to help! We found this one through volunteer.gov a site we check routinely. It’s the best resource out there for these types of opportunities. Additionally, every national and state park’s website will have info on volunteering. We also make a point of talking to every volunteer we meet in person because there is no better reference than personal experience to get the real low-down on a job. If volunteering is something you’re interested in, there is no shortage of places and positions out there year-round. You don’t have to be retired or a full-time traveler, either.

Blue-bellied fence lizard says, “We love volunteers!”

 

COMMENTS

chapter3travels Your gig truly sounds awesome – for multiple reasons…. first, the schedule is fantastic. I’ve seen so many of these volunteer positions that require 30 or 40 hours per week from EACH spouse – which would just be way too ‘job like’ IMHO. Second, I like that you get switched from one spot to another on any given day. Keeps the job itself from becoming boring. Third, you get to work on your own favored projects rather than just the standard stuff. Finally, it sounds like they take your roles seriously and want you to be prepared. I’m sure all the reading isn’t fun, but it’s great that they’re really preparing you and have high expectations for what you can bring to the position. You guys will learn a lot and you’ll undoubtedly make many visitors’ experiences that much better because you’re well prepared. So cool.

Thanks for sharing this detailed info too. It’s really helpful for other folks thinking about doing something like this. 

Chasing Dirt Our schedule really is fantastic and so generous to us. We do what we can on our days off to help out a bit, too, but it’s so relaxed even work doesn’t feel much like work! A bit of trail maintenance or trash pickup on a hike — so stressful😄

There is more to learn about this place than we can ever know, but visitors’ questions keep us on our toes. I have had a few questions that have made me feel foolish, but have motivated me to learn. The best part is seeing how darn excited people are to visit here — it’s contagious joy! And the plethora of experiences and knowledge of our co-workers is bottomless.

I really hope we are motivating others to give volunteering a try. It is such a win-win!🙂

TBG We’ll give you a virtual tour next time we cross paths 😉

Lowe's Travels First, you looked spiffy in your uniforms. Second, you should have started two years ago, then we would have met you then 🙂 I think both of you will do a great job and if those visitors don’t listen, don’t tell them about the snakes that hide there. If in your reading you really get into ancient dwellings, I can suggest you lots of similar places to visit. And oh, great job again capturing that blue-bellied lizard, I have never seen one.
I was gonna recommend the bakery in Silver but realized that those tasty baked goods are not good for you.
Agree with Laurel, if you ran out of trails at your job site, there are several trails to follow in Silver.
Also, although I mentioned this to you already, on your next drive back to Silver take the westerly route Highway 180 through Glenwood NM. Stop by Udder Delight Natural skincare, their products are being made using rich creamy goats milk. Personally, it’s really good stuff.

Chasing Dirt Ha, I will definitely not tell naughty visitors about the snakes OR the poison ivy mwahaha! I hadn’t realized the western fence lizards had those blue bellies, but one of the perks of working at the trailhead is time in between visitors to get some cool photos.

We will for sure get in some different Silver City trails on future visits, and I am looking forward to finding Udder Delight — do you think they would let me pet some of those goats? 😁

Shannon I like the fact that the NPS allows you to pick your own project (so long as your spouse doesn’t mess up that process), but it sounds like you may not have too much time to work on that. The uniforms looks pretty sharp, especially with the fancy belts!

TBG Hey, you’re taking sides! 😁

Chasing Dirt Too true that I might not have time to get much done on that garden, but I think I can at least get some pretties in the planter box portion and maybe some fresh gravel on the pathway. Oh well, it keeps me outta trouble! 🙂 I wonder if there is any such thing as a snake-deterring plant?

Stacy Cobb Wow! Looks like you have got your homework to do and a great summer job! Love it!

Chasing Dirt Hi, Stacy! There is more to learn than we ever can, but it’s fun trying! Send me an email/message & let’s catch up!🧡

Mady You both look so cute in your uniforms. What a fun job! You do a fantastic job describing your adventures and I love reading them!

Chasing Dirt Thank you, Mady! You should put this place on your future travels list!

Laurel Gila National Monument is lucky to have you two as volunteers. I’m betting they are not going to want to turn you loose when September rolls around. 🙂
While it does not surprise me that you have stellar organizational skills and could whip that storage room into shape in no time, restoring the native plant garden and keeping the hummingbirds happy sounds much more satisfying!

You both look mighty fine in your ranger outfits and custom made belts! In all our years as interpretive hosts on Lopez Island, we’ve only been offered state park vests, which I refuse to wear because dark green is not my color, LOL.

It’s fun reading about how you’re spending your days! The wash trail you hiked looks cool. Next time you’re in Silver City and looking for a hike, check out the trails above town (great views!) and the Dragonfly Trail, which isn’t too far from town. They are both beautiful, unlike the ditch trail (like you, we found it unkempt and not scenic at all).

Chasing Dirt Too kind! We are so happy with our choice to be here. TBG done good with his volunteer-hunting!

I don’t know how much I’ll be able to get done with the garden, but I aim to have fun trying!

Hahaha, dark green is not your color! After so many years of faithful service, I can’t believe they won’t get you something in purple.

We do have some other trails selected for upcoming Silver visits. We had hoped the Big Ditch had been improved since we were last here, but noooo. I was going back over one of your posts about it and was totally crestfallen to see that the Curious Kumquat closed a few years ago.☹️

aelkins1 Great post, thanks for the insight!

Chasing Dirt Thank you, Andrea!

Pete You both look great in those uniforms, it sure looks like you struck gold with this job.
***side note the comment by strebor117 made my day!

Chasing Dirt Thanks, Pete! So far, we are very happy🙂 And I agree about strebor’s comment!

strebor117 People that are unwilling to follow the rules in the national parks should be darted and relocated to a mall in Albuquerque.

Pete Amen strebor117 you are spot on

Chasing Dirt At the very least! 😆

TBG I’m consulting the manual for such an allowance.