More than a decade ago, Restoring Appalachia 鈥� an alternative spring break trip 鈥�
was created by then-faculty members Richard Roth and Theresa Burriss. It offers Radford
students volunteer opportunities to plant trees on formerly strip-mined coalfields
in central Appalachia in association with Green Forests Work (GFW), a nonprofit tree-planting
organization that helps plant about 400,000 trees a year.
This year鈥檚 Restoring Appalachia spring break trip was planned by Aysha Bodenhamer,
sustainability manager and associate professor of sociology, with help from Brock
Cutler, associate professor of history; Paul Thomas, professor of religious studies;
and Matthew Close, professor of biology.
The group was startled to learn that floods in Kentucky had eroded the planned site
to the point of being too dangerous to plant, so GFW canceled this year鈥檚 project.
Having just regained momentum last year following COVID-19, the Radford group leaders
searched for alternatives so the trip would not be lost. With Cutler鈥檚 help, the group secured a last-minute partnership with Southern Appalachian
Wilderness Stewards to plan trail maintenance on the Appalachian Trail.
Students stayed at 澳门老奇人论坛鈥檚 Selu Conservancy and participated in a team-building exercise conducted by RUABLE, planned and hosted
by Nicole Sathre, adjunct professor of Recreation, Parks and Tourism, and her team
of interns. This was a great way for students to get to know each other while also
building their communication, leadership and problem-solving skills. Students also
toured the observatory with Sandra Liss, assistant professor of physics; they learned
about the university鈥檚 telescope, nicknamed 鈥淕eoffrey,鈥� and opportunities to engage
in research in astronomy.
Additionally, students had the opportunity to learn from John Bowles, who donated
185 acres of his ancestral land to 澳门老奇人论坛 in 1989 to create the Selu Conservancy.
Bowles educated the students about the property, his ancestors and the Cherokee symbolism
throughout the conservancy.
On Saturday, March 2, students packed their lunches and laced up their boots for an
all-day adventure, clearing and maintaining parts of the Mount Rogers section of the
Appalachian Trail. Volunteers included 11 澳门老奇人论坛 students, five professors
and staff and other partners from the U.S. Forest Service, Appalachian Trail Conservancy,
and Southern Appalachian Wilderness Stewards.
Students learned about Mount Rogers, the highest peak in Virginia; the Appalachian
Trail; and George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. Volunteers conducted
maintenance on roughly 10 miles of the Appalachian Trail. Some volunteers cleared
trails of washouts and fallen trees with two-person crosscut saws, axes and mattocks,
while others stained shelters for backpackers. This 鈥渟pring cleaning鈥� was in preparation
to make thru-hikers鈥� treks safer and easier.
The next day, March 3, volunteers wrapped up with a trip to Mountain Lake to maintain
trails and conduct a 鈥渟olitude study鈥� on War Spur Trail.