Across the country, outdoor enthusiasts volunteered for conservation projects on public lands and spent time seeking opportunities in the country’s outdoor gems on a perfect fall Saturday for the 27th anniversary of National Public Lands Day.

At Hogan and Luce Campground, a Bureau of Land Management facility between Clark and Cody, about 40 volunteers planted 115 trees and shrubs. They’re intended to stablize the shoreline, provide shade and feed wildlife in the area. 

While it looked like work, the project was actually a way to connect with nature, said Melissa Higley, BLM outdoor recreation planner. 

“It gives people a chance to be a part of shared conservation stewardship,” she said. 

The help is important to the agency. 

“We can’t do it all ourselves,” Higley said.

The two reservoirs needed some maintenance. Recently, some of the large cottonwoods along the shore were lost due to high wind and waves, said outdoor recreation planner Rick Tryder.

And the work isn’t finished. 

“We’re planning to do shoreline restoration and the campgrounds will be spruced up,” he said.

Those who missed the event can still help by joining the bucket brigade. The team left several buckets behind and are encouraging folks to help feed the new plants by bringing up some of the water from the reservoir. 

The plants are all native species, including two types of cottonwoods and food-bearing shrubs like chokecherries and buffalo berries. Cottonwoods are some of the tallest trees commonly found in North America. When mature, their giant trunks and branches form a dense canopy — perfect for getting out of the sun and for wildlife like migrating birds looking for a safe place to rest.

Several volunteers were able to explore the reservoirs for the first time, Tryder said. The two reservoirs are popular fishing and camping areas. Luce is a trophy fish, catch and release lake. Hogan is a “put and take” lake,  managed to give anglers a chance to take home fresh trout for a family meal.

For the two outdoor recreation planners, it was nice to get together with the community and to meet new people — especially after the social distancing due to COVID-19 last year, Higley said.

This year the BLM is celebrating its 75th anniversary. The agency manages about 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 Western states, including Wyoming. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of subsurface mineral estate throughout the nation.

To the west, visitors enjoyed a day of fishing on Bureau of Reclamation waters, leaf peeping in the Shoshone National Forest and found the gates wide open and free in Yellowstone National Park. Grizzlies and black bears thrilled sightseers as they gorged on a bumper crop of berries and the sound of elk bugling in the river valley infected folks with goose bumps. 

The annual celebration features a fee-free day as admissions are waived at all national parks and public lands. The event is sponsored by the National Environmental Education Foundation and is the nation’s largest single-day volunteer event for public lands. 

Established in 1994, events are held on the fourth Saturday in September, encouraging tens of thousands of volunteers to help restore and improve public lands around the country. The Wyoming Legislature passed a bill to observe public lands day in 2019.