Students learn how to preserve wildlife in Yosemite

In honor of the National Parks Centennial, four students and two teachers from Yosemite High School made a backpacking trip to Yosemite National Park to learn about the importance of preserving wildlife and nature.

For two of the students, it was their first time camping outdoors and seeing the iconic views of Yosemite.

“Walking in the wilderness, I liked it,” said one student, Gary Stanford.

The trip last week, made possible by a grant from the Rose Foundation, a nonprofit that supports environmental stewardship among its many missions, had the backpackers work to clear leftover fire rings and leave the park cleaner, said Karen Lopes, Yosemite High School teacher.

Lopes and fellow teacher Kelly Benavidez accompanied the four students for the weekend, along with two Yosemite park rangers in the UC Merced Yosemite Leadership Program.

“Many people don’t realize they have an impact on the wilderness,” said Maya Nielsen, Yosemite park ranger. “When you have thousands and thousands of backpackers, it’s a huge impact.”

Fire rings are the leftovers of campfires, Lopes said, and most of the fire rings found are illegal, whether it be for the size or placement of the fire. Fire rings shouldn’t be bigger than a large pizza, Lopes said, or too close to water.

Throughout the weekend the group found six illegal fire rings that everybody helped to clean out, Lopes said. Such work especially matters when aluminum foil or garbage have been left behind, she said.

“Something about doing physical labor and hiking I think is really rewarding for students,” Nielsen said.

Leticia Camargo, the other first-time camper, said she appreciated the importance of their work.

“Keeping the park alive is the biggest thing,” the 17-year-old said. “For me, it was pretty exciting because I’m more of a nature girl.”

Camargo said her favorite part of the trip was seeing the view after they hiked Dewey Point and having the chance to eat lunch on the cliffs.

“It was a good experience for me,” Camargo said. “I saw a view of everything. It was like a sense of accomplishment.”

Stanford, 17, said he wanted to see what camping was like and enjoyed being in the wilderness and hiking to viewpoints.

Making s’mores, singing campfire songs and telling stories was the highlight for Stanford, he said, as well as stargazing at night.

“You can see way more stars there than when you look outside your door,” Stanford said.

And having to unplug from the usual devices was not so bad, he said.

“It was a good experience because electronics aren’t everything and I realized that,” Stanford said. “I still had fun even without my phone.”

Taking the initiative to go on this trip was already inspiring, said park ranger Mirella Gutierrez, 20. Now, she said, they have the opportunity to teach others about preserving national parks and wildlife.

“They’re only 17 and are making a tangible change,” Gutierrez said.

This story was originally published October 5, 2016 at 5:11 PM with the headline "Students learn how to preserve wildlife in Yosemite."