Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers (RFOV) will host its second Marble Stewardship Extravaganza on June 24-25. This project focuses on trail and restoration projects in popular recreation areas of Marble, including Raspberry Creek, the Marble Mill Site Park and recently-acquired Marble Wetlands Preserve.
The Extravaganza, conceptualized and brought to fruition in 2021, was meant to take place last summer but was canceled for staff and volunteer safety due to heavy weather conditions.
RFOV offers folks the opportunity to camp with them on Friday and Saturday nights. Slow Groovin’ BBQ in Marble will provide dinner during the weekend evenings, and breakfast will be provided on Saturday and Sunday. Additionally, recreational activities will take place including a waterfall hike and history tour.
RFOV Program Director Melissa Daniels explained, “People from our valley are going up there and recreating, and there’s not a lot of resources to mitigate the impacts of the recreation we’re doing up there. We feel that, as a community, we are responsible for taking care of those places.”
Since her employment in March 2021, Daniels has worked to extend volunteer efforts in the Redstone and Marble areas after noticing that these areas were lacking the same resources as other parts of the Roaring Fork Valley.
“Many government agencies in our Valley — county, federal, municipal and state — have the resources to provide stewardship for natural areas. However, the Town of Marble doesn’t quite have those resources,” she said. “It’s a small community of people that deeply care for their natural spaces, and we enjoy partnering with them to help care for those places.”
Restoration projects planned for this stewardship opportunity include removing invasive vegetation and reseeding the land with native species. Volunteers will also receive training on fire mitigation.
“The people in the Town of Marble who are already involved year-round in these stewardship efforts, like the town manager, the people at the Marble Charter School and the members of the parks committee, are enthusiastic about partnering with us,” said Daniels. “They are just incredibly wonderful people who care so deeply, and we are excited to be able to support the work they’re doing continuously.”
Hence the owners of Slow Groovin’ BBQ are providing food to volunteers who come out on this and other restoration projects to show gratitude for their efforts. Additionally, this stewardship weekend is able to better educate the community on safe, resourceful and respectful recreational practices.
“People who want to recreate responsibly in Marble can first familiarize themselves with local rules and regulations and follow them, as well as treating the lands the way that they would want their own community and land to be cared for,” Daniels explained.
For more information on volunteer projects with RFOV or to sign up for the Marble Stewardship Extravaganza, June 24-25, visit rfov.org or call 970-927-8241.