Volunteer Park Ranger Giving a Boat Tour on Crater Lake
Are you interested in offering your time and talents to protect Crater Lake National Park for future generations? The National Park Service has opportunities for both full-time and intermittent volunteering.
Most parks that utilize full-time volunteers recruit them either through Volunteer.gov or the Student Conservation Association. If you are a high school student, college student, graduate student, or have recently graduated from school, another option is to pursue a position through the federal government's Pathways Program.
Crater Lake National Park utilizes full-time volunteers each summer and winter. The park provides reimbursements for uniform items and some expenses (up to $20 per day) and free housing in exchange for three to four months of service. These positions are advertised on Volunteer.gov. To find them, enter "Crater Lake" in the search box.
Summer positions at Crater Lake are typically advertised in the months of February or March. Most years, there are four positions available, all with the park's Division of Interpretation. These positions involve public speaking (presenting boat tours, trolley tours, ranger talks, and Junior Ranger activities) and operating the park's visitor centers. Summer volunteers are required to be US citizens and must be available to serve from early June to early September.
Winter positions at Crater Lake are typically advertised in October. Most years, there are six to eight positions available. Four of the positions are with the park's Division of Interpretation. They involve public speaking (leading guided snowshoe hikes) and operating the park's main visitor center. The rest of the positions are with the park's Backcountry Permits Office and involve issuing permits to backpackers, marking winter trails, and conducting patrols on snowshoes and cross-country skis.
The park also has volunteer opportunities for people who live nearby and are looking to assist with special projects or volunteer periodically. Most of these opportunities are organized by the Friends of Crater Lake, a non-profit group founded in 1993. Members assist with special events in the park, operate a winter information desk at Rim Village, and engage in projects ranging from trail-building to the removal non-native plants.
The other group that provides opportunities for local volunteers is the Crater Lake Ski Patrol. Ski patrol members have been assisting winter visitors and maintaining the park’s cross-country ski trails since 1983. They receive training in wilderness first aid, survival skills, search and rescue, map and compass use, and avalanche safety in exchange for at least six days of service each winter.
