Lower Salt River Tree Planting with Natural Restorations & Ecoculture

This event is also possible due to support from the U.S. Forest Service Tonto National Forest, the National Forest Foundation, Audubon Southwest, and the Department of Forestry & Fire Management.

Everyone is welcome, including youth volunteers when they are accompanied & supervised by a parent, guardian, or adult group leader. We would be happy to sign off on service hours or provide a Confirmation of Volunteer Service letter for youth volunteers.

Sign-in: 8:30-9:00 a.m. | Safety Briefing: 9 a.m. | Planting starts: after safety briefing| End time: 1:00 p.m. or as soon as everything is planted.

Please arrive before 9am so you can park & turn in your paperwork before the safety briefing starts at 9am.

Event Staging Location: Coon Bluff Recreation Area, Mesa, AZ

Directions: Everyone is meeting at Coon Bluff Recreation Area. Once you park in the first or second parking lot, walk over to the first parking lot past the bathrooms. Look for our flags, signs, & green Natural Restorations tents. Please carpool if possible to ensure everyone has a parking spot. If the parking lot is full when you arrive, exit the parking lot & park on the right side of the road as far on the shoulder as you can. Use caution when exiting your vehicle and always look & listen for vehicles & volunteers on the road.

GPS Coordinates: 33.546991, -111.644057

***Do not use the EventBrite map to get there, it could send you to the wrong location. Use the GPS coordinates above to get to the event staging location***

Plug the GPS coordinates above into your phone or mapping system, or search Google Maps for Coon Bluff Recreation Area, Mesa, AZ

Once the safety briefing is done, the Ecoculture Team will go over our gameplan for the morning. We will also have trash bags, grabbers & gloves for anyone who would like to remove trash from the planting area.

What to wear: Check the forecast before you head out so you can be prepared & dress accordingly. Please wear comfortable clothing & shoes that can get dirty, muddy, and possibly wet. Wear long pants, long sleeves, thick-sole & closed toe sturdy shoes for safety (no flipflops/sandals). Wear a hat, sunglasses for eye protection, and sunscreen. It will warm up quickly as you start to move around and it heats up. Wearing layers you can remove is helpful. You may find it helpful to bring a backpack for water, snacks, and extra clothing.

What to bring: please bring a reusable water bottle, hydration backpack or backpack with water. We will have water coolers full of ice water at the staging area for you to refill your bottle or pack. We will have bottled water for anyone who forgets a reusble bottle.

***You may also find kneepads or a gardening knee pad helpful because you will be on your knees in the dirt while you are planting. Bring a pair of gloves or borrow a pair from us.

*If you have any allergies that you carry an epi-pen and antihistamines for, please do not forget to bring them with you. This is a wilderness area along the Lower Salt River so it’s best to prepare for anything.

Snacks: We will have snacks for volunteers, including fruit. If you have any dietary restrictions, you may want to bring your own snack. You could bring a small cooler in your vehicle with cold beverages and snacks if you'd like.

Tonto Recreation Pass: You do NOT need one to participate in the event! If you plan to stay after the event, you are required to get a pass. You can purchase one from a kiosk at the recreation area.

Bathrooms: There are vault toilets open to the public at this location.

NR Merch: We will also have NR branded t-shirts, hats, stickers, & Tru Flasks available for a donation. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit & 100% of the proceeds go towards our restoration projects on the Tonto National Forest.

Volunteer Paperwork: A few days before the event, we will send you a copy of our volunteer waiver. Print & fill it out to bring with you and save time Saturday morning. If you need it sooner, please email us. We will have extras at the event if you forget or do not have access to a printer.

Groups: We can accommodate groups of any size. Please have your group leader email Nicole at [email protected] for a group sign-in sheet to save time the day of the event. The group leader can get everyone in their group signed in then one person can turn the sheets into us at the registration table.

If you have any other questions, please click on the CONTACT button at the bottom of this page or email us at [email protected]

Host or Publisher Natural Restorations