Your group--whether it's a scout troop, a family, a church, a school, a group of coworkers, or a class reunion--can come to volunteer together! (If you don't have your own group, you can join one of our partner groups). Most of our group work takes place between May and October, with some work in March and April, and more limited options in fall and winter. Work projects vary depending upon the time of year, age of the participants, special skills, and group size (most projects are designed for 5 to 25 people). Past projects have included:
Vegetation restoration: planting and watering native plants, removing invasive plant species, building fences to protect meadows, thinning conifers for fuel reduction, GPS mapping of invasive plants…
Campground maintenance: cleaning out fire pits, picking up litter, installing signs, repairing and installing picnic tables…
Building and trail maintenance: painting, carpentry work, trail construction, fuel reduction (removal of built up vegetation or thinning of young trees), firewood stacking, building boardwalks and ramps…
And more!
Projects are assigned to qualified groups in the order requested after the catalog is released.
Peak Season Group Projects
(April through October)
Planning over 200 projects and assigning groups to them is a huge task! To manage the work, the Yosemite Volunteer Program Office creates a Group Volunteer Project Catalog. It contains program policies, project descriptions, dates for planned projects, and a project request form. In order to assign projects fairly, we ask that groups wait until the guide is posted to schedule a group volunteer project during this peak season. The 2024 project guide is available below, with a due date for lottery requests of Sunday, February 25, 2024. The most impactful change you will see this year is the transition to a new project request form. This form is the official application form used throughout the National Park Service (NPS). In order to successfully complete the project request form, you will need to follow the instructions found below. Email us if you encounter any issues filling out the form. As a reminder, we are only offering group volunteer opportunities to groups coming from within California, Arizona, Oregon, and Nevada. It’s important that you read the information in the guide before applying.
If you would like to be notified when the guide is posted online each year, please fill out this form.
Off-Season Projects
Projects are scheduled as above in an April to November time frame, using the project catalog and lottery. If you are interested in a project outside of what is offered in the catalog, please submit a special project request using the form in the catalog. We limit the number of special requests we accept each year, so your odds go down if you propose a project this way. We will not accept project proposals outside of the open lottery window for each year.
Partner-Organized Projects
Individual volunteers may become part of a group organized by one of the many partners of the park. While the National Park Service leads the projects, the partners organize the individuals, their food, and their cooking equipment. Most partner projects last a week, and provide a great way for individual volunteers to serve short-term. Learn more about volunteering with our partners.
