Summit County invites residents to get outside and help steward public lands

Volunteers pick up trash along East Canyon Road at the 910 Cattle Ranch as part of Summit County's Stewardship Thursdays series. Photo: TownLift//Randi Sidman-Moore

PARK CITY, Utah — Summit County residents have several opportunities this summer to get outside and help care for the public lands, trails, and watersheds that define the Wasatch Back.

Summit County Lands and Natural Resources highlighted a slate of stewardship events in its June County Lands News, including weed removal, watershed restoration, and guided access to the newly protected 910 Ranch.

The events come as the county continues planning for the long-term management of major open-space acquisitions, including 910 Ranch and Ure Ranch, while drought and fire danger intensify across Utah.

“Some places are so extraordinary that they belong not to one generation but to all generations,” Jess Kirby, director of Summit County Lands and Natural Resources, wrote in the department’s June message. “The responsibility now rests with us to continue that tradition of stewardship.”

The next volunteer opportunity is Thriving Land Thursdays: Weed Wrangling on the 910 Ranch, scheduled for Thursday, June 25, from 8 to 11 a.m. Volunteers will help restore the ranch’s riparian corridor by removing noxious and invasive weeds that can crowd out native plants and degrade wildlife habitat. The event will take place at 910 Ranch, 10063 North East Canyon Road.

Later that day, Lands and Natural Resources staff and volunteers will lead a Wildflower Walk on the 910 Ranch from 5 to 7 p.m. The guided hike is expected to cover about 2 to 3 miles. The event is full, but residents may join the waitlist.

On Saturday, June 27, volunteers can join the Garlic Mustard Games, an annual community effort organized with the Summit Cooperative Weed Management Area. The event will run from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at Armstrong Trail, with volunteers meeting at the Park City Mountain Resort parking lot off Lowell Avenue.

Garlic mustard is a state-listed noxious weed that can outcompete native vegetation, degrade soil quality, harm pollinators, and reduce forest resiliency. While much of Utah has not been heavily affected by the plant, Summit County is managing a widespread invasion, according to the county.

A third service event, the East Canyon Watershed Committee Service Day, is scheduled for Wednesday, July 15, from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the 910 Ranch. The committee works to protect and improve water quality across watershed areas in Summit County and parts of Morgan County. Residents interested in cleanup or restoration work, or in joining quarterly committee meetings, can contact Emily Bishop-Valles at ebishop@utah.gov.

The 910 Ranch has become a major focus of the county’s conservation work. Summit County finalized the acquisition earlier this year, permanently protecting more than 8,500 acres of forestland and wildlife habitat in Summit and Morgan counties. The property, north of Jeremy Ranch, is one of the largest open space acquisitions in county history.

County officials are now working through how the land will be managed, including future public access, recreation, conservation, and research uses.

The county also continues work around Ure Ranch, an 835-acre property in the Kamas Valley protected for agriculture, wildlife habitat, public recreational open space, and conservation.

Kirby framed the county’s current land work within a larger American conservation tradition, pointing to national parks, wildlife refuges, forests, grasslands, deserts, wetlands, and public lands as part of a long-term commitment to protect landscapes for future generations.

“Our public lands provide clean water, healthy forests, outdoor recreation, economic opportunity, and a connection to the landscapes that tell the story of our nation,” Kirby wrote.

For Summit County residents, county officials said that work can begin with a pair of gloves, a water bottle, and a few hours on the land.