Carving New Lines: Stewardship in Action at Lover’s Leap

Fifty Volunteers, One Shared Passion, and a Trail Worth Saving

By Charlie Pankey | Sierra Rec Magazine, July 2025 Conservation Issue

This past weekend, beneath the granite cliffs of Lover’s Leap, the air buzzed with the sound of hammers striking stone, trail tools scraping earth, and voices lifted in laughter and grit. I had the chance to join Lover’s Leap Guide Services—led by longtime local steward Petch and the Access funds crews—and nearly 50 volunteers in the final day of a trail restoration effort that was equal parts hard work and heartfelt celebration.

In the heat of a summer day, we hauled and broke rocks, sculpted new trail tread, and stabilized eroded terrain at the base of one of the most iconic climbing zones in the Sierra. The work is part of a larger initiative to rebuild this area after the wildfire scars of recent years—an effort not just to repair trails, but to reclaim a community space.

The project organized and directed by the CRAGS (@norcalcrags) was led by the Access Fund, a national nonprofit that champions sustainable access to climbing areas, and made possible in part by the American Trails Legacy Trail Grant. But on the ground, this was truly a collaborative labor of love.

Meeting a Community I Didn’t Yet Know

I’ll admit it—I’m not a climber. When Petch invited me to join the day’s work, I welcomed the opportunity to experience a world I knew so little about. What I found was astonishing: not just the scale of the work, but the people behind it. Dozens of volunteers had come from across California—many from hours away in the Bay Area, not just locals. They traveled here, giving up a weekend, not for glory but for grit. To give back to a place they loved.

At around 2 p.m., as I hiked back down the mountain, I paused to snap a few photos of the crews still working below our station. That’s when I had a conversation with a volunteer who left an impression I won’t soon forget—a chiropractor from Santa Rosa, smiling and talking about her love of this place. She told me about climbing these cliffs just last fall, when she broke her ankle in a fall that required two plates and multiple screws. And yet here she was, back at Lover’s Leap, pounding trail with all the strength and heart she had. I recalled just hours earlier her knee deep in ash moving boulders with our leader from Crags. She was not back to climb, but to contribute. Healing in motion.

That kind of quiet resilience says everything about this community. They speak to each other like siblings—bound not just by rope and granite, but by experience. They’ve shared exposure on craggy spires, relied on each other with the full weight of their trust, and pushed one another toward new routes and personal edges. But it’s days like this—on the ground, tools in hand, side by side—that show the foundation of who they are.

They are climbers, yes. But they are also builders, believers, and stewards. People who work, sweat, and sometimes bleed for the sport that inspires them and the friendships it forges. It is hear in the Sierra that their story is told.

A Collaborative Effort

This trail project was a convergence of passion and partnership. In addition to the Access Fund and Petch’s guidance, the effort was co-sponsored by CRAGS (Climbing Resource Advocates for Greater Sacramento) and supported by members of the Women’s Lead Group, Blue Granite Climbing, the Tahoe Climbing Coalition, and the Bay Area Climber’s Coalition. Trail crew leaders from Access Fund’s national Conservation Team brought tools, training, and expertise—while local and visiting climbers alike brought the heart.

And when the final rock was set and the tools were stowed, the celebration began. Just across the road at Strawberry Station, beloved local owner Squirrel hosted a post-project hog roast to mark the day and the Third Annual Lovers Festival—a gathering of joy, music, food, and storytelling under the pines.

I couldn’t stay for the after-party, I stopped in tot eh store and grabbed a Tahoe bar and Gatorade for the drive home, but even as I left, I felt like I had witnessed something far more lasting than a single day of trail work. This wasn’t just about erosion control or access—it was about connection to this place and these people.

Why It Matters

Until recently, I hadn’t fully understood what the Access Fund really does. But after talking to Petch on a recent Sierra Rec Now podcast and watching this project unfold, it became crystal clear: they aren’t just protecting climbing access, they’re empowering communities to care for the places they love. Whether through land conservation, legal advocacy, or hands-on trail work, they help people show up—and do the work.

The grant from American Trails made this effort possible. But the real fuel behind it was people—people who care enough to shape their legacy in stone and sweat.

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Final Thoughts

We often talk about how the Sierra changes us. But sometimes, we get the chance to give something back. To walk away with calloused hands and a deeper respect for the communities who live at the heart of these wild places.

At Lover’s Leap this month, I found something I hadn’t expected: not just trail builders, but trailblazers in the truest sense—people writing new chapters of stewardship with every stone they set.

They may climb with fingertips and faith. But they build with heart.