Trail Dogs

Who Are the Trail Dogs?

The Save Mount Diablo Trail Dogs are dedicated and trained volunteers who assist public agencies within Alameda and Contra Costa counties in the design, construction, and maintenance of multi-use trails.

We typically work one day a week at the direction of our partner organizations: East Bay Regional Park District, Mount Diablo State Park, Walnut Creek Parks and Recreation, and others.

We usually work from 9 AM until 2 or 3 PM, on Tuesdays. Some volunteers come to every event, and some come every once in a while when they can make it.

We are actively seeking new members to our group. If you are interested, subscribe to our workday mailing list and we will send you details of when and where to meet us.

Scheduled Workdays

We’d love to have you join us at any of our workdays. Please contact us to let us know that you are coming ahead of time so we can have the right amount of tools at the site.

April 4, 2023

1st Tuesday - Save Mount Diablo 9:00 am to 2:00 pm

Our Trails Need Some TLC

If you enjoy walking, hiking, biking, or horseback riding in the outdoors, no doubt you may have noticed some trails that have been eroded by water runoff and are in need of repair.

Or perhaps you have noticed convenient steps or benches out on a remote hiking trail and you have wondered who built them.

Parks employees often take care of these tasks, but with the great number of trails in the Bay Area, it is often useful for the parks to be able to call on volunteers to help keep up with these services that benefit all those who enjoy the outdoors. That is where the Trail Dogs come in.

How We Help

We meet at a trailhead most Tuesdays with a group of eight to 15 volunteers. We then work side by side with employees of one of our partners to build or maintain a trail. Sometimes we will help with other projects to improve the landscape around the trail.

Most trail maintenance consists of pruning overhanging brush or fallen trees and moving dirt to restore the trail surface using hand tools.

We may also help construct trail amenities, like a bridge. We help transport construction material to the site and help assemble the final product.

We also help by removing trash or unused fencing from properties.

Join Us!

It’s Fun and Rewarding

We are a very informal organization. Get on our email list and we will notify you of upcoming projects. Start by attending a workday. We will train you on everything that you need to know to help us. It is always nice to RSVP so we know how many tools to bring.

We generally meet at a trailhead at 9 AM and work until 2 or 3 PM. You are welcome to leave anytime, but it is usually good to start when we do because we might hike to the project site.

Each project has a variety of tasks with different difficulties. You can choose a task that best uses your skills and energy level. We all work at our own pace. We encourage you to sit down when you are tired or leave when you have had enough.

We recommend you bring and wear work gloves, sturdy shoes, sun protection, long pants and long-sleeved shirts for protection from poison oak, lunch, and water. We supply all necessary tools.

Get notified of upcoming workdays.

“The laying of a trail . . . becomes not only a pleasure in itself, but an inducement to plan a better way of life, to construct worth-while things, or to weave a better product in the loom of our being.”

Contact Us

For more information about the Save Mount Diablo Trail Dogs or our projects, email traildogs@savemountdiablo.org or submit the form below.

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Frequently Asked Questions

We generally start at 9 AM and work until 2 or 3 PM. You are welcome to leave anytime, but it is usually good to start when we do because we might hike to the project site.

Most trail maintenance consists of pruning and restoring the tread. This is like moderate to heavy gardening. Other projects vary in difficulty. Generally there is a variety of tasks with different difficulties within each project. People work at their own pace. Whatever you can contribute is very much appreciated and whatever you do, someone else does not have to do. Feel free to sit down when you are tired or leave when you have had enough.

For normal trail maintenance: pruning shrubs or tree limbs growing into the trail; moving dirt to restore the trail surface using hand tools. For construction projects: transporting construction material such as lumber, rocks, cement from the truck to the site; assembling; nailing or fastening bolts. For removing old barbed-wire fences: removing staples, dragging the wire to the winder, pulling out old fence posts, transporting the debris to the truck.

We recommend work gloves and sturdy shoes or boots. A hat is good for protection from the sun, and long pants and long-sleeved shirts for protection from poison oak.

None. We supply all necessary tools.

No.

We don’t like working in the rain and working in the mud is not good for the trail. Therefore, heavy rain the day before or significant rain the day of a project will cancel it. Drizzle or very light rain will not cancel. If there are last-minute changes to this, and if you have registered in advance that you plan to attend the project, a crew chief will call you before 7 AM on the day of the project to tell you the status.

On special occasions, lunch will be provided. Normally you should bring all the food and water you need. Check the project description to see if lunch will be provided.