This Saturday, May 7th offers a chance to give something back to the Angeles National Forest by getting your hands dirty or by learning yourself a bit of history.

If you feel like getting a good workout and helping to restore areas damaged in the Station Fire, join the Bear Canyon Trail Crew as they work to rebuild the area around the Valley Forge Campground near Mount Wilson. Meet at the Red Box Station between 8 and 8:30AM and either carpool in a high-clearance vehicle or hike 1.5 miles downhill to the work site.

Bring a long sleeve shirt, long pants, boots, gloves and a hard hat – and they’re serious about this. If you are NOT wearing long sleeves and pants, you won’t be allowed to participate. If you don’t have a hard hat, they’ll have some extras for you to borrow. You should also bring at least 3 quarts of water, sunscreen, snacks, and anything else you’d normally take for a half-day in the wilderness.

If you’re interested in volunteering, please contact Andrew Fish ASAP at 818.899.1900 ex. 256 or via email at ajfish@fs.fed.us .

If history and vigilance are more your thing and you happen to have an eagle-eye, you might also want to consider joining the Angeles National Forest Fire Lookout Association . The volunteer group is looking for hikers to help at Slide Mountain Lookout and the Vetter Mountain Lookout for the rest of the 2011 season, volunteering 8 hours a month from May through November.

New volunteer training begins on Saturday as well, and will include four steps:

1. Orientation- a two-hour introduction to the program
2. Interpretation/Natural History- a three-hour class
3. Operations-an all day seven-hour class
4. In-Tower Training- an eight-hour hands-on training in the Lookout with an experienced host.

Head to the ANFFLA web site for more info on these training courses and times. All classes are held at the LA River District Office off Little Tujunga Canyon Road in San Fernando Valley.