National Public Lands Day will see thousands volunteer this Saturday

Bend, Ore. (KTVZ) --- National Public Lands Day, a nationwide event dedicated to volunteering on public lands, takes place this Saturday, Sept. 26. Thousands of volunteers across the country are expected to participate in stewardship projects on national forests and grasslands.

The annual day of service encourages stewardship by providing community members an opportunity to conserve and restore public sites. According to the U.S. Forest Service, volunteer tasks include picking up trash at campgrounds, clearing hiking trails and repairing damage caused by storms or heavy use.

Past initiatives illustrate the scope of volunteer efforts on public lands. On Sept. 28, 2025, the Mark Twain National Forest partnered with the Ozark Trail Association for the Banner Road Trail recreation project near Birch Tree, Mo. During that effort, volunteers wearing hard hats cleared brush along the trail using hand tools.

The U.S. Forest Service noted that volunteering offers participants a sense of community and connection to nature as summer transitions into autumn. The agency emphasized that stewarding public lands helps preserve the natural beauty of national forests and grasslands for visitors across the country.