Great Smoky Mountains National Park Seeks Oconaluftee Roving Volunteers

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is recruiting volunteers to assist park visitors by roving the Oconaluftee River Trail, Mountain Farm Museum and the fields along Newfound Gap Road around the Oconaluftee Visitor Center near Cherokee, N.C. Volunteers are needed from mid-April through mid-November and typically work one four hour shift per week.

Roving volunteers provide information to visitors regarding park regulations that best protect wildlife including proper waste disposal and safe wildlife viewing. In addition, they provide information about cultural resources found at the Mountain Farm Museum and natural resources along the Oconaluftee River Trail. When elk are present in the fields, volunteers assist park rangers with traffic management and provide visitors with information on safely viewing elk.

All interested volunteers are required to attend one 5-hour orientation and training session on Wednesday, April 1st at 10 a.m. at the Oconaluftee Multi-Purpose Room adjacent to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. To register for training or for more information, contact Kathleen Stuart at 828-497-1914.

Elk grazing in a field near Oconaluftee in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.