Written by: Corpsmember, Naudika Williams
The Sierra Mountains seemed like a place I only read in history class. It was an out-of-reach fantasy. Something that belonged to those who crossed it and renamed the land or the wild backpackers who could afford to wander in the wilderness, so when I was offered a chance to work and live in the Inyo forest, my imagination severely underestimated the greatness I would see in the backcountry.
I remember seeing the stars on my first night and thinking, I must have never truly seen the stars before. I wanted to bring them back to Oakland. I wanted to show everyone how bright the moon really was and how I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to be looking at it, but I couldn’t help staring.
As trail workers, we spent our days maintaining stock trails and restoring illegal campsites. We hiked up switchbacks with shovels and rock bars until we reached the destination of the next site that we would transform.
Being in the backcountry gave me a chance to work on the land and live and be fully immersed in my environment. Every night, we slept to a constant choir of crickets and the roaring water crashing, and that followed us back to camp. We were in bear country. The snow determined how far we could go, and the lightning and rain decided our weekend plans. All of these things shaped my summer. This experience makes me rethink how I live now in Oakland, and how working and living with and for nature is one of my core values.
Stay tuned for a full feature on Naudika Williams and their unique journey as a corpsmember in our FY24 Annual Report.
