Next time you come into the Welcome Center, you may notice new smiling faces! Crystal and Snowflower have joined our staff on the Front Desk and are ready to help you become a member, make a reservation, check in for your stay, or answer a question! We have given Evette, who has been working diligently for Housekeeping, a few shifts at the desk. Perhaps you'll be momentarily perplexed because she is out of context. She continues to do a great job in all areas. We also want to welcome Jesse, David and Adrienne who joined our housekeeping staff this spring. All are doing great work. Please make them feel welcome!

Each year, OLT opens its gates to celebrate it's devoted members and all their support. Anyone can become a member and no members are turned away. With so many fun-lovin' folks, we ask everyone to park off-site and be especially mindful of one another and our delicate space. Our supply of ice is limited and we encourage sharing tent spaces whenever possible.

Enjoy live music at the Pavilion from 9 pm-around 1 am on Friday and Saturday nights..

Friday Night Band: Todd Johnson & Breaking Blues with returning camp host Ian Monk on drums.

Saturday Night Band: Mama Magnolia. We saw them at the Crestone Music Festival last year and we could not be more thrilled to have them this year for Member Appreciation.

"Their powerful blend of groovy rhythms, explosive horn lines, captivating melodies and soulful lyrics will invite you to want more. With a love of shifting meters, polyrhythmic structure, evolving harmonies and complex dynamic shape, they let the music guide them to create danceable and undeniably deep music that is tasty soul candy to those who hear it."

http://www.mamamagnolia.com/

Last year, 2015, we experienced the most visitors ever at the hot springs. For the first time, this February and March we reached our capacity limits almost every weekend. We have limitations on overnight visitors and for day visits. Because of the way our society is set up, weekends, holidays, and summer are the times that most people can take their vacations. The effect here is that the springs are busy during those times. One thing you can do to make sure you get in when you arrive is to Call First! Whether you are coming for the day or staying overnight, let us know you are heading this way. Make a quick call notifying us of your plans and we can save the space. No one likes being turned away and we don't enjoy that part of the job either. The capacity limit is there to minimize the negative impact of overcrowding. Indoor accommodations are popular and reservations are usually necessary to get a cabin or room. Camping is the low cost option and tent sites are numerous. However, we do reach capacity limits for overnight and day visitors. Be wise, call ahead.

Use less paper! We recognize that we are a conservation organization with the intention of being conscientious stewards of this revered land. In the spirit of making Every Day an Earth Day, we would like to encourage everyone to bring their own dish cloths, dish towels, and clean-up supplies. Using less paper products will take some fresh thinking and willingness to put in a little effort..

Here are some suggestions:

1) Bring your own bath towels and dish towels, along with a dishcloth or two. In the kitchens, instead of using a towel or wash cloth that somebody else used, have your own clean one ready to go. Wash them at home and put them in the bin for hot springs trips. Avoid bringing paper products; be sensitive to your impact.

2) Use a regular mug or bring your own travel mug for your coffee or tea.

3) Bring a water bottle (metal or plastic) to fill at our water fountain. Get good drinking water piped fresh and pure from the springs.

Our guidelines have always been simple and focused. We ask our visitors to recognize that we are a conservation based land trust and to help us be good stewards by taking personal responsibility for yourself, your family and your pets. Be respectful of the land, the water, the animals, our staff and guests. We are all in this together!

You can help by:

Being responsible for your trash and recycling. We do provide a recycling area, but if you can take your trash/recycling home, that saves us the labor and expense of processing it.

Pack it in – Pack it out!

Always clean up after yourself! Never leave dirty dishes or food for others to clean up, even on the "free" shelf at Oak Lodge.

Be aware and responsible for your belongings! Please don't leave them in the forest or around the pools. Let the next visitor experience that moment of awe when they come upon a beautiful pristine pond!

Leave it better than you found it! If you see trash, pick it up. If you see a new guest who is being disrespectful, use it as a moment to educate and share our Valley View culture.

We want to maintain our unique culture while promoting our mission of conservation and land stewardship. Being a small nonprofit land trust we need all of our members and visitors to participate in this process! It not only helps us to keep our costs affordable, but creates a sense of ownership and stewardship that works well here and in the world at large.

Orient Land Trust has a new-to-us vehicle in the fleet (if that's not too optimistic a word). It's a 2002 Dodge 3500 (1 ton, dual rear wheels) with a Cummins Diesel engine. We'll be using it as the workhorse for all the hauling chores. It's a flatbed so it will be nice to use as a work truck.

Many thanks to Mike O'Donal, the ranch manager, for letting us beat up his trucks on OLT's behalf for the past four years.