Donate today
We know how important the trails are to you, and that is why, together with The C.R.E.W. and our volunteers, we are committed to fixing the trails as quickly as possible.
With over 100 problem areas on the preserves, we have our work cut out for us, but with your support we know we can build a more resilient trail system.
Join and support OVLC and move mudslides and boulders.
Give and Get Matched
If we raise $80,000 from the community to support the OVLC, an extremely generous anonymous donor has offered OVLC an $80,000 match to help our trails recover from storm damage!
Donate and double your impact today!
Get Muddy
Allen and Marilyn Camp have challenged you to give back by getting muddy. If 40 new volunteers join us in working on the trails in March, they will generously donate $20,000 to the OVLC! (That’s $500 per new volunteer!!)
More Damaging Than Fire
The powerful January storms turned the Ventura River and its tributaries into raging torrents that took down everything in their path, including mature trees, and sent boulders rumbling down the flood plains. It was a humbling display of nature’s strength. While Ojai’s vast flood plains are evidence of past storms of this caliber, our changing climate will continue to exacerbate the intensity of these storms.
The destruction to the trail system is extensive and we need your help. Our short-term goal is to clean up the trails and get you back out to experience the awe and power of nature. Our long-term goal is to make our trails more resilient to future rain events. This includes adding drainage features and rerouting vulnerable sections of trail. The encouraging news is that our Foothill Trail reroute held up in the storms.
While the destruction can feel overwhelming we have a lot of hope—thanks to an outpouring of support from our volunteers and our new partnership with The C.R.E.W.
Our Volunteers Bring Us Hope
Just days after the storm, our first volunteer group went out to Valley View Preserve to start cleaning the trails. Under the guidance of OVLC Staff and our dedicated volunteer crew leaders, volunteers are getting muddy and giving back. Thanks to our amazing volunteers we have already opened the Valley View Preserve!
Volunteer crews continue to go out three times a week to tackle all the mudslides and boulders on the Ventura River Preserve. Join us at ovlc.org/volunteer
Partnership with The C.R.E.W.
In order to rebuild the trails as quickly as possible we are proud to announce a special partnership with The C.R.E.W., a nonprofit dedicated to youth employment and developing lifelong skills through environmental work.
Through this partnership, The C.R.E.W. will hire a dedicated trail crew and OVLC will provide them with training and best management practices. By helping The C.R.E.W. build their capacity, our valley will gain a professional trail crew.
