Volunteer Opportunities

Volunteering with MSRP

Photo showing volunteers handing plants along a fire line to the top of Scorpion Rock.

Volunteers and MSRP staff help move plants up a fire line to the top of Scorpion Rock.

Montrose Settlements Restoration Program (MSRP) biologists host several volunteer trips each year on the Channel Islands. Volunteers help plant native plants to restore nesting seabird habitat. Transportation to the islands is provided and a campsite is designated for volunteers when at the site. Volunteers need to provide their own food and camping gear. Specific information about these trips is provided below.

Scorpion Rock-Santa Cruz Island

Scorpion Rock is a small islet near Santa Cruz Island. We are working to restore nesting habitat for the Cassin’s Auklet, a small seabird that nests in burrows under native island shrubs. Opportunities to help with weeding in the spring and planting in the fall are available.

Information about the trips:

    • Trips are usually planned over a weekend and involve taking a one-hour boat ride from Ventura Harbor to Scorpion Ranch on Santa Cruz Island.
    • Volunteers camp at Scorpion Ranch Campground and then are brought to Scorpion Rock by a small skiff during the day.
    • The work can be physically challenging, and volunteers need to be comfortable with jumping out of the skiff onto slippery rocks during ocean surge.
Photo showing a volunteer group and MSRP staff during a planting trip on Santa Barbara Island.

Volunteers and MSRP staff during a planting trip on Santa Barbara Island.

Santa Barbara Island

Santa Barbara Island is the smallest of the Channel Islands, about one square mile, and lies 30 miles from the southern California coast. This project helps to restore nesting habitat for Cassin’s Auklets and Xantus’s Murrelets. Opportunities to help with weeding in the Spring and planting in the Fall are available. Trips are planned for 3-5 days since this island is remote and involves taking a 3-4 hour boat ride from Ventura Harbor. Volunteers camp on the island and hike to the restoration plots during the day. The work is physically challenging and volunteers must be in good physical shape.

Information about the trips:

    • Trips are planned for 3-5 days since this island is remote and involves taking a 3-4 hour boat ride from Ventura Harbor.
    • Volunteers camp on the island and hike to the restoration plots during the day.
    • The work is physically challenging and volunteers must be in good physical shape.

To volunteer for these trips or to help with other types of restoration work, please email msrp and specify that you are interested in volunteering. We will add your name to our volunteer email list!