Association Biom in cooperation with the association Bioteka and the Učka Nature Park is organizing a volunteer camp on Učka in the period from 2nd till 24th July 2020! Join us, volunteer with us and take part in the fight to preserve biodiversity!
Karst grasslands and pastures of the Učka Nature Park mountain area are home to numerous species of birds, butterflies and reptiles. By limiting and preventing natural fires and abandoning traditional livestock grazing practices, these valuable habitats are gradually overgrowing into thickets and forests. The location of this year’s habitat restoration camp is therefore Podmaj, where the nesting habitat of locally endangered Ortolan Bunting (Emberiza hortulana) is rapidly overgrowing. The same habitat is used for hunting by two important, locally endangered species of eagles – the Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) and the Short-toed Snake Eagle (Circaetus gallicus). The mission of our volunteer camps is to restore these valuable habitats through direct conservation actions, preserve their biodiversity and contribute to the protection of endangered bird species which use them. We therefore invite you to help us with this task! All we ask for is some positive attitude and willingness to work and cooperate with us on these activities! In return, we offer you a stay in beautiful nature, a break from technology and city rush, pleasant multicultural atmosphere, and an opportunity to gain knowledge about nature protection and natural heritage of mountain Učka! The camp is open for volunteers from 2nd till 24th July 2020. You can join us for a few days or a few weeks, for as long as it suits you! You can apply by filling out the application form here. The camp is held as part of the Učka 360 ° project.
Basic information about the camp
Participating in the camp will provide you with a unique opportunity to stay in a beautiful protected area, but it also implies certain adjustments to specific living conditions.
- Sleeping in tents – you’ll need a tent, a sleeping bag and a mat (sponge / pad). Several small tents will be set up during the entire duration of the camp and it is possible to borrow one, in agreement with the organizers. If you are missing any equipment, be sure to inform us in the application form.
- Cooking on a campfire and camping gas stove – groceries are bought every few days, and all food costs are covered by the organizer. Volunteers are expected to help with meal planning, cooking, collecting and chopping firewood and the like. Since we don’t have a fridge at the location, the meals are often vegetarian.
- Drinking water in a plastic tank on site – the supply of drinking water is limited and must be used rationally. Due to the limited volume of water, no shower is available.
- Toilet in nature – it consists of a specially selected meadow, shovel and DIY chair made of hornbeam wood.
- Electricity from solar panels – only for small and necessary electrical equipment (e.g. for charging mobile phones and cameras).
- The signal is weak – there is a phone / internet signal, but it is generally quite weak. Occasionally it disappears completely, and in such cases accessing it requires a short walk uphill to the location of a stronger signal.
- Everyone is welcome – everyone can contribute to the activities in their own way, so we have no age restrictions on participation! However, be sure to consider whether the living conditions at the camp suit you. Pets are also welcome!
- 7:00-8:00 Waking up, breakfast, preparing for the day
- 8:00-11:00 Main work activities – clearing bushes and small trees, splitting, collecting and transporting wood and sawn material, mowing, raking, etc.
- 11:00-17:00 Daily break – during the hottest part of the day we prepare food, have lunch, learn about the nature around us, read, play board games, visit the surrounding mountain peaks, do shopping, etc. Bring books, games or anything else to pass the time during the afternoon breaks!
- 17:00-19:00 Continuation of work activities – when necessary.
- 19:00 – … Dinner, hanging out around the campfire 🙂
How to reach us?
You can find the location of the camp on Podmaj here.
It is important for us to know the exact place and time of your arrival in advance so that we can plan our schedule, so please send us this information via the application form. You can join us for a couple of days or for a few weeks, for as long as it suits you! Also, keep in mind that during the camp the organizers do not have a good internet connection and that it is therefore important for you to announce your arrival or potential cancellation as soon as possible.
- Arriving by car
- Arriving by public transport
- volunteers coming by public transport will be picked up by the organizers from Lovran, on Tuesdays and Saturdays, in the period 12:00-16:00
- we transport volunteers from Lovran twice a week only because it is impractical for us to leave the camp location often (you can see the schedule by dates in the application form)
- if the pick up schedule doesn’t work for you, let us know and we will see if we can arrange an alternative
- if you want to hike up to the camp on your own, we recommend that you travel by bus to Sveta Jelena and follow the bike route no. 8 from the tavern Slamnjaki. It is about 10 km long and takes you straight to Podmaj (link to route here)
If you are interested in our volunteer camp and want to join us, fill out the application form and we will contact you soon to arrange all the necessary details! If you have any questions, you can contact us at volonteri@biom.hr See you at Učka!
