Across the country, public lands are feeling the strain of dwindling federal funding and shrinking workforces, and the Bridger-Teton National Forest is no exception. As critical maintenance and trail work falls behind, a small but experienced crew dubbed the Forest Corps is stepping in to help fill the gap.
Launched by Friends of the Bridger-Teton, a nonprofit partner of BTNF, the Forest Corps is a new seasonal initiative providing on-the-ground support across all six districts. The team is assisting with essential tasks including trail maintenance, restoration, public-access improvement and other projects that might otherwise go undone due to staffing shortages.
Scott Kosiba, executive director of Friends of the Bridger-Teton, told Mountain Journal the program was created in direct response to recent federal layoffs, including the termination of probationary employees earlier this year.
BTNF lost between 25 and 30 percent of its permanent staff and as much as 80 percent of its seasonal workforce, according to Kosiba. The Forest Corps team, which consists of five experienced women, includes several former Forest Service employees who were directly impacted by the cuts.
“About half were seasonal employees who were let go at the end of last season,” Kosiba said. “Two or three of the Forest Corps crew were previously probationary employees and were let go and had the opportunity to come back.”
Throughout the 2025 summer season, the Forest Corps will take on high-impact trail and infrastructure projects, including restoring over 40 miles of trails in the Willow Creek area, repairing fire-damaged sections of the Continental Divide, mitigating erosion and clearing overgrowth in the Kemmerer District, and replacing a bridge at Two Ocean Pass in the Teton Wilderness. The program is nearly 100 percent privately financed through Friends of Bridger-Teton, with noteworthy support from the Wyoming Wilderness Association, Trout Unlimited and Grand Teton Association.
Forest Corps crew members hike in the front country adjacent to the Jim Bridger Wilderness to clear downed trees, cut brush, maintain drains and perform general trail maintenance. Credit: Courtesy Friends of Bridger-Teton
Kosiba said this year’s crew is purposely small, calling it a “prove-it year” for the program. “When we first started, it was an emergency move,” he said, “but I’m really excited to see how the rest of the season plays out.”
Although the program is designed to complement not replace federal land management, with additional budget cuts to the Forest Service likely in 2026 Kosiba believes the Forest Corps may become a cornerstone program of the nonprofit.
“The model we are leaning into with the Forest Corps is well established and has been used by the Forest Service for years,” he said. “Nothing we are doing can or will replace the Forest Service. We could add 30 people, but it will not replace what the Forest Service does.”
