Introduction to CWC:
Hello, Michelle the Royal Robbins Ambassador stopping by to tell you of my next adventure. April 1-3 I will be heading to the Soda Mountains/Mojave Desert Wilderness Study Area with the California Wilderness Coalition and the California Native Plant Society to conduct a rare plant survey of the area. Before I get into the trip details let me first tell you about the CWC and how Royal Robbins is affiliated with them.
The California Wilderness Coalition’s mission “The California Wilderness Coalition protects the natural landscapes that make California unique, providing clean air and water, a home to wildlife, and a place for recreation and spiritual renewal. CWC is the only organization dedicated to protecting and restoring California's wild places and native biodiversity on a statewide level. Since 1976, we have empowered local communities and conservationists to be the voice for wild California.”
Royal Robbins®, who depends on wilderness access for our customers, agrees with the mission of the CWC. This year we’ve included their cause in our philanthropy yearly plan. Our goal together is to protect our wild places and educate adults and children of the importance of these valuable wilderness areas. As the Royal Robbins Ambassador I’ve been invited to explore the Soda Mountains in the Mojave Desert with the CWC and the California Native Plant Society. For three days and two nights I will be camping in the backcountry of the Soda Mountains and Cronese Lakes Basin conducting a rare plant survey during wildflower season in the Mojave Desert proposed wilderness area.
The Soda Mountains are the largest Wilderness Study Area left in the Mojave Desert. The mountains are a scenic, horseshoe shaped range and include the terminus of the great Mojave River – at the Cronese Lakes most recently, and Silver Lake in the not too distant past. Known plants include Creosote, Barrel Cacti, Cholla Yuccas, and the Crucifixion Thorn. The southern portion of the Soda Mountains contains critical habitat for the federally and state threatened desert tortoise. Although the Soda Mountains have been a Wilderness Study Area since 1994, surprisingly little information is available about plant life in the area. Our trip seeks to survey three distinct areas within the Wilderness Study Area to find out what plants exist there. We will learn to identify plants species, collect specimens, and record our findings. We will be venturing into unstudied, wild desert. So here I go, out into the wilderness to explore and study rare plant life. The weather is warming up for us and the forecast says lows in the 50’s highs in the 90’s. Phenomenal spring camping conditions! I will check back in to blog about my adventure and share some pictures when I return. 
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