ShareThisLEES FERRY, Ariz. -- Unless a visitor knew what to look for, the tiny endangered pedio cactus near the top of the Grand Canyon would be easy to miss.
Judy Durzo, an Albuquerque, N.M., lawyer and a founder of the Grand Circle Field School, knows just where to look.
Her nonprofit school offers educational programs in the remote Arizona Strip, between the Grand Canyon's northern border and Utah's southern border. Grand Circle operates in partnership with the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management, turning public lands into open-air classrooms. These include parts of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument and the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument.
Grand Circle is one of several such groups in the Four Corners region whose mission is to teach students of all ages about the Colorado Plateau's human and natural history -- and to have some fun in the process.
"Our mission is all about conservation and education," Durzo said while eating lunch at the Lees Ferry Lodge, a class site. "We take people to the land and teach them about it. If they come to understand it and appreciate it, maybe they will take care of it."
The idea for the Grand Circle Field School came about five years ago, when public-land managers were seeking a partner to help lead educational tours.
Ann Zwinger, a well-known Colorado naturalist and writer, co-founded the organization with Durzo. "As we walk the land, read the sky, bless the rain and the river, we come to understand and cherish these extraordinary places," Zwinger wrote on the group's Web site.
Last year, the group offered a dozen outings, including an ElderHostel houseboat experience on Lake Powell, a kayak trip, a history class about Lees Ferry, work with California condor biologists, photography workshops, geology classes and a float on the Colorado River below the Glen Canyon Dam to discuss the structure's pros and cons.
Four-day weekend classes cost $600, while a kayaking class might cost $1,300 and a river trip on the San Juan River in Utah costs around $1,800.
Younger students represent a growing market for the program. "We have schools coming from all over the country," said Durzo. "I don't know how they are finding us. . . . There is a demand for learning vacations."
Karla VanderZanden, director of the Canyonlands Field Institute in Moab, Utah, agrees.
"There is a national groundswell of getting youth outdoors," she said. "There is a rider on the No Child Left Behind reauthorization that is called No Child Left Inside. It includes funding and training for environmental education at a national level."
VanderZanden's organization caters to two major groups: school groups and adults with families.
"They come because they are trying to supplement science, civics and public-lands education," she said. "We offer a more hands-on concrete experience. There is a concern being expressed about kids not getting outdoors like they used to and spending too much time in the virtual world."
Tracy Jones of the Zion Canyon Field Institute, based in Springdale, Utah, said many students have become more environmentally conscious and want to preserve natural places.
A look at the education programs and their specialties in the Four Corners area:
-- Grand Circle Field School: The nonprofit, based in Vermilion Cliffs, Ariz., operates in the so-called Arizona Strip, the land between the Grand Canyon's north side and Utah's southern border. In partnership with the federal government, the school offers classes in history, geology, California condors, kayaking and river running and more. It also runs classes for the nonprofit Elderhostel, serving people 55 and older. Call 505-797-8540 or see www.grandcirclefieldschool.com.
-- Canyonlands Field Institute: The group aims to interpret and care for the Colorado Plateau, expand appreciation for the natural world and improve field-oriented teaching outdoors. Call 800-860-5262 or www.canyonlandsfieldinst.org.
-- Zion Canyon Field Institute: It works with Zion Natural History Association to provide classes on outdoor photography, natural history, watercolor journaling, plant identification, service learning and more; 800-635-3959 or www.zionpark.org.
-- Four Corners School of Outdoor Education: With offices in Monticello, Utah, it aims to create lifelong learning experiences about the Colorado Plateau for people of all ages and backgrounds. It offers education, service, adventure and conservation programs; 435-587-2156 or 800-525-4456 or www.fourcornersschool.org.
-- Crow Canyon Archaeological Center: The southwestern Colorado school strives to teach about and preserve the rich history of the ancestral Pueblo Indians who inhabited the Mesa Verde region more than 700 years ago; 800-422-8975. www.crowcanyon.org.
(Contact Tom Wharton at Wharton(at)sltrib.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
