DEATH VALLEY, Calif. -- A Student Conservation Corps (SCA) crew of volunteer high school students finished a three-week project working on the Telescope Peak Trail Aug. 18.

The crew, with members hailing from all parts of the country, worked at elevations of from 8,000 to 11,000 feet, restoring the trail, said Death Valley National Park spokesperson Terry Baldino.

The longest trail in the park, the path traverses the slopes below the summit of Rogers Peak, crosses the meadows and ridgeline of the high Panamints and ends at Telescope Peak, the highest point in the park at 11,049 feet.

The SCA crew of six, with two crew leaders, was sponsored by a grant provided by the National Park Foundation with funding from the Nature Company.

In March 2006, Death Valley National Park was one of five parks across the country awarded trail restoration grants by the National Park Foundation.

Baldino said the crew's work included widening dangerously narrow trail tread, cutting and trimming of trees and brush and removal of rock debris along the length of the trail and stabilizing two of the switchbacks near the end of the trail.

Park Superintendent J.T. Reynolds spent a rainy evening camped out with the crew near the Telescope Peak trailhead at Mahogany Flat Campground.

He said, "I was impressed by the cohesive, fun-loving group enjoying their experience in one of the park's and nation's most scenic areas. The trail work they accomplished will increase safety, please visitors, and last for

years to come.