Miles For MDLT!

Get out and enjoy the land while actively protecting it! This fall, you can turn your regular hikes into a fundraiser. It’s easy. Share your miles with friends and family and ask them to donate to the Mojave Desert Land Trust. You will be helping to protect precious desert resources so that future generations can enjoy the land.

Since 2006, the Mojave Desert Land Trust has secured permanent protection for almost 90,000 acres across the California desert -- land that is home to the iconic Joshua tree and federally threatened desert tortoise. But the fragile California desert is facing threats from many corners. We’re helping preserve the desert against the threats of overdevelopment, climate change, and fire. Will you help us do this vital work? Join our Miles for MDLT campaign. Every mile you hike can help us buy and permanently protect another acre of this unique desert.

Each acre, which is about the size of a football field, is so important! Acquiring that acre of private land may provide habitat for several desert tortoises – a threatened population that needs room to roam and breed. Or it may forever protect native plants like the Joshua tree from development.

The California desert is like a giant puzzle. It is made up of lots of pieces of private but neglected land. Unlike a lot of land trusts, we spend months, even years, searching for parcels that are ecologically significant. Those parcels add up over time and we may hold the record for the most acquisitions across this desert! We already hold the record for the most tracts of land conveyed to the National Park Service. Your support helps us realize our vision of dark night skies, clean air and water, broad views and vistas, and an abundance of native plants and animals. Only through acquisition, stewardship and awareness can we preserve these uniquely biodiverse landscapes for future generations to enjoy.

How You Can Help

Our goal is to raise $20,000 by October 31, 2020. What we do is simple but it is making a difference to the desert. We need you to get involved. By making a commitment to get outdoors and take part in Miles For MDLT, you will help us do what it takes to defend our desert. You will help us buy land and care for it in the years to come. From the stamps and envelopes we need to send letters to prospective buyers to the passionate stewardship that each acre of conservation land deserves.

Nature is restorative and inspiring, and we hope this gives you the chance to connect with the land in a different way over the next two months. We are counting on our supporters more than ever in these challenging times. Thank you!

You can help us today by making a donation or you can choose to set a personal miles goal for yourself and reach out to your friends and family to make donations that motivate you to reach your goal. Click on Create a Fundraising Page to start the process and you can expect to receive all the resources needed to get you started - including a personal fundraiser page that has already been created for you.

All fundraising participants can expect to receive a Miles For MDLT sticker and patch at the campaign’s conclusion. The patch will include the year so you can collect a new patch every year you participate!

Need more motivation? Meet Chris Shinar below and read why he chose to get involved with MDLT or check out our prize packages on the right-hand column.

Meet Quail Mountain Chris

“I moved here a few years ago to experience the natural beauty of the Mojave Desert… the wildlife, the Joshua trees and the scenery. When an opportunity to help preserve these beautiful lands appeared, I became a Mojave Desert Land Trust volunteer and Community Lands Ranger”

Read Chris Shinar’s “I’m a ranger for a 680-acre parcel of gorgeous land” blog HERE

About MDLT

The Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) protects the unique living landscapes of the California Deserts. Our service area spans nearly 26 million acres -- the entire California portion of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts -- about 25% of the state. Since 2006, we have secured permanent and lasting protection for almost 90,000 acres across the California Deserts! Our mission is to protect the Mojave and Colorado Desert ecosystem and its natural, cultural, and scenic values.