U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell invites families to experience the benefits of nature by participating in the annual National Get Outdoors Day on Saturday, June 14. Also known as “GO Day,” it is a “fee free” day in the Angeles National Forest.

“Working with our partners, we are able to provide a variety of opportunities for kids and adults to learn, enjoy and explore on our national forests and grasslands,” said Tidwell.  “From Alaska to the Rockies to the Great Plains to the East Coast, we are hosting events and providing opportunities that stimulate the mind as well as the body.”

As part of the local recognition of GO Day, the public is invited to the Angeles for Operation Super Canyon Sweep 2014 event to help clean up litter in the forest. Those interested should meet at the San Gabriel Canyon Off Highway Vehicle Area on San Gabriel Canyon about seven miles north of Glendora at 8 a.m.

Volunteers will then be bused to various points along the North Fork, West Fork and East Fork areas of the San Gabriel River. Lunch, bottled water and trash bags will be provided. The cleanup will last until 3 p.m. The event is supported by the Forest Service, California Trail Users Coalition, Fisheries Resource Volunteer Corps and other groups. Professional graffiti removers will also participate.

Sponsors of National Get Outdoors Day have added an exciting addition — a photo mosaic contest.  Submit your pictures and join thousands of other people from across the country in celebrating our great outdoors. From your submissions, 10 people will be randomly selected to win an America the Beautiful or ‘Interagency’ pass, which covers entrance and standard amenity fees at more than 2,000 federal recreation areas. For more information, please search for “National Get Outdoors Day Photo Mosaic Contest” on the internet.

Additional “fee free” days on the Angeles will be observed on:  National Public Lands Day, Sept. 27; and Veterans Day weekend, Nov. 8-11.

About the U.S. Forest Service

The mission of the Forest Service is to sustain the health, diversity and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world. Public lands the Forest Service manages contribute more than $13 billion to the economy each year through visitor spending alone. Those same lands provide 20 percent of the nation’s clean water supply, a value estimated at $7.2 billion per year. The agency has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 80 percent of the 850 million forested acres within the U.S., of which 100 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live.