Campground Host - Furnace Creek

A minimum 3 month commitment is preferred with hosts. This announcement is for mid-October to mid-January

Furnace Creek Campground:

Furnace Creek Campground is the only reservable campground in Death Valley National Park. The campground has 136 campsites with drinking water, picnic tables, flush toilets and a dump station. Each site has either a campfire ring or grill.

Most cell phone carriers work in the Furnace Creek area but data use can be slow during high periods of visitation. There are some amenities located half a mile from the campground including a few restaurants, small convenience store, gas station, post office, laundry facilities, pool and golf course. WIFI is not provided but hosts can pay for internet access at the private resort located a half mile from the campground. The closest full sized grocery store, pharmacy, and medical services are located 65 miles away in Pahrump, NV.

General Position Description:

Camp hosts reside in their own RV and are responsible for greeting visitors and helping guests solve problems in a friendly and professional manner. Hosts wear the National Park Service Volunteer uniform while on duty. Camp hosts must work well with people while being personable and neat in appearance. Walking between 1 and 5 miles a day is required to perform the campground rounds in all kinds of weather. No vehicles are provided for this. Hosts work 32 - 40 hours each week, often during the busy holidays or weekends. No fee collection is required.

Daily tasks include:

• Work closely with rangers to manage incoming and outgoing reservations
• Checking for compliance in the morning, at check-out time (noon) and evening
• Hanging reservation tags for incoming campers with pre-paid sites
• Update kiosk staff of late arrival campers and early departure campers at 8am each on-duty day
• Maintaining site-use statistics and turning them into fee staff at the end of each month
• Posting signage at message boards and maintaining bulletin boards
• Answering basic questions about park information, directions and orientation
• Reminding campers of campground rules specific to the campground
• Hanging payment and/or regulation reminder forms when necessary
• Alerting NPS staff of unsafe conditions and equipment so work orders can be placed
• Recognizing when to call for law enforcement or emergency medical assistance (radio and dispatch training will be provided)
• Cleaning firepits and picking up trash in campsites

Skills Desired: 

Ability to work well with others, including visitors and co-workers with diverse interests and views.  Ability to handle the occasional upset, and/or irate camper in calm, professional, and competent manner.  Ability to work independently, be a self-starter, adapt readily to frequent change, and maintain a positive attitude.  Desire to perform meaningful and sometimes challenging work for personal fulfillment.  Ability to live in a remote area with few amenities.  A safe driving record, valid driving license, and dependable personal transportation required.

Compensation: 

The host sites are full hookups, although depending on the energy draw of appliances host may not be able to run multiple appliances at a time (ex: hair dryer and microwave), free laundry facilities at Cow Creek, reimbursement for propane use, use of employee pool.

Work Environment:

Hosts should plan on working in all kinds of weather due to the park's variable climate which can include strong winds, bright sun, intense heat, rain, and snow. Campground rounds are made 3-4 times per day on foot, primarily on a paved surface over a distance that may comprise 2-5 miles per day. Due to training requirements, campground host positions require a minimum commitment of approximately 3 months.