Help Clean This National Park And Get A Free Spa Treatment

A lodge and spa outside Yosemite National Park has a special offer for anyone who wants to help with a volunteer cleanup effort at the park.

“Save 10 percent off lodging and trade trash for spa treatments!” Rush Creek Lodge & Spa wrote on its website.

That promotion is part of what the lodge explains is a celebration of 20 years of “Yosemite Facelift,” in which it partners with the Yosemite Climbing Association “to bring stewardship and volunteerism to our favorite local areas,” Rush Creek Lodge explains.

This year, Yosemite Facelift will be held from September 20–24.

“Yosemite Facelift is an annual stewardship project started 20 years ago by Ken Yager. He’s a thoughtful Yosemite climber and guide who just wanted all of us to enjoy Yosemite without careless litter ruining our visit and our beloved park,” Rush Creek Lodge explains. “Now, people of all ages and abilities come from all over the world to contribute anything from 1 hour of simple trail or roadside trash collection to several days of major cleanups.”

Importantly, Yosemite Facelift volunteers have collected more than 1 million pounds of trash at Yosemite over the past 20 years.

Rush Creek Lodge, located just half a mile from Yosemite National Park’s Highway 120 west entrance, opened its doors on June 24, 2016.

“The first new lodge in the area in more than 25 years, Rush Creek features a contemporary, rustic sensibility inspired by the breathtaking expanse of nature surrounding its 20-acre wooded hillside setting,” Rush Creek Lodge explains. “It marries an authentic, timeless feel with modern amenities for a consummate national park lodge experience that is both relaxed and sophisticated.”

The lodge features 143 lodge rooms, suites, and hillside Yosemite villas — all featuring a deck overlooking nature. What’s more, most even offer views of the sunset.

In addition to massages and skin-care treatments, the 5,000-square-foot indoor/outdoor Rush Creek Spa features a Himalayan salt block dry sauna, an aromatherapy steam room, a revitalizing sensory room, a granite waterfall mineral hot tub, and warm river rock beds.

There are even indoor warm waterfall coves designed to “emulate the feeling of sitting on a stone in nature and having a waterfall flow right over your shoulders, massaging and surrounding you,” the spa explains.

Rush Creek Lodge & Spa has two offers for anyone who wants to help with Yosemite Facelift from September 20–24.

First, you can save 10 percent on your room rate. From September 4–October 5, except for Labor Day, you can save up to 10 percent off weekday rates using the lodge’s Yosemite End of Summer discount.

You don’t even need a promo code to get that rate. Instead, simply select the “Best Available Rate” when you book online and you’ll receive the maximum possible discount.

Secondly, you can trade trash collected at Yosemite for a free “feet detox” spa treatment.

“Rush Creek Spa has created an exclusive ‘thank you’ experience for lodge guests participating in Facelift,” the lodge explains. “After contributing to the cleanup effort, you’ll receive a complimentary magnesium foot soak at the spa’s luxurious outdoor lounge, with access to the spa’s Yosemite-inspired amenities.”

Rush Creek Lodge & Spa is about a 3-hour drive from the San Francisco Bay area.

Although it’s just outside Yosemite, drive times to popular attractions vary depending on traffic and weather. However, visitors can typically travel from the lodge to Yosemite Valley in 30 minutes, Tuolumne Meadows in 1 hour, and Hetch Hetchy in 20 minutes.

You can learn more about the lodge, the spa, and even make reservations at Rush Creek Lodge & Spa.

While you’re thinking about the park, be sure to read our Yosemite National Park content, including: