The desperate state of our world's natural systems increasingly requires drastic, large-scale actions to restore ecological function. Yosemite National Park is undertaking the largest project of its kind to restore a Sierra Nevada meadow, in a site occupied by Northwestern pond turtles (Actinemys marmorata) which are proposed for federal listing. Meadow restoration is being achieved through extensive heavy equipment work to fill occupied erosion gullies in the stream channel, creating unique challenges in protecting this declining freshwater turtle. We utilized pre-project trapping, interdisciplinary planning for retention and construction of long-term aquatic habitats, radio telemetry of high value-turtles, small scale translocations, manual clearance surveys, and canine clearance surveys to achieve our objectives. We will describe our multi-pronged approach to developing informed turtle protection and impact minimization measures, and report “lessons learned” following the last 2 years of project implementation, in the intention that our highlights may help others involved in large-scale habitat manipulations (such as consulting biologists and land managers) to achieve favorable outcomes for freshwater turtles.