Consistently ranked the most popular day-hike destination in North America, Breakneck Ridge was identified as a 2018 Leave No Trace Hot Spot due to overuse and misuse. In other words, Breakneck has now been nationally recognized as a place in danger of being “loved to death.” In a recent survey on Trails.com, it received more than 10 million votes—more
John Gunzler, a tireless champion of the Trail Conference for decades, was honored at an event celebrating his life this fall. Over 50 friends and family gathered around his wife, Marianne, and their daughters Melissa and Nicole at Trail Conference Headquarters on Nov. 3, nearly one year after John passed away at the age of
The Trail Conference takes land stewardship seriously. We work on the belief that the most effective way to advance change for the environment is through public participation, sustainable, on-the-ground solutions, and user education. To support that value, we are proud to announce we have five new Leave No Trace Master Educators in our ranks. The
The ongoing development of our Trail Steward program has put the Trail Conference in a position to assist and educate more trail users than ever before. Stationed at popular trails across the region, Trail Conference Stewards provide helpful outreach and information about park regulations, hiker safety, preparedness, Leave No Trace principles, and other best practices. In
This is the next generation of environmental stewards. When one mentions service to our nation and our communities, it is easy to immediately call to mind our military and first responders, as well, it should. However, there are people whose service goes unnoticed. AmeriCorps members around this country are serving, and this service, while different,
From his 2017 SOBO A.T. thru-hike to joining the Bear Mountain Trail Crew this season, Mike AKA Pineapple shares his experience of what the Trail means to him and the importance of giving back. Once upon a time, there was a little boy named Mike. He was told that life’s happiness depended on if he did well in
Building, maintaining, and protecting a 358-mile long-distance trail takes a lot of passion, dedication, and leadership. The Long Path is New York’s premier long-distance hiking trail, spanning 358 miles from 175th Street in Manhattan to John Boyd Thacher State Park, north of Albany. A hiking trail running from one of the largest cities in the world through dense
From her 2016 SOBO A.T. thru-hike to joining the Bear Mountain Trail Crew this season, Yuliya AKA Kremlin shares her experience of what the Trail means to her and the importance of giving back. One of the major reasons I went to hike the Appalachian Trail in 2016 was to figure out what it is I wanted to do career-wise. Since high school,
On Oct. 7, 1923, Trail Conference volunteers officially opened the first section of the Appalachian Trail, which they built and blazed through Bear Mountain and Harriman state parks in New York. This fall, the Trail Conference finished construction on the historic Bear Mountain Trails Project—the most ambitious rehabilitation of the A.T. ever conducted, which has been primarily built by
Volunteers. Champions. Supporters. You. It all starts with your support. On Oct. 7, 1923, Trail Conference volunteers officially opened the first section of the Appalachian Trail, which they built and blazed through Bear Mountain and Harriman state parks in New York. This fall, the Trail Conference will finish construction on the historic Bear Mountain Trails Project—the most ambitious rehabilitation of the A.T.
On Sept. 27, members of the Bear Mountain Trail Crew placed the final stone step on the Appalachian Trail at Bear Mountain, completing a reconstruction project that has been 14 years in the works. Our friend Karen Lutz, who retired as the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Director, set the last step during an event celebrating this achievement and her remarkable
The completion of a new multi-use loop in Sterling Forest was celebrated with a grand opening ride/run/hike on Sunday, Sept. 30. Seventeen years after the first Trails Plan for Sterling Forest State Park was drafted, the park is about to celebrate the opening of one of the finest multi-use trails in the region, built by the Trail Conference. The
