Last week, our volunteers cleared 30 trees from the Long Path! Thank you to all of our "cutting-edge" volunteers for keeping the trails clear and accessible.

Did you know? The Friends of the Long Path Facebook group is an awesome resource for hike planning, volunteering, and connecting with an incredible trail community. Get involved today!

Celebrate this Valentine's Day by keeping your mountains close to your heart, every day.

For only $10 a month, you can ensure the continued care for your favorite parks and trails—and get an exclusive T-shirt! This new tee features the topo lines of the Catskills' Slide Mountain on the chest. (The peak's name and elevation are written into the lines!) It's available in both gray and white. But hurry! Snag your shirt while supplies last!

Why is your monthly gift so important? It's only with your continued support that we can continue to recruit and train volunteers (like Alex above!) to protect the trails and land you love to explore—today, for the next 100 years, and beyond.

Protecting nature for the benefit of future generations is fundamental to the mission of the Trail Conference. Our Communications Manager found that making an estate plan for her sake, for the sake of the people she loves, and for the sake of the land that she loves, was essential to her own mission of raising an outdoors-loving daughter. 

Fifty-eight percent of Americans do not have an estate plan, and many existing plans are not up-to-date.To motivate more of us to take this important step in getting our affairs in order, a generous donor will immediately give $500 to the Trail Conference for every person who pledges to name the organization in his or her will. Empowering people to safeguard their most valuable assets—and yes, that's their loved ones!—is very important to this champion of the trail community. Learn how signing a trail pledge demonstrates the love of your family and your love of great trail experiences.

The Art Center Watercolor Affiliates consists of an excellent group of 24 artists who love the excitement and challenging medium of watercolor. The exhibition themed “The Elements” will be on display at Trail Conference Headquarters at 600 Ramapo Valley Road in Mahwah, N.J., through March 3. It is free and open to the public Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

Our voices are one of the most powerful tools we have in ensuring natural areas remain protected, open, and safe for all people to access. That’s why Trail Conference staff and volunteers are heading to Albany on several days over the next two months to speak with elected officials about the importance of connecting people with nature.