WHAT'S HOT

Two amendments sought on fixing trails and bike/ped programs in Senate

The Senate transportation bill (MAP-21) severely weakens programs for trails, walking, and biking.

Amendment #1661 proposed by Senator Klobuchar (D-MN) and co-sponsored by Senators Burr (R-NC), Shaheen (D-NH), Risch (R-ID), and Udall (D-CO), would restore dedicated funding for the Recreational Trails Program (RTP), consistent with language that is already in the House bill.  

PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW:

The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a valued partner of American Trails, is holding an organizational sign-on letter campaign in support of the Klobuchar amendment (#1661) to MAP- 21. The Coalition for Recreational Trails (CRT) also supports this campaign. Learn more and sign on to the letter by visiting the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy's Website: http://support.railstotrails.org/sign-on.

The deadline to sign on to the letter is 12:00 noon on Thursday, February 23. If you have already signed on to the letter, thank you very much!

Amendment #1549 sponsored by Senators Cardin (D-MD) and Cochran (R-MS) would provide protection to Transportation Enhancements (TE) and Safe Routes to School (SRTS) by passing much of the decision making down to the local level.

The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy also held an organizational sign-on letter campaign that was signed by over 300 national, regional, state, and local groups in support of the Cardin/Cochran amendment #1549 to MAP-21. The letter was presented to all Senate offices on February 14. Download a copy of the Cardin/Cochran support letter.

"HOMEWORK" FOR NEXT WEEK:

Senators will be on recess next week and working back home. Please take this opportunity to communicate with them! 

See current status and learn how to take action... 

House transportation bill cuts out dedicated bike/ped programs

The House transportation bill has divided advocacy efforts because it continues the Recreational Trails Program while eliminating dedicated funding for bike/ped programs. It also directly attacks rail corridor preservation.

Representative Petri (R-WI) and additional colleagues plan to introduce the TE/SR2S amendment, which almost passed at the H.R. 7 committee mark up. It would address the need for bicycling and walking facilities, as well as the Safe Routes to School program. Watch for breaking news and be ready to support Rep. Petri's amendment...

Breaking News ~ Recreational Trails Program now at risk in House bill! Two adverse amendments are being proposed to the House Bill, which need to be defeated:  

Ask your Representative to vote in OPPOSITION to these amendments:

• Steve King (R-IA) Amendment #230 ~ It would take all highway trust fund spending away from the Recreational Trails Program!
• Jeff Flake (R-AZ) Amendment #142 ~ It would, among other things, strike the Alternative Transportation Account, Public Transportation funding, and the Recreational Trails Program!

"HOMEWORK" FOR NEXT WEEK:

Your Representative will be on recess next week and working back home. Please take this opportunity to communicate with him/her! 

TAKE ACTION TO SUPPORT TRAILS FUNDING...

The Coalition for Recreational Trails (CRT) sponsors the Annual Achievement Awards as part of the ongoing effort to build awareness and appreciation of the Recreational Trails Program (RTP). This is an important year to show how vital RTP funding is to building and preserving our nationwide trail system. All types of outstanding projects funded by RTP are eligible for the awards. Honorees will be invited to the awards ceremony on Capitol Hill the first week in June during the annual celebration for the American Recreation Coalition's Great Outdoors Week. Read more and download the nomination form...   

Thanks to American Trails Patron Members!

American Hiking Society's National Trails Day® 2012: here's how to get involved

Looking for a great opportunity to showcase your trail and to generate more support and funding for your projects? Sponsored by the American Hiking Society and a variety of partners, National Trails Day® is celebrated the first Saturday of each June. The goals are to promote the need for trails, get some work done, recognize volunteers, and generate buzz for local trails. Access the free Event Organizer's Manual for information on planning and building your event. Read more...

Take action for trails: get the facts and contacts in one place

American Trails "SUPPORTING TRAILS" pages provide the latest on current issues and debates and the ongoing efforts of American Trails to continue its 23+ years of support for positive policies and funding for trails and greenways. Please join our efforts to document the value of trails and bicycle/pedestrian facilities as transportation infrastructure, and be an active and positive voice in the transportation reauthorization process, Federal land management agency budgets, and more. We continuously add news and action items to these pages. Check back often and forward this link on through your networks...  

American Trails and trail supporters around the country mourned the loss of Hulet Hornbeck on January 7, 2012. He enjoyed a distinguished career as Chief of Land Acquisition for the East Bay Regional Park District from 1965 through 1985, and was well known for his many years of volunteer efforts on behalf of trails. The East Bay Regional Park District credits Hulet with overseeing the acquisition of 49,000 acres of parkland, expanding the District's land holdings from eight parks (13,000 acres) to 46 parks (62,000 acres), and envisioning the Park District's interconnected trail system which, at over 200 miles, is now a national model in urban planning.

He was a founding board member of the National Trails Council (serving for 17 years), predecessor to American Trails. He actively and enthusiastically served on the American Trails Board for over 16 years. Hulet inspired us all with his zest for life, integrity, wisdom, passion for trails, and unwavering vision for preservation. We thank him for lighting our way...

Read more about Hulet's life on his Memorial Webpage and in the Obituary provided by his family. Read touching remembrances from others and share a memory of your own... 

Hulet Hornbeck's Memorial Service

February 26, 2012, 11:00 a.m. 

(click here for directions)

East Bay Regional Park District's Tilden Park, The Brazilian Room
Wildcat Canyon Road at Shasta Road, Berkeley, California

States would get $60 million from Land and Water Conservation Fund

The President's budget proposal provides $450 million for LWCF in FY 13. This includes $60 million for States to grant to local governments for parks, trails, and open space projects. According to Lindsey Levick, LWCF Coalition, "Though it is disappointing that $900 million was not included in the President's budget request, it is clear that Secretary Salazar is still very much committed to the program, and the 30% increase over the FY 12 enacted level is one of the highest increases any program received across the federal spectrum." See federal agency funding details... 

Conservation, recreation, and historic preservation together generate more than $1 trillion in total economic activity across the U.S., and support 9.4 million jobs, according to a recent study conducted for the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Will Rogers, President of the Trust for Public Land stated, "In these tough economic times, LWCF is an investment that pays significant dividends in jobs, state and local tax revenues, and income to outdoor recreation-dependent businesses." 

The LWCF Coalition comprises conservation, recreation, business, and sportsmen's groups working together to support the LWCF program in order to meet America's conservation and recreation needs in the 21st century. American Trails proudly serves on the Coalition. For more information on LWCF and the places in each state that have been protected using LWCF funds, visit the LWCF Coalition. You can also visit our LWCF page...  

An abandoned elevated railway known as the Sixth Street Embankment has been the subject of a litigious preservation effort for more than a decade. Local groups and city officials want to transform the half-a-mile long stone structure into a grassy, landscaped park with skyline views, spanning Jersey City's gentrifying neighborhoods. A meandering walking trail and a bike path are possibilities along the 100-foot wide embankment, which is wider than New York's High Line. Read more... 

Virginia's High Bridge is a monster of a bridge: 2,400 feet long, 125 feet above the Appomattox River; "a giant erector set of a construction wonder." High Bridge Trail State Park was created by the donation of a 31 mile former railway corridor by Norfolk Southern. The park has opened segment-by-segment since 2008, attracting 86,000 visitors last year, and the bridge is the final piece. Once the bridge is open, attendance is likely to increase dramatically. Read more and see photos... 

International design firm Atelier Dreiseitl unveiled three different designs for how the UWT would redevelop its section of the Prairie Line Trail. "As university open space, they check all the boxes with swoops and eddys, seats and lounging areas, ponds and plantings," Peter Callaghan writes for the Tacoma News Tribune. "There must be some happy medium between a 'bike highway' and the way these designs grudgingly allow bikers and walkers to traverse what resembles a pedestrian mall." Read more... 

Bicycle superhighways: pathways to healthier urban lifestyles?

Businesses invited to partner with New Zealand Cycle Trail

New Zealand businesses are being invited to partner with the 19 Great Rides under Nga Haerenga, the New Zealand Cycle Trail (NZCT) and market themselves to the world. A prospectus for the 2012 NZCT Product Directory has been launched. NZCT Programme Manager John Dunn says the new directory will promote the Great Rides and their partner businesses to a wide range of international tourism agents, wholesalers, and media in advance of the Tourism Rendezvous New Zealand Trade Show being held in Queenstown in May. Read more...

The new International Trails Award will recognize an outstanding project or partnership -- that occurred outside the United States -- that demonstrates outstanding planning, design, or implementation and enhances the overall trails movement worldwide. Submissions describing the trail or greenway (or trail or greenway system) including successful aspects such as planning, design, challenges solved, public participation, sustainability, economic benefits, promotion, eco-tourism, and benefits to the local and global community are encouraged. The deadline for submissions is October 31, 2012. Read more and download the nomination packet... 

National Trails Awards nomination form is now available!

Don't miss this opportunity to nominate an outstanding person, project, or organization that has impacted the world of trails over the last two years. The National Trails Awards are one way American Trails recognizes the tremendous contributions of volunteers, professionals, and other leaders who are working to create a national system of trails for all Americans. Winners will be announced at the 21st American Trails International Trails Symposium (ITS) Awards Banquet in Arizona, April 16, 2013. The deadline for submitting nominations is October 31, 2012. See previous award winners and learn more about the National Trails Awards... 

Exhibitors: sign up with your support by March 31 and save 20%

Exhibitors can save 20% off exhibitor fees until March 31. Additional early exhibitor discounts include a logo link on our homepage and Symposium webpages, an article in one issue of our Trail Tracks e-Newsletter, and choice of booth location in the order we receive their contract (some exceptions apply). Exhibitors also get to help us design the "indoor trails and greenways system." Learn more about the benefits of coming in early and download the exhibitor contract...

THANK YOU TO OUR EXHIBITORS!

See what some of our exhibitors have been up to...  

• Providing distinctive identity signs for your trail
  Examples of signs and logos providing a clear identity for a variety of trails. Samples from around the country, courtesy of Voss Signs. Read more and see photos...

• Why interpretive panels are the best buy for your money
  Erica Fielder Studio provides some examples and tips on effective interpretive signs: "Want users to talk about your trail at dinner tonight? Interpretive signs give a trail an identity and make the experience of using the trail more enjoyable and more memorable. The more associations visitors have with your trail - vista points with catchy names, a bit of curious history, a game they enjoyed playing - the more frequently it will come to mind, and the more others will hear about it." Read more and see photos...

Learn how your organization can get an article as an exhibitor in our e-Newsletter. Email Candace Mitchell, Exhibitor Coordinator, at candace@americantrails.org.

The elegant Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation Resort Destination is the center of activities at the 21st American Trails International Trails Symposium. Blending Native American design elements with features emphasizing the Sonoran desert landscape, the resort fits in with its surrounding environment. The Fort McDowell Yavapai, the "People of the Four Peaks," occupy a 24,000-acre reservation 25 miles northeast of Phoenix. The Radisson Fort McDowell Resort, one of the tribe's most recent commercial ventures, aims to educate visitors about the tribe and its traditions. Read more and see photos... 

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is a supporter of the National Recreation Trails (NRT) program. A wide variety of trails on National Wildlife Refuges are designated NRTs. Trails are key to discovering the beauty, history, and natural heritage of the National Wildlife Refuge System; America's only network of lands dedicated primarily to wildlife conservation. We invite you to reconnect with our natural world as you hike or paddle on more than 491 refuges and wetland management districts that are open to visitors in every kind of habitat. Read more and see links to 65 trails... 

Roger Bell continues his stories of dangerous and difficult trail work along with some serious lessons in being prepared in the backcountry, including "never bid a trail named Rocky." Roger invites others to share their stories. "We know there are some equally dramatic tales to be told, and I hope these will stir a willingness to recount some of your most vivid ones, along with lessons you learned." Read more... 

While not a new material, "porous asphalt" is gaining interest among trail and greenway planners. Porous asphalt refers to a mix that adds a significant amount of air space, or voids, to the gravel and petroleum binders that make up asphalt paving. A project in Middleton, WI highlights advantages that include resistance to cracking, maintenance savings, improved winter usability, and use of recycled materials. Read more and see photos... 

In 1825 the Erie Canal opened as a continuous waterway running 350 miles from Albany to Buffalo. Today, a bike trail is being built along that historic corridor using much of the old towpath. Completing the trail the entire distance will probably take much longer, but the vision is there. To foster that vision, the New York State Parks and Conservation Association sponsors a ride that covers the entire corridor. Bob Searns, Chair of the American Trails Board, takes us on an eight-day diary of that incredible trail journey. Read more and see photos... 

Support for the National Trails Training Partnership (NTTP) was reaffirmed in the fall of 2011 with a new agreement among land management agencies and trail groups. Six Federal agencies and 24 national organizations dedicated to outdoor recreation and conservation have signed on to a memorandum of understanding (MOU). The nonprofits include every major trail activity, both motorized and nonmotorized. Water trails, wilderness hiking, urban greenways, bicyclists, equestrians, snow sports, and off-highway vehicles are all aspects of trails that are supported by the MOU. American Trails serves as the liaison between the NTTP and the agencies for collection and dissemination of information regarding trail-related training and activities. Read more and download the agreement... 

Join the conversation on trails with the American Trails blog! You'll find regular updates on current topics, ideas, and opinions from the world of trails. We also will be sharing photos and information on trail projects as well as interesting solutions for trail design, access, interpretation, and management. You are also welcome to share your own ideas, resources, and questions. Learn more on the American Trails blog... 

Read the post Stuart Macdonald, our Webmaster, added to our Blog last week, titled "Working Together: taking the long view of funding."

Feel free to share the link to our Blog and/or add comments...

Check the Online Training Calendar for a wide variety of learning opportunities for volunteers and professionals engaged with trails of all kinds. American Trails, through the National Trails Training Partnership, works with agencies and organizations across America to promote trail-related training. Let us know if we can publicize your training, courses, workshops, or conferences! See details on events below and many more opportunities for training on the Online Trails Training Calendar... 

Upcoming trail-related training opportunities in 2012:

March 3 - Canal Society Winter Symposium & Meeting

* Rochester, NY

March 4-8 - Las Vegas, NV

* Association of Partners for Public Lands Convention & Trade Show

March 7-8 - Albuquerque, NM

* Trail Contracting Roundtable

March 9-11 - Columbiana, AL

* Alabama Hiking Trail Society Conference 2012

March 10 - Alpharetta, GA

* Equine Land Conservation Forum

March 10-11 - Albuquerque, NM

* American Red Cross Wilderness & Remote First Aid Course

March 12-14 - Orlando, FL

* National ADA Symposium

March 12-14 - San Diego, CA

* 9th Active Living Research Annual Conference

March 19-21 - Sacramento, CA

* California Land Conservation Conference

March 20-22 - Washington, DC

* 2012 National Bike Summit

March 27-29 - Washington, DC

* NRPA's National Legislative Forum on Parks and Recreation

April 16-19 - Baton Rouge, LA

* National Association of Recreation Resource Planners Conference

April 17-20 - Lake Mead National Recreation Area, NV

* Access to Parks and Outdoor Recreation Areas

April 18-20 - Woodland Hills, CA

* California Trails & Greenways Conference

April 21 - Poughkeepsie, NY

* Dutchess County Regional Trails Conference

April 24 - American Trails Webinar Series

* Telling a Better Story: Best Practices for Developing Interpretive Panels for Trails    Mark your calendar...

Contact us with your scheduled training opportunities at NTTP@AmericanTrails.org.

American Trails knows that you are passionate about trails and the positive impacts they bring to your community. Congress is taking dramatic steps to reduce federal trails funding in the upcoming year. We need your commitment of support in order to help us secure funding and to continue advocating for more and better trails across the country! Please take a moment to become a member of the American Trails network or make a donation to support our work...

Thank you for supporting American Trails and America's trails!  

 ......... 

 QUICK LINKS 

• Visit our Blog. 
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• The largest online resource in the world for trail advocates is www.AmericanTrails.org.
• Attend, Exhibit, Sponsor! The 21st American Trails International Trails Symposium (ITS) ~ April 14-17, 2013. Check out the early exhibitor discounts and benefits and their deadlines!
• Learn about and find National Recreation Trails (NRT) near you today! 
• I'm a Pathways for Play advocate. Ask me why. 
• The Online Trails Training Calendar connects you with courses, conferences, and trail-related training.
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• Need Trails Training? Visit www.TrailsTraining.net. 
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Send news and calendar items to trailhead@americantrails.org.

American Trails is a tax-exempt, nonprofit charitable organization under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax-deductible.

Header photo by Stuart Macdonald