The Appalachian Trail Conservancy coordinates the many partners working together to ensure the Appalachian Trail and its surrounding lands are protected and maintained.
The A.T. depends on a unique cooperative-management partnership between the ATC; the National Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service at national, regional, and district levels; a variety of agencies in 14 states, other federal agencies, and even some counties and local communities. It is with these partners, in combination with the vast volunteer network of the A.T. Clubs that we are able to steward this iconic Trail.
Learn more about the A.T. Cooperative Management System
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Affiliated A.T. Maintaining Clubs
30 Trail maintaining Clubs are responsible for most of the day-to-day work of keeping the A.T. open. In addition to Trail stewardship, club volunteers build and repair shelters and other structures, monitor and protect the Trail corridor, monitor and manage rare plants and invasive species, develop management plans for their sections, and much more.
A.T. Regional Partnership Committees
The four Regional Partnership Committees (RPCs) serve as communication links between the Trail-maintaining clubs, the ATC, and agency partners and as advisors to the ATC regional directors and the stewardship council on Trail management issues and policies. RPCs do not create ATC policy, but they do provide forums for discussion and review and make recommendations on proposed policies.
Generally, each RPC includes one primary and one alternate representative from each of the A.T. Clubs in the region. The chair of each RPC is selected by its members and one representative from each region is selected to become a member of the Stewardship Council.
- RPC Chair: Joe Roman, Appalachian Mountain Club (Primary)
- RPC Representative to Stewardship Council, Partnership Coordinating Committee: Cosmo Catalano, AMC-Western Massachusetts
- Tony Barrett, Maine Appalachian Trail Club (Primary)
- Tom Gorrill, Maine Appalachian Trail Club (Alternate)
- Deva Steketee, Randolph Mountain Club (Primary)
- Eric Sandin, Randolph Mountain Club (Alternate)
- Alex DeLucia, Appalachian Mountain Club (Alternate)
- Willow Nilsen, Dartmouth Outing Club (Primary)
- Keegan Tierney, Green Mountain Club (Primary)
- Nigel Bates, Green Mountain Club (Alternate)
- Joshua Weeks, AMC-Western Massachusetts Chapter (Primary)
- Debra Weisenstein, AMC-Western Massachusetts Chapter (Alternate)
- Dave Boone, AMC-Connecticut Chapter (Primary)
- Gene Grayson, AMC-Connecticut Chapter (Alternate)
- RPC Chair: Rush Williamson, Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (Alternate)
- RPC Vice Chair: Jim Foster; Keystone Trails Association (Primary)
- RPC Secretary: Bill Saunders, Mountain Club of Maryland
- RPC Representative to Stewardship Council, Partnership Coordinating Committee: John Spitznagel, Mountain Club of Maryland (Primary)
- Ron Rosen, New York-New Jersey Trail Conference (Primary)
- Walt Daniels, New York-New Jersey Trail Conference (Alternate)
- Brian Sleigh, New York-New Jersey Trail Conference (NY East of Hudson, Alternate)
- Moe Lemire, New York-New Jersey Trail Conference (NY West of Hudson, Alternate)
- Steve Weissman, New York-New Jersey Trail Conference (NJ, Alternate)
- Mike Hughes, Batona Hiking Club (Primary)
- Dan Schwartz, AMC-Delaware Valley Chapter (Primary)
- Bill Steinmetz, AMC-Delaware Valley Chapter (Alternate)
- Barry Webb, Blue Mountain Eagle Climbing Club (Primary)
- Bernadette Leibensperger, Blue Mountain Eagle Climbing Club (Alternate)
- Doug Crowell, Allentown Hiking Club (Primary)
- Barb Wiemann, Allentown Hiking Club (Alternate)
- Cindy Radich, Susquehanna Appalachian Trail Club (Primary)
- Mark Press, Susquehanna Appalachian Trail Club (Alternate)
- Tom Morley, York Hiking Club (Primary)
- Ann Roberts, Mountain Club of Maryland (Alternate)
- Mike Bowman, Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club (Primary)
- Andy Chamberlain, Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club (Alternate)
- Jim Foster, Keystone Trails Association (Primary)
- Jenn Ulmer, Keystone Trails Association (Alternate)
- Daniel Hippe, Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (Primary)
- RPC Chair: Christina McIntyre, Outdoor Club at Virginia Tech (Primary)
- RPC Representative to the Stewardship Council, Partnership Coordinating Committee: Theresa Duffey, Old Dominion A.T. Club (Primary)
- John Hedrick, Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (Primary)
- Jeff Monroe, Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (Alternate)
- Patrick Doyle, Old Dominion A.T. Club (Alternate)
- Ned Kuhns, Tidewater A.T. Club (Primary)
- Jim Sexton, Tidewater A.T. Club (Alternate)
- George Beam, Natural Bridge A.T. Club (Primary)
- Trudy Phillips, Natural Bridge A.T. Club (Alternate)
- Jim Webb, Roanoke A.T. Club (Primary)
- Bennett Witcher, Roanoke A.T. Club (Alternate)
- Paul Jeffers, Outdoor Club at Virginia Tech (Alternate)
- David Atkinson, Piedmont A.T. Hikers (Primary)
- Ron Hudnell, Piedmont A.T. Hikers (Alternate)
- Gerald Davis, Mount Rogers A.T. Club (Primary)
- Franklin White, Mount Rogers A.T. Club (Alternate)
- RPC Chair, RPC Representative to Stewardship Council, Partnership Coordinating Committee: Tom Lamb, Georgia Appalachian Trail Club (Primary)
- Jason Gotch, Georgia Appalachian Trail Club (Alternate)
- Bill Mandler, Nantahala Hiking Club (Primary)
- David Addleton, Nantahala Hiking Club (Alternate)
- Franklin Lafond, Smoky Mountains Hiking Club (Primary)
- Paul Curtin, Carolina Mountain Club (Primary)
- John Beaudet, Carolina Mountain Club (Alternate)
- Steve Perri, Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club (Primary)
- Vic Hasler, Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club (Alternate)
A.T. Land Managing Agencies
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail
- USFS Eastern Region
- Baxter State Park
- Maine Department of Conservation
- Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
- New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
- White Mountain National Forest
- Vermont Agency of Natural Resources
- Green Mountain National Forest
- Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation
- Massachusetts Department of Transportation
- Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail
- New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
- New York Department of Environmental Conservation
- Palisades Interstate Park Commission
- New York State Bridge Authority
- New York State Department of Transportation
- New York State Police
- Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge
- New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
- Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
- Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
- Pennsylvania Game Commission
- Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare—South Mountain Restoration Center
- Pennsylvania State Police
- Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency
- Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
- Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission
- Maryland Department of Natural Resources
- C&O Canal National Historical Park
- Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
- Smithsonian Institution
- Shenandoah National Park
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail
- Cherokee National Forest
- Tennessee Valley Authority
- Pisgah National Forest
- Nantahala National Forest
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park
- Tennessee Department of Environmental and Conservation
- Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest
- Georgia Department of Natural Resources
