Heroes of the Trail

I wanted to make sure you caught the headlining pieces in the the Summer 2016 Appalachian Trail Journeys magazine.

Both Ron Tipton, ATC’s ​executive ​director and CEO and Sandi Marra, our chair, highlight A.T. volunteers as the “spine” and the “foundation for the future of the A.T.” You can read their articles here and here, respectively.

Another article includes great information on preventing tick-borne illness (pp 13-15), and yet another examines different approaches to protecting the A.T. hiking experience (pp 21-27). The latter brings great focus to the cooperative management of the Trail as partners work to formulate the way forward through the site specific challenges they face.  Those articles are among all the other great features in the magazine, too.

​All of us at ATC want to echo the deep gratitude we have for you, our A.T. volunteers.

Your efforts not just to keep the A.T. literally open for visitors but to steward all aspects of this “simple footpath” through your tireless work with cooperators is how the Trail was built and protected — and is how it will be sustained.

If you’re new to A.T. volunteering, we encourage you to learn more about cooperative management. You’ll find that in the robust Volunteer Leadership Handbook.

If you’re ready to start volunteering on the A.T. here’s the place to start.