Volunteers hit the trails

As you read these words, people are out enjoying different sections of over 2000 miles of trails that exist in the Mat-Su Borough from Hatcher Pass State Park to Sutton, and Willow to KGB, the Valley has great trails to take people into the backcountry — or a quick dog walk after work. The trails in the Mat-Su are good for our health, our community and our economy. For residents and visitors alike, trails get us out and active. Many people crave solo adventures on trails, but for those who are looking for camaraderie, the Mat-Su Trails and Park Foundation and Active Soles are co-hosting the “Soles in the Backcountry 6 Peak Challenge” and an Adventure Hike series this summer. The 6 Peak Challenge promotes and challenges individuals, friends, and family to get outdoors and participate in healthy leisure activities. The Adventure Hike series seeks to introduce people to wonderful trails they may not yet know, including Wishbone Hill, Eska Falls, Matanuska Peak, Pioneer Ridge, Gunsight Mountain and Craigie Creek. These two programs offer great ways to get you and your family out into the beautiful summer sunshine.

While we all enjoy these amazing trails, we don’t always consider how they are maintained or built. This summer, Alaska Trails is teaming up with local land managers to help protect the trails we love and make sure that people can continue to enjoy them. Trail users will have the opportunity to join up with other Mat-Su trail fans for an engaging day (or more) of trail work this summer.

Volunteer days in the Mat-Su kick off on the Lazy Moose Trail on June 22nd. Volunteers will help rehab the existing trail using hand tools and also increase the sustainability of the trail by stopping switchback cutting and social trails. Volunteers will transplant vegetation to make sure that trail users stay on the well-maintained trail. Returning volunteers from last summer will truly see the fruits of their labor.

And boy, have volunteers have provided lots of labor! The Alaska Trail Stewards (ATS) volunteer program celebrated a successful 2018 season with 291 volunteers contributing over 1900 hours of labor at 23 separate events. In addition to the trails on Mat-Su Borough land, ATS volunteers worked on public lands in Chugach State Park, Chugach National Forest, the City of Whittier, and Hatcher Pass State Park — amounting to $52,644 in donated labor. The event on the Lazy Moose trail is just one of 30 volunteer events planned for the summer of 2019.

One of the events last September saw volunteers working while snow was falling in Hatcher Pass. There are tough volunteers willing to put sweat into the trail that they use and love. We are moving up the events in Hatcher Pass this year to July 19th and 20th.

In both August and September, volunteers will be able to help build trails in the Settlers Bay Costal Park. They will also help to stop unauthorized access into the park by installing fences and bollards. This new park was created by a partnership between the Mat-Su Borough and the Great Land Trust. There will XX miles of trails on this wonderful new park at the end of Knik Goose Bay road.

The summer is off to a great start with beautiful weather and lots of great trails to enjoy. We hope you will get out and explore the trails in the Mat-Su. They are a wonderful community asset that will continue to provide fun, healthy activities for residents and an economic driver for businesses in the area.

If your schedule permits, we hope to see you at one of our volunteer events. No experience is necessary, just sturdy boots, a good attitude and a willingness to learn what it takes to keep our trails great.

Steve Cleary is Executive Director of Alaska Trails. Volunteer information can be found at the Alaska Trails website: www.alaska-trails.org