WTA Trail Maintenance Staff

Ever wonder who at WTA is behind all of the great trail work to maintain our state's best hiking trails? Some folks you'll meet out on a work party; others are behind the scenes in the office making sure it happens. Meet the current WTA trail maintenance staff here. And if you'd like to learn more about our Youth and Volunteer Vacation crew leaders, check out this page.

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Arlen Bogaards - Northwest Washington Crew Leader

Arlen has been leading WTA work parties in the Bellingham and Mt. Baker areas for the past several years. After growing up in Lynden, he spent many years working in the construction field. He rediscovered the wonders of nature after making a career change that afforded him more time to wander the many trails in the North Cascades. A good friend introduced him to WTA and the rest is history. If out hiking off the Mt. Baker Highway, you might find him in one of his favorite haunts, Yellow Aster Butte.

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Alyssa Kreider - Volunteer Coordinator

Alyssa keeps track of the more than 2700 volunteers who help out on trail every year. She helps them through the entire volunteer process from signing up for a work party to recognition for their efforts. She also manages the online schedule and compiles reports for land managers. Since 2003 she has spent more than 200 days in the field working alongside these volunteers. Alyssa grew up in Ohio and learned to love hiking through an annual trek to the Great Smoky Mountains, where she summited the Chimney Tops multiple times as a youth. Her favorite hike is the Weden Creek Trail in the Darrington Ranger District.

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John Longsworth - Winter Weekend Crew Leader, Puget Sound

Born in the desert of Southern California, John moved to the Northwest to study brewing sciences at Evergreen State College. Mesmerized by the green, John paused college for coniferous forests and a pulaski. In between building trails and road biking, he brews ales, meads, ciders and wines. John's been building trails full-time since 2008 and worked on the Glacier Basin reroute for almost two seasons. His favorite hikes surround the western side of Mount Rainier.

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Alan Carter Mortimer - Field Director

Alan is WTA's Field Director, and of all the WTA office staff, he logs the most hours in the woods (and in his truck.) Alan oversees the planning and implementation of trail construction and maintenance projects.  He works closely with land managers and sets up projects on the ground, and coordinates with crew leaders to ensure everything is in place for the volunteers when they arrive. He also trains volunteer crew leaders for the trail maintenance program. Alan's favorite hike is the Copper Pass - Twisp Pass loop on the Okanogan National Forest.

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Mike Owens - Chief Crew Leader

If you're from the greater Seattle area and have ever been out on a mid-week work party, odds are that you've met Mike. He has more than 2000 days under his belt and leads mid-week trail maintenance crews throughout the year. His strong following of volunteers come back time and again because of his fun work parties. Join Mike on the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest for a Tuesday through Friday and you'll be sure to have a good time.

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Tim Van Beek - Project Coordinator

Tim spent far too many years stuck inside office buildings keeping track of things. Mercifully, he was laid off February 2003. Having run across a WTA crew on Tiger Mountain and learning what they were up to, he went on a few day trips and fell in love with trail work. After a year of volunteering, he was asked to work for WTA helping out in the Gifford Pinchot NF and the Skykomish Ranger District. In 2005 he began crew leading Volunteer Vacations around the state. He works closely with the various land management agencies to come up with a set of up 32 projects that will not only address important trail needs, but will also entice a crew of twelve volunteers to spend a week in the back country. His favorite hike is High Divide by Mt. Baker or anywhere in the Enchantments.