Hit the Trail on National Trails Day

Thousands of people--from city folks to families to experienced hikers--will take to Washington’s trails in celebration of the 17th annual National Trails Day on Saturday, June 6th.

National Trails Day, organized every year by the American Hiking Society, is the largest trail celebration in the U.S. and boasts more than 1,000 locally organized events in all fifty states, involving nearly a million trail enthusiasts across the country.

Each year, local groups like Washington Trails Association are a key part of this nation-wide celebration of trails. You can be a part of it, too. Volunteer for a work party on National Trails Day. Or, take a friend hiking and introduce them to the great outdoors.  

This year, National Trails Day is themed Take in the Outdoors, and it’s an open invitation to all Americans to get outside and connect with local hiking clubs, outdoor retailers, local parks and recreation departments or federal land managing agencies to experience everything the great outdoors has to offer.

To commemorate National Trails Day, WTA is hosting seven volunteer trail maintenance crews  across the state. The projects are as varied as the terrain, from annual maintenance to storm damage repair and even new trail construction. Here's the list, click the links for detailed info:

Beacon Rock – Hardy Ridge, Columbia River Gorge. Join us as we officially open new routes on Hardy Ridge to hikers and honor the contributions of hundreds of volunteers who have contributed to this project over nearly four years!

South Fork of the Skokomish Trail, Olympic Peninsula. It is this trail's 103 birthday, but we hope a little maintenance will keep it looking even younger.

We’ll continue the seasonal task of rebuilding and improving this trail.

Iller Creek Trail, near Spokane. We're reconstructing a steeply eroded section of trail that runs along the east ridge of Iller Creek Trail. Join us Saturday, Sunday, or both!

Horseshoe Bend in the Mount Baker District. A great early season trail for this district, we'll work on maintaining this short trail near Glacier.

Glacier Basin Trail at Mount Rainier Nat'l Park. The Park is still recovering from the 2006 storms, so WTA is back to help them keep up with maintenance and repairs. WTA is working on a reroute of a significant portion of this trail to relocate it away from the river.

Barclay Lake Trail in the Skykomish District. A great early season trail in the Skykomish district that generally needs some tread repair after winter slides and blowdown.

Sign up today to reserve your spot on a volunteer trail team! No experience is necessary. All work parties begin at 8:30am and end at 3:30pm, unless otherwise noted. Sign up here or call (206) 625-1367. Volunteers should bring their lunch and water, work gloves and wear sturdy shoes. Tools, hardhats and training provided.