National Trails Day® Celebration at Pawling Nature Reserve
On June 2nd, National Trails Day®, The Nature Conservancy will host a day of guided hikes and trail stewardship at the Pawling Nature Reserve in Dutchess County, NY. The event celebrates the 50th anniversary of the National Trail System’s creation, and visitors can walk along a section of the historic Appalachian Trail, a 2,000-mile-long protected footpath that continues uninterrupted from Georgia to Maine. Event partners include the Harlem Valley Appalachian Trail Community, the National Parks Conservation Association, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, and the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference.
What: Guided hikes, led by local naturalists, will take participants through sections of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail or through a loop trail within the Pawling Nature Reserve. Length: 2-3 Hours. Level of Difficulty: Moderate
Interested volunteers can help steward a half-mile section of trail by creating water bars, installing erosion features to keep trails dry, and removing vegetation off the trail. Maintaining trails improves them and helps to ensure that they are viable now and in the future. No prior stewardship experience is required.
Who: Outdoor enthusiasts; open to all ages; must be 18 years or accompanied by a parent to participate in the stewardship activity.
When: Saturday, June 2, 2018
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Where: Pawling Nature Reserve, Pawling, NY
Registration: Pre-registration required for guided hikes and stewardship activity. Visitors can also hike the trails on their own. For registration, directions and more detailed information, please visit nature.org/nyevents.
Note: The Pawling Nature Reserve is accessible by train. Greeters will meet volunteers at the Appalachian Trail Stop of the Metro-North Harlem Line and direct them to the registration. If traveling by car, please go to the Pawling Nature Reserve main parking lot. Hike and volunteer activities will begin at 10:30 a.m. and conclude by 2:00 p.m.
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The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters, and oceans at unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. Working in 72 countries, we use a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. To learn more, visit www.nature.org or follow @nature_press on Twitter.
