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Trails Committee

Trail Maintenance

          The Appalachian Mountain Club is an active member of the Appalachian Trail Conference, which coordinates trail maintenance for the entire Appalachian Trail (AT). The Chapter Trails Committee, working under the direction of the local New York-New Jersey Trail Conference, maintains over 140 miles of hiking trails in the region, including a portion of the AT. There are about 40 AMC members who regularly work as volunteer trail maintainers. Each of our maintainers is responsible for a few miles of a specific trail. Most of their work is done alone, according to their personal schedule. Major jobs, such as trail relocation and construction of water bars or bridges, are team efforts, often involving members of several area hiking organizations.

Chapter Trails Challenge

The AMC is proud to present the Chapter Trails Challenge.

The Chapter Trails Challenge has been set up to encourage AMC members to adopt new trail segments outside of those currently maintained by the club. New segments in the NY metropolitan area include individually maintained trails under the direction of the NYNJTC. New adopters and current trail maintainers will be eligible for a range of rewards from t-shirts to complimentary lodging at AMC Destinations.

More information on participating in the Chapter Trails Challenge can be found by contacting the NY-NoJ Chapter Trails Challenge coordinator, Bob Fuller at 732-613-8992, .

New York New Jersey Trail Conference

The NY-NJ Trail Conference coordinates all of the Trail Maintenance work in the NY Metropolitan area, and the new New York-New Jersey Trail Conference WWW Home Page is a great place to find out what they do – check it out.

The Trail Conference, with their all volunteer network of trail supervisors, trail crews, individual maintainers, and member clubs maintain over 1600 miles of trail in the NY metropolitan region. They have over 800 volunteers (including many AMC members) reporting directly to the trail conference along with many member clubs. In addition, the NY-NoJ Chapter club of the AMC has ~60 volunteers maintaining ~120 miles of trail in our region under the direction of the Trail Conference.

Over the next several years, the Trail Conference will rebuild the network of hiking trails on Bear Mountain, including the historic first section of the Appalachian Trail. To accomplish this feat, the Trail Conference has created Trails U, a comprehensive trail construction and rehabilitation workshop program. Workshops will range from Trail Construction 101 for the novice trail builder to using geo-textiles for the more experienced. With support from the NPS, ATC, PIPC/OPRHP, and other organizations like the AMC, this project will be a ground breaking trail building and educational experience for all.

More information on available trails and volunteer opportunities (including training) can be obtained directly from the Trail Conference www.nynjtc.org, 201-512-9348 or by contacting the AMC NY-NoJ Chapter Trails Challenge coordinator, Bob Fuller at 732-613-8992, .

You may also want to take a look at the Trail Conference's Regional Trails Map to see where the trails that we maintain are located.

Potomac Appalachian Trail Club

A SUPER Trails Web site is the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC) Site. This beautiful site provides links to many other sites of interest to trail maintainers as well as plain users in the Eastern US. Check it out, it is really a neat spot.

Training and More Information

          The NY-NoJ Chapter Trails Committee conducts training sessions for people who may want to work on our local trails, but feel like a klutz with some tools. We will teach you what you should NOT do and how to do the things that you should. Take a look at our current Schedule of Trail Work and Training Parties.

          The Chapter Canoe & Kayak Committee also maintains river trails in the area, but it is a less well organized program. See the Canoe & Kayak section for river trail maintenance information and contacts.

          For more information about the Chapter's Trails program, contact the Trails Committee Chair, or one of the regional trails supervisors.

Our Trails Program Can Always Use Help

          All members who enjoy working in the woods can help out with our Trails Program. Join us and we will put you to work or start training you, right away.

• To join us, get a copy of our online AMC Membership Application.
• The application form includes all the information that you need, but you can also read about the membership options.