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Author: j3media
Seasonal Wildlife Closures in Effect Dec. 1
Video campaign highlights importance of respecting seasonal wildlife closures in Durango – in effect Dec. 1, 2018
Ever wonder why certain trails in Durango have seasonal wildlife closures? During the winter months, deer and elk need safe harbors and seasonal wildlife closures are essential for the animals to survive. Even when there is no snow on the ground these areas are critical for animals to make it through the winter. That’s why Trails 2000 this week launched an informational and educational video campaign aimed at educating and inspiring users to follow certain etiquette and safety guidelines when traveling on trails in Durango and the surrounding area. The first video, “It’s Up To Me,” highlights the importance of abiding by the winter seasonal wildlife closures.
It’s up to me. It’s up to us. It’s up to all of us to protect wildlife in Colorado.
The seasonal wildlife closures go into effect Saturday, Dec. 1, 2018, until April 15, 2018, on the following areas:
Grandview Ridge
- Big Canyon and Sale Barn trailheads (access located east of U.S. Highway 160)
- Grandview BLM trails
Animas City Mountain
- BLM lands above the lower loops (about 1.5 miles above the 32nd Street Trailhead)
Twin Buttes Area
- The upper trails only, as marked.
Bodo State Wildlife Areas
- This area is closed with the exception of the Smelter Mountain Trail that is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dogs are prohibited.
Perins Peak
- Please note this area is closed through July 31, 2018, to protect nesting peregrine falcons.
Watch the video here or by clicking the video above. Visit our Trail Conditions Report for up to date trail conditions. You can also learn more about wildlife in Colorado by visiting the Colorado Parks and Wildlife website.
Campaign video made possible through Trails 2000 receipt of the Partners in the Outdoors grant from the Colorado Parks and Recreation Association (CPRA) in partnership with Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW). The videos were produced by Coldstream Creative and include local talent.
Happy Trails!
Round Up for Trails at Kroeger’s Ace Hardware!
You can support Trails 2000 by Rounding Up for Trails 2000 March 8 through March 19:
Registration Closed: Trail Crew Leader Training
Crew Leader Training hosted by Trails 2000 and Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado
May 4 & 5, 2018 – Durango, Colorado
Trails 2000 has teamed up with Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado’s (VOC) Outdoor Stewardship Institute (OSI) to offer an exciting training program for trail crew leadership in Durango, Friday and Saturday, May 4 and 5, 2018. The two-day Trail Crew Leader Training will introduce the fundamentals of successful volunteer crew management and is open to all levels of trail experience, from beginner to long-time volunteer. The training program is taught by long-time OSI instructors, Kim Frederick and Jim “Patch” Patchell, who bring many years experience in sustainable trail design and crew leadership.
Upon competition of the program, Trails 2000 will hire interested and qualified crew leaders for the 2018 season to assist the organization during public trailwork days.
- When: Friday, May 4, from 5 – 8 p.m. and Saturday, May 5, from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Who: Those interested in joining Trails 2000’s team as a crew leader; all levels of experience welcome, from beginner to long-time volunteer.
- What: Course includes classroom sessions, field exercises and role playing to introduce construction/maintenance of sustainable trails, leadership strategies and techniques, tool use, and safety. All trainees receive a Crew Leader manual, set of quick reference cards, and other materials that make for a successful leader. Snacks and beverages will be provided on Friday, May 4, and coffee/tea, baked goods and fruit on Saturday, May 5; attendees should bring their own lunch.
- Cost: Free to those who commit to four hours of volunteer time with Trails 2000 prior to June 15.
Space is limited and class fills up quickly; reserve your spot today.
Registration is now closed.
CLOSED: Now Hiring: Durango Trail Crew Lead
Are you interested in a unique opportunity to join a leading nonprofit organization in the outdoor industry? Do you want to live in a mountain town community, while making a significant positive impact on the lives of residents and visitors? Are you passionate about the outdoors and wish to combine your passion for trails and recreation with a career in the outdoor industry?
Durango Trails 2000 — local nonprofit trail organization in Durango, Colorado — is hiring for a full-time Trail Crew Lead. The ideal candidate will be a strong leader with expertise in the design, maintenance and development of system trails, including a knowledge of sustainable trail construction, group facilitation expertise, and strong project management skills. Working with and reporting to the Executive Director, the right person will also have a keen understanding of the importance of interacting with volunteers, the public and land managers and their role as an ambassador on and off the trail. Opportunities for professional development related to the job are available.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Oversees scheduling, planning and facilitation of construction and maintenance on trails
- Supervises crews of students, volunteers and work groups in a safe working environment
- Manages team of crew leaders, including training, scheduling and support
- Develops relationships and collaborates with land managers
- Tracks upcoming trail projects and schedules trailwork activities
- Lays out and flags trails for re-routes and maintenance
- Creates maps for future trail alignment proposals and trail maintenance areas
- Assigns tasks and provides safety and training for crews
- Oversees trail tools and truck maintenance
For full job description, click here.
TO APPLY:
If interested, please complete the online application below. A PDF resume is required when applying. Resumes must be submitted by Monday, February 26, with availability to work in Durango starting March 15. No phone calls, visits or mail please.
The application process is closed. Thank you.
BLM Meeting Weds. January 31
Join the BLM to share your trail ideas for consideration in the upcoming Tres Rios Field Office Open House taking place this Wednesday, January 31 from 5p to 7pm at the Durango Public Library (1900 east Third Avenue).
Year End Campaign: Give Now. Get Outside Today.
As the leaves fall and snow returns to the high country, Trails 2000 reflects on a successful trail season thanks to members, volunteers and all who contributed to help build and maintain the vast, world-class trail network in Durango. We could not do what we do without YOU. Our members, volunteers and community supporters are critical to the work we do, and all types of support—from volunteering to financial contributions—make the work of Trails 2000 possible.
This year we accomplished more work than ever making the fundraising efforts ever more important. In 2017, Trails 2000 worked with over 600 community members during 6,000 hours of volunteer trailwork on 40-plus area trails with trail crew leaders and certified crew leaders to oversee volunteer teams. Notable milestones include:
- SkySteps: Planned and build 550 steps connecting town to Fort Lewis College
- New trails: Cap’s Connect, Sugar, Skyline and Smokejumper
- Colorado Trail: Over 175 downed trees cut by our team of certi ed sawyers and removed o the trails
- High Country Trails: Pass Trail, Engineer Mountain Trail, West Cross, Dry Fork, Haflin Creek, Stevens Creek and Missionary Ridge to name a few
- Collaborated with dozens of organizations and business on trailwork
- Completed trails master plan
- TrailKids: Over 500 students served in the TrailKids ecology program
- Organized a Stewardship conference for SW Colorado
- Partnered on a grant for the Animas River Trail
- Updated Trails2000.org with new blogs, maps and trail conditions
- Facilitated our annual Trails and Ales party and Trail Reporter training
- Held our 2nd annual Happy Trails festival
Please join us as we continue our mission to plan, build and maintain trails, educate trail users, and encourage trail connectivity by contributing to our year end campaign to help create positive trail experiences for all users.
Great Trails Build Great Communities. Give Now. Get Outside Today.
Learn about other ways to give (Holiday Store and Colorado Gives), and subscribe to our FREE TrailTalk Enewsletter to stay in the know about all things trails.
New Trails to be Built in Durango
Approval received following in-depth analysis of Smokejumper’s Trail and Sugar to Skyline connect
Trails 2000 will build two new trails—the Smokejumper’s Trail and a connect from Sugar to Skyline Trails—in Durango during the late fall of 2017. In late September, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) signed off on the environmental analysis (EA) required for trail proposals on federal lands, marking the final step required to start building the new trails. Find out how you can help out at trailwork.
The Smokejumper’s Trail, which will start at the top of Skyline and run north from Raider Ridge, is in honor of Joseph Philpott who died in an avalanche in 2013. Philpott grew up in Durango and went on to major in Forestry at NAU and CSU. He worked for the BLM as a smokejumper based in Boise, Idaho. Joe was an adventurous, conscientious young man and his parents were interested in honoring him to capture his dynamic nature.
“When we came to Trails 2000, Mary [Monroe Brown, executive director] suggested that we work on a trail that would reflect Joe’s amazing life and personality with a trail from Raider Ridge north on the BLM land. When we walked it, it felt like Joe,” said Margo Philpott, Joe’s mother. “It has beautiful ridgetop views, it’s rugged and is part of a long traverse that he used to run and train on.”
In 2014, Trails 2000 completed the Sugar Trail, connecting Skyline to Horse Gulch Road. (The Skyline Trail was built by Trails 2000 in 2009 to connect the Skyridge area to Powerline and the top of Hyper Extended Ridge.) Trails 2000 hoped to connect Sugar directly to Skyline at that time, but a portion of the trail would need to cross BLM land.
Trails on federal lands (Forest Service and BLM) require a level of environmental analysis necessary for NEPA—the National Environmental Policy Act. Trails 2000 entered into the proposal process and hired local environmental consultant, Heidi McGrath, a good friend of Joe’s and the Philpott family, to help see it through to completion.
“EAs are a lot of work and require analyzing various environmental impacts, from wildlife and plants to soils and recreation. It’s a time consuming process and a bit arduous, especially for small nonprofits. In Durango, we are surrounded by 60 percent of public lands, and trail proposals like that of Trails 2000 are an important economic driver for our community,” said McGrath, owner of Columbine Environment based in Durango. She added, “I was excited to be involved in this project since I knew Joe and the Philpott family would love the trail.”
The analysis also included a cultural resource survey to assess any artifacts that may exist on the trail. The cultural study, of which no artifacts were identified, was donated by ERO Resources, an environmental consulting firm based in Denver with a satellite office in Durango. “Trails 2000 does so much for our community, and as a trail user who owns a company in town, I was happy to find a way to give back by donating the analysis,” said Sean Larmore, principle investigator of ERO Resources in Durango.
In general, the process of how a trail becomes a trail can take anywhere from two to five years to complete. It requires involvement from various land managers and stakeholders, many of whom are long-time partners of Trails 2000, and involves idea development and research, to proposal and review, and finally to approval and building. (The Trails 2000 infographic, How a Trails Becomes a Trail, helps to illustrate this in-depth process.)
“The process [of how a trail becomes a trail] is complex; it requires vision, strategy and a certain level of tenacity,” said Trails 2000 board member, Christina Rinderle. “You need an organization like Trails 2000 out in front, gathering feedback, and keeping in touch with the community so you can devise a plan and see it through to completion.”
Trails 2000 will start building the trails, October 30 through November 2 (9 am to 5pm each day), and seeks volunteers to help out at trailwork. Details can be found at Trails 2000 Online Calendar and RSVP on Facebook. Volunteers are invited to come for as long or little as they can, and no experience is necessary as Trails 2000 crews will be on site with all tools, instruction and safety, and water and snacks for volunteers. The Philpott family plans to install the commemorative sign for the Smokejumper’s Trail in November.
“We feel grateful and honored to be part of helping expand the Trails 2000 trail system. We feel like it’s a way to give back to our community, by helping create something lasting, as well as to remember and honor Joseph,” said Margo Philpott.
Subscribe to our FREE TrailTalk Enewsletter to stay in the know about all things trails.
For the Outdoor, Trail Enthusiast: Holiday Gifts that Keep on Giving
Online store features unique, locally made products that support trails
Are you an outdoor enthusiast looking for the perfect holiday gift to give back this season? Trails 2000 is excited to launch our Online Holiday Store that gives locals and visitors a unique way to give chic, handmade, functional gifts while supporting their beloved trails and natural lands this holiday season.
Featuring high quality products and local designs, the store captures the essence of the area, including holiday cards with natural, mountain graphics printed locally on a handmade letterpress; photo cards showcasing the beautiful imagery of the Southwest; commemorative posters of iconic local trails such as the Colorado Trail; adult and youth tees and hats with favorite local trail slogan, Happy Trails; and more. Each product is reflective of Trails 2000’s mission to plan, build and maintain trails—which all proceeds go to support—and appeals to supporters both native to Colorado and across the U.S.
“Whether you’re looking for beautiful letterpress holiday cards for friends and family, a poster to commemorate your hike on the Colorado Trail, or stylish Happy Trails logo tees for kids and adults alike, our online store is the place to make a feel-good purchase knowing your gift helps to build and maintain our trails and sustain a trail network for generations to come,” said Mary Monroe Brown, executive director of Trails 2000.
The easy-to-use online store is one way Trails 2000 aims to diversify funding. For the most part access to trails is free, but all trail construction, maintenance and planning has a cost. In Southwest Colorado, a widely visited tourist destination, locals have long ranked the abundance of trails as their number one want and need for living in and visiting the area, making Durango’s trails a highly used resource by both the community and tourists.
“Our new fundraising option celebrates our mission to plan, build and maintain trails by providing beautiful gifting options. All proceeds from the store go to support our mission, and we hope people will support us and visit our online store for their holiday gifts this season,” said Monroe Brown.
Products include:
- Commemorative, artsy and chic poster of Durango trails that features the iconic 500-mile statewide Colorado Trail, which commences in Durango.
- Top selling Happy Trails vintage t-shirts, which come in a variety of colors and styles, available in men, women and youth sizes.
- Locally made trucker hat featuring Happy Trails slogan.
- Commemorative booklet featuring images from Scott DW Smith and a brief history and voices from the trails in Durango.
Trails 2000 further diversifies funding and global reach by housing select products on global search engine giant, Amazon. According to recent data, up to 80 percent of online product searches take place on Amazon.com, which provides extensive global reach to the trail organization. You can also give to Trails 2000 through AmazonSmile, which donates a portion of Amazon purchases to the organization by encouraging consumers to shop through a unique link to make product purchases on Amazon at no additional cost to consumer.
Kids for ColoradoGives: Inspiring TrailKids to Give
New, kid-friendly website offers Durango’s youth a fun, safe way to experience the joy of giving
The Trails 2000 TrailKids program touches the lives of area youth each season through outdoor, hands-on lessons and trailwork aimed at inspiring curiosity, stewardship, and an appreciation for natural lands. Starting this month, Trails 2000 hopes to further connect with the next generation of givers through Kids for ColoradoGives, a new, fun and safe way for young donors to experience the joy of giving online.
Launched this year, Kids for ColoradoGives allows kids and their parents the opportunity to give to a nonprofit and help the community, while learning about philanthropy and having fun along the way. The site is a kid-friendly component of the popular website ColoradoGives.org, a year-round giving site presented by Community First Foundation and FirstBank that powers Colorado Gives Day and aims to celebrate and increase philanthropy through online giving. Trails 2000, who also participates in Colorado Gives, was excited about the opportunity to expand their fundraising efforts surrounding this annual, online-giving movement.
“Trails 2000 is always looking for ways to engage the next generation of lands stewards, and Kids for ColoradoGives aligns perfectly with our TrailKids program,” said Mary Monroe Brown, executive director of Trails 2000. “Gifts to our TrailKids program through Kids for ColoradoGives provide area youth a way to connect to our natural lands and feel like they’ve made a difference in our trails, open space, and Durango’s vast outdoor playground. We hope kids and their parents will join in the fun of giving this holiday season.”
To give to Trails 2000’s TrailKids program, children and their parents can visit Trails 2000’s Kids for ColoradoGives profile. The site is safe and easy to use, allowing donations to be made by Giving eCard only for the privacy and protection of children. Adults can purchase a Giving eCard for a child by visiting KidsforColoradoGives.org and click on “Giving eCards” on the site’s top navigation bar. After purchasing, kids and their parents can enjoy the giving experience together.
The website has fun incentives for kids as well, including a fun quiz for children to take to guide them in their charitable giving, and afterwards print out a hand-drawn, downloadable illustration to color and display. After donating, kids can download a digital badge that says, “I’m a Kid for ColoradoGives!”, along with parent badges that say, “My Kid’s a Kid for ColoradoGives!”
All donations made to Kids for ColoradoGives will support Trails 2000’s TrailKids program, which focuses on Durango-area middle school students and offers a variety of one hour, half-day, and full day programs for 6th-8th grade science classes. In partnership with Durango School District 9-R, the program tailors each course to Colorado Academic standards.
Thanks to sponsor Alpine Bank, in 2016 the TrailKids program reached over 1,000 local youth of all ages, including both school groups as well as the DEVO development program. Youth learned the importance of land stewardship by developing a sense of community ownership and studying topics such as the environment, geology, vegetation, and sustainability in an educational setting. Other TrailKids programs focused on additional trail stewardship topics, from the creation of trail signs to the geology of the surrounding area, or less tangible items such as an appreciation for the outdoors, share the trails ethics, and an understanding of what trails mean to the community. Students also engaged in experimental science labs related to school curriculum and conducted trailwork in various local trail systems.
According to Elizabeth “Ziggy” Lanman, former lead TrailKids educator, “It is such a thrill to share a passion for the outdoors with kids. There is nothing that I would love more than instilling a sense of love and appreciation to younger generations, and that’s something that outdoor, hands-on education can provide. Watching a kid discover how much fun it is to get dirty and really connect with the earth is so fulfilling—I think that this experience is necessary to get kids to fundamentally care about our planet. And trails are a necessary resource for that experience.”
To join the giving movement along with young generations, parents and adult supporters can access Trails 2000’s Colorado Gives profile. Donations can be made online in advance of Colorado Gives Day (Tuesday, December 5), and scheduled donations will be processed on December 5.
Learn more about the TrailKids program, and subscribe to our FREE TrailTalk Enewsletter to stay in the know about all things trails.
