Partnerships in Action!

National Public Lands Day 2022

Volunteers Join for Trail Work on the CDT for National Public Lands Day

On Saturday September 24th, public land managers and local trail users celebrated National Public Lands Day with volunteer trail work along the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) near Big Hole Pass. The CDT spans 3,100 miles from Mexico to Canada and is a popular long distance trail for thru-hikers. Lemhi County was designated a CDT Gateway Community in 2018, and this recognizes communities in the county as friendly to trail users and dedicated to the completion and protection of the trail. Skeet Townley, North Zone Recreation Manager for the Salmon-Challis National Forest said, “In recent years, public lands managers in Lemhi County have been focusing on improvements along the CDT. This section at Big Hole Pass was pretty miserable for hikers because of all the steep up and down.” Saturday’s National Public Lands Day project focused on two sections of trail reroutes north of the pass, which involved removing stumps and roots and building tread. While the reroutes aren’t quite ready for their grand opening, they will be huge improvements for hikers, mountain bikers, and other recreationists along this section of the CDT once finalized.

“It’s really cool to see a project that’s been years in the making come together. Forest Service trail crews, and partner groups like Montana Conservation Corps and Student Conservation Association have been working to re-route this section. These National Public Lands Day volunteers just put a bow on the project. I didn’t think we would get this far this season,” Townley noted.

In all, 23 people showed up to get out on the trail, including reps from Salmon Valley Stewardship, Salmon Idaho Mountain Bike Association, Student Conservation Association, North Fork Trail Alliance and the Salmon-Challis National Forest. Kate Yeater, Salmon Valley Stewardship’s Trails Stewardship Coordinator said, “It was a beautiful day to be out on our public lands, giving back to these places we all love so much. I’m grateful for the time and effort all these volunteers put in today.” The day concluded with a picnic lunch and then many volunteers hopped on their bikes for an afternoon ride from Big Hole Pass to Sheep Creek. The project was made possible in part by support from the Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee.