Trail U Campus Is the Great Outdoors in the New York-New Jersey Region

Posted on April 10, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker
Trail builder and educator Ama Koenigshof, left, demonstrates trail rigging to volunteer trail crew members. The advanced workshop was given April 7 at Harriman State Park.

Trail builder and educator Ama Koenigshof, left, demonstrates trail rigging to volunteer trail crew members. The advanced workshop was given April 7 at Harriman State Park.

Trail volunteers tend to be active, outdoor-loving, community-service-minded people. Perhaps you are one too?

If yes, then you should know that the Trail Conference works hard to provide  people like you diverse opportunities to volunteer on- and off-trail and, if you’re so inclined, to provide training in skills and knowledge that can help expand your enjoyment of the outdoors and of volunteering. That’s what’s behind Trail U–our name for the classes and workshops we offer.

Our campus is the great outdoors, at locations and trail projects throughout our New York-New Jersey service area.  We offer a wide range of workshops and projects for all levels of experience.  Learn more at http://www.nynjtc.org/trailu

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Catskill Interpretive Center: Coming Soon?

Posted on April 1, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker
CatskillKiosk2

A 2,000-square-foot interpretive center is to replace this 16-panel kiosk along Route 28 in Mount Tremper.

Catskill Mountain region advocates are excited that the long-promised but much delayed Catskill Interpretive Center along Route 28 in Mount Tremper may soon become a reality. New York State’s 2013 budget includes $1 million in funding for the project, and designs for an approximately 2,000-square-foot facility are being finalized by the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Hopes are high that the building will be constructed shortly.

The project began more than three decades ago, when interpretive centers were being designed and built in the Adirondack Park. The state purchased land for the center and completed initial site work, but progress same to a stop when priorities changed. Nevertheless, local organizations and activists continued to push for completion of the project, which promises to promote tourism and economic benefits to the Catskill Mountain region.

Today the Interpretive Center is a private/public partnership led by DEC, the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, and the Friends of the Catskill Interpretive Center. The Trail Conference is represented on the Friends group by Jeff Senterman, our Senior Program Coordinator.

While pressing for construction of the center, the group oversaw the installation of an interpretive kiosk on the site with 16 panels of information about the Catskills (photo).

The Center will be staffed by a group of non-profit organizations, including the Trail Conference, and volunteer support will be key in providing interpretive services. The building will feature large open spaces for interpretive displays, public restrooms, space for educational and training events, and many acres for hiking trails and other outdoor activities. The Trail Conference is currently working on the site to design a trail to the ridgetop above the Interpretive Center site that offers a commanding view of the Esopus Valley and Romer Mountain across the valley.

Former Congressman Maurice Hinchey secured more than $350,000 in federal funding for the project, and the center will bear his name.

 

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Build Your Team by Volunteering with Us on Trails

Posted on February 21, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker
John K. Leigh

John K. Leigh

By John K. Leigh IV, Volunteer Coordinator

Jleigh@nynjtc.org

Imagine, if you will, building teamwork on your job while doing some great work for the community and environment. Now imagine building leadership and identifying your company’s rising stars at the same. Also imagine an employee volunteer program being seen as a benefit by many recent college graduates who are entertaining job offers.

Corporations often pay large fees for staff development programs, retreats, and training. One extremely successful alternative to such programs is a Corporate Volunteering Program or Employee Volunteer Program (EVP), in which the company partners with a nonprofit to benefit their communities through volunteer action. The Trail Conference offers companies such opportunities on trails in our region.

Volunteer programs have immediate and long-term benefits for the nonprofit organization and employer. The most obvious is the work accomplished for the nonprofit organization and the community. Benefits for the company include tax benefits, positive media exposure, and employee development.

According to one study, “Good Companies, Better Employees” (Tuffrey, 2003), employees of business who have a solid volunteer program have:

  • increased levels of employee satisfaction
  • positive affect on employee retention rates
  • more opportunities for employee development
  • lower incidence of absence
  • increased positive media coverage

All of this leads to a happier employer-employee relationship and a better corporate environment, all the while helping out the community.

There are many different ways to organize a volunteer program and even more ways the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference can help you accomplish your goals. Whether it’s a one-day project or a recurring program, we have the ability to help you engage on a vast collection of projects.

For more information, please contact John Leigh at Jleigh@nynjtc.org.

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2013 Catskill Mountains Lark in the Park Celebration Scheduled

Posted on February 14, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker

Catskill Mountains Lark in the Park

The Trail Conference, the Catskill Mountain Club and the Catskill Center have begun the planning for the 2013 Catskills Lark in the Park event, so it is not too early to mark your calendars and make sure you are in the Catskill Mountains between from October 5 through October 14, 2013 to help us celebrate the anniversary of the creation of the Catskill Park!

The tenth annual Catskills Lark in the Park will bring exciting hiking, paddling, cycling, fishing, nature walks, and lectures, as well as cultural and social events throughout the entire region.

The Lark in the Park was originally created in 2004 to mark the 100th anniversary of the Catskill Park by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).  The Lark is sponsored by the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference, the Catskill Mountain Club, and Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, with the cooperation of the DEC

As the event gets closer, be sure to regularly check the Lark in the Park website at www.catskillslark.org for schedules and other important information, including pre-registration for some events or follow the Lark in the Park on Facebook.

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Trails and The City: Our Winter Meeting 2013

Posted on February 13, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker
Christina Taylor (right), Executive Director of Friends of Van Cortlandt Park, led Trail Conference members on a hike in the park. The Trail Conference has worked with FVCP on trail improvements in the park.

Christina Taylor (right), Executive Director of Friends of Van Cortlandt Park, led Trail Conference members on a hike in the park. The Trail Conference has worked with FVCP on trail improvements at Van Cortlandt. Photo by Andrea Minoff.

THANK YOU to Manhattan College for hosting our 2013 Winter Meeting last night (Tuesday) and to our Gold Sponsors, Tent & Trails and Paragon Sports for helping to make it possible.

Overwhelming interest in our two scheduled hikes–at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx and Isham & Inwood Hill Parks in northern Manhattan–led us to add a third hike at Van Cortlandt Park.

Thanks also to our volunteer hike leaders, workshop presenters, sponsors, and Trail Conference attendees for making our meeting a success!

Click here to see what you missed! And stay tuned for details about our Summer Meeting, being planned for June.

 

 

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Ringwood State Park Trails Closed Until April 15, 2013

Posted on February 8, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker
Ringwood State Park Map

Ringwood State Park and the Tennessee Gas Pipeline

Construction has started in New Jersey on the Tennessee Gas Pipeline expansion project, including within Ringwood State Park.  Due to the construction activities throughout the Park, officials have closed the Park’s entire trail sytem until April 15, 2013.

For more information on this closure, please visit the Trail Conference’s news page.

The pipeline work being done across the State of New Jersey must be completed before April 15th.  If you plan on hiking in Northern New Jersey between now and then, it is recommended that you contact the park or our the Trail Conference office (201.512.9348) beforehand to ensure that your planned hike is not impacted by this construction.  Trail Conference volunteers and staff are working hard to keep the public informed.

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Strengthening Volunteer Efforts in Sterling Forest SP

Posted on February 7, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker

This past week Trail Conference volunteers and staff met with officials at Sterling Forest State Park to discuss plans for improving trails and strengthening our volunteer efforts in the Park.

AK.JM.Feb13.Sterling.RedBackTrail.Scout

The Trail Conference’s West Hudson South Trails Chair John Mack and staff member Ama Koenigshoff spent a brisk day scouting trail locations in Sterling Forest State Park

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Catskill Park Issues Highlighted in Albany Meetings

Posted on February 6, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker
Jeff Senterman, Trail Conference Senior Program Coordinator

Jeff Senterman, Trail Conference Senior Program Coordinator, in Albany.

On Tuesday, February 5, 2013, representatives from the Trail Conference, including Executive Director Ed Goodell and Senior Program Coordinator Jeff Senterman, the Catskill Center, and the Catskill Mountain Club, visited with members of the New York State Legislature and the Executive Officers from the Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to raise awareness of issues surrounding the Catskill Park.

Twelve of us urged officials to move forward on a number of issues identified as important to the health of the outdoor recreation-based economy in the region:

  • creating a new recreational plan for the park,
  • constructing the long-promised Catskill Interpretive Center,
  • encouraging NYS Dept. of Transportation to continue its signage program in the park,
  • promoting transfer of some New York City lands to the Forest Preserve,
  • pressing DEC to release a long-planned contract to increase volunteer efforts in the park,
  • and requiring individual permit review should hydrofracking be allowed within the park.

This first Catskill Awareness Lobby Day in Albany went well and our groups look forward to growing the effort in the future.

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Trail U Chainsaw Course Adds 19 Volunteers to Our Ranks

Posted on January 30, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker
A donation of new gear by Stihl outfitted students for the class.

A donation of new helmets and chaps by Stihl helped outfit students for the class.
A grant from the Dodge Foundation provided additional support.

We  thank Jack Shuart, Peter Jensen, the Dodge Foundation, Stihl Northeast, the NJ School of Conservation and our course participants for such a great weekend.  Jack and Peter were able to certify 19 new sawyers at the NJ School of Conservation in Sandyston, NJ during the Chainsaw course offered January 26 & 27.

The facilities provided by NJ SOC were comfortable, the safety equipment provided by Stihl kept us injury free, and the Dodge Foundation provided the Trail Conference with a grant that made it all possible.  There were ample trees to cut thanks to Sandy and the students braced sub-freezing temperatures all weekend long without complaint.  We could not have asked for better students or more knowledgeable and dedicated teachers.

And thank-you, Bill Phillips, for this review on Facebook: “Possibly the best training class I’ve ever taken. The cutting technique demos were excellent.”

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What Are the Catskills Worth?

Posted on January 28, 2013 by NY-NJ Trail Walker

Catskill Park logo

What are the open spaces of the Catskills worth to the local economy?

Plenty, according to a new study, which finds that recreational opportunities on the Catskills’ publicly owned State and New York City lands plus private lands open to the public, draw over 1.7 million visitors annually. They create an economic impact of $46,207,000 and support 980 jobs. Add those who come to enjoy other privately held lands, and the total number of people choosing the Catskills for recreation each year is almost 2.5 million, creating an economic impact of $114,768,000 and supporting 2,413 jobs.

So states a new report, “Economic Valuation Study for Public Lands in the Central Catskills” prepared by Brian Zweig of Business Opportunities Management Consulting. Commissioned by the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, Catskill Mountainkeeper, and Catskill Heritage Alliance.

The Trail Conference’s Executive Director Ed Goodell will be on the panel at the public forum on the study that will take place on Thursday, January 31st, from 4:30 to 6:00pm at the Olive Town Meeting House (50 Bostock Road, off Route 28 in Shokan). For more information, and a link to a report summary, go to our website – http://nynjtc.org/event/Catskills-forum

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