Mark your calendars
for trails assessment meetings
All members and friends of Georgia ForestWatch, and especially our hike leaders, are invited to attend either a portion or all of the following meetings
January 20-22, 2012 in connection with the joint effort of volunteer recreational trails users and the U.S. Forest Service to identify problem trails and determine how to sustainably maintain official Forest Service system trails.
Background. The meetings, all being held at Unicoi State Park & Lodge, will serve to introduce the contractor retained to assess 200 miles of system trails and to educate the public to sustainable trail maintenance and etiquette as well as outline the volunteer-driven strategic plan that will guide this process in coming months. That CoTrails plan largely was developed under the leadership of former executive director Wayne Jenkins and other collaborative trail user groups (mountain bikers, horsemen, hikers, off-road vehicle drivers, etc.). Georgia ForestWatch, moreover, secured a $75,000 grant from the Howard R. Dobbs Jr. Foundation to help defray the $150,000 allocated for the trails assessment contract.
Quick links for more information and meeting schedule:
--
www.CoTrails.org--
http://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/conf/trail-collaboration--
www.gafw.orgSchedule Detail (all at no cost to the public. We will understand if your schedule permits attending only a portion of these meetings.)
COTRAILS STRATEGIC PLAN LAUNCH AND GENERAL MEETING:
Friday, January 20, Unicoi State Park Lodge, Masters Hall, 6:00-8:00pm, with social hour including complimentary food and refreshments to follow (this replaces the January CoTrails general meeting previously scheduled for January 24). This meeting is open to anyone interested in supporting and becoming active in CoTrails' mission to "provide diverse, quality trail experiences that are maintainable and ecologically sustainable" on the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests. George Bain, Forest Supervisor, will be speaking. This meeting will be followed by a weekend of Trails 101 training for interested volunteers. The meeting is free and open to the public. Please RSVP to John Campbell: jwcampbell@fs.fed.us.
TRAILS ASSESSMENT KICK-OFF AND TRAILS 101 COURSE:
Saturday and Sunday, January 21-22, at Unicoi State Park Lodge near Helen, GA beginning at 9:00am each day. The Saturday morning kick-off will include presentations from Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest, CoTrails volunteer group, and Applied Trails Research, with the goal of providing an introduction to a trails assessment process that will be occurring on the national forest. The classroom portion of the Trails 101 course will follow and last until 4:00pm. Sunday will be the Trails 101 field session on Smith Creek Trail, ending at 3:00pm. The meeting and course are free and open to anyone interested. Please RSVP to John Campbell:
jwcampbell@fs.fed.us.
DIRECTIONS AND LODGING:
Unicoi Lodge is offering attendees a special rate of $69 for lodge rooms that weekend. When making reservations, refer to "CoTrails" or event #E05170. Lodge Reservations and Directions: (800) 573-9659,
http://gastateparks.org/info/unicoi/. RV and other campsites are also available.
WHAT IS CoTRAILS?
The mission of CoTrails is "to provide diverse, quality trail experiences that are maintainable and ecologically sustainable on the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests." CoTrails began when a diverse group of trail users-who have sometimes been in conflict with one another or with the Forest Service-were brought together to find common ground and address a shared concern of maintaining an appropriate trail system on the forest. Read the CoTrails Strategic Plan at
www.CoTrails.org, and find more information on the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest's website at
http://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/conf/trail-collaboration.
Thanks for your commitment to protecting the rivers and forest lands of North Georgia!
