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The Tripod Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance April 2016 Alaska Trails Statewide Trails Conference The Alaska Trails Statewide Trails Conference, to be held May 5- 7 in Anchorage, will feature two great keynote speakers, Fairbanks author and adventurer Ned Rozell and Sitka Representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins. Ned Rozell has written newspaper columns about science topics for the past 21 years. In the third year of that job, he hiked from Valdez to Prudhoe Bay along the gravel road that runs beside the TransAlaska Pipeline. He wrote the book Walking my Dog Jane about that experience and will share stories from that adventure at the conference. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins is the youngest member of the Alaska House, in his second term at the age of 26. He will speak on the importance of trails in Alaska and how they can help Alaska become an international destination for adventure travel.
Some of the topics that will be featured at the conference are: helical pile elevated walkways, maps and apps- a panel on new technology, physics for trail builders, how to increase diversity on trails, combatting invasives on trails and trail bridge options. Registration at www.alaska-trails.org. The Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance promotes public awareness of the Iditarod Trail and its gold rush and Alaska Native heritage by encouraging education programs and historical research, assisting in the protection, improvement, maintenance and marking of the trail, developing partnerships that foster stewardship commitments and support from land owners, local communities, organizations and others.
The trail for all seasons National Trails Day® American Hiking Society’s National Trails Day® is a celebration of America’s magnificent Trail System, occurring annually on the first Saturday in June, this year June 4. On that day, individuals, clubs and organizations organize outdoor activities, designed to promote and celebrate the importance of trails. National Trails Day® introduces thousands of Americans to a wide variety of activities: hiking, biking, paddling, horseback riding, trail running and bird watching. For public and private land managers alike, National Trails Day® is a great time to showcase beautiful landscapes and special or threatened locales as thousands of people will be outside participating in trail activities around the country.
The Seward Iditarod Trail Blazers is planning on doing a historic waking tour on the first mile of the Iditarod National Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance PO Box 2323, Seward AK 99664 IditarodHTA@gmail.com http://www.Iditarod100.org Alaska members who apply for their Permanent Fund dividend online can donate part or all of it to the Alliance through the Pick. Click. Give Program. Tripod, April 2016 Historic Trail on June 4.
You can check on planned activities around the country at http:// nationaltrailsday.americanhiking .org/ Historic Herning Trail The Mat-Su Trails and Parks Foundation is partnering with the Knik Chapter of the Iditarod Trail Blazers, Big Lake Trails, Inc., the City of Houston, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska Department of Natural Resources, the National Park Service and Valley Mountain Bikers and Hikers to re-establish the historic Herning Trail to celebrate the borough’s history and enhance outdoor recreation and economic opportunities. In the 1990s the Alaska Department of Natural Resources mapped an RS2477 easement for the Herning Trail, running from the historic town site of Knik to Houston. The Herning Trail project needs input on how the historic Herning Trail could be restored and enhanced.
Three public meetings are scheduled: April 11, 7-8:0 pm, Knik Fire Station 6-2, Mile 7 KGB Road, April 18, 7-8:30 pm, Big Lake Library, 3140 S Big Lake Road, April 26, 7-8:30 pm Houston City Hall, 13 878 W. Armstrong Road. Written comments can be sent to Mat-Su Trails and Parks Foundation, PO Box 876781, Wasilla AK 99687. For more information about the project visit: www.facebook.com/The-HistoricHerning-Trail-1678652662405960 From the Past… “Seward Daily Gateway” April 3, 1916 CLOTHES STRUNG BETWEEN ANCHORAGE AND SEWARD The trails between Anchorage and Seward are littered now with old clothes, handbags, and a thousand and one odds and ends which are vivid reminders of the fact that hundreds of men, who never before saw Alaska and who had no idea of what they were to meet in packing over the trail, have followed the railroad excitement. Benjamin L.
Campbell, the well-known engineer of the Alaska Engineering Commission, suggested this morning that some second-hand dealer might go out and get a fine stock of goods. The men from foreign countries who come to work on the railroad carry the most extraordinary loads out of Seward and are forced to shed their “valuables” as they go along in the deep snow country. Not everyone used dogs to pull sleds, as shown by this 1898 photograph from a stereographic card of the Keystone View Company entitled; “Citizens of Ohio enroute to the Klondyke, Dyea Trail, Alaska.” Biking and walking The Alliance for Biking and Walking has released its bi-annual report summarizing national trends in biking and walking. You can read the report, which is based on data collected from all 50 states and from the 50 most populous U.
S cities, at: everybodywalk.org/alliance-for-biking-andwalking Final notes ●Check out the items we have for sale on our web site: a video, books, patches, pins and mugs. Go to Iditarod100 and click on shop. ●Thanks to everyone who donated to the Alliance through the Pick. Click. Give. Program, when they filed for their 2016 Permanent Fund Dividend.