Public Invited to View New National Geographic Channel Film on the A.T.
Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (November 7, 2009)—The public is invited to a special theater showing November 13 of National Geographic Channel’s new film on the Appalachian Trail, shot in part in the Eastern Panhandle last year.
“America’s Wild Spaces: Appalachian Trail” will be shown at 7:30 p.m. at the Robert C. Byrd Auditorium at the National Conservation Training Center (NCTC) main building, west of Shepherdstown on Shepherd Grade Road. No tickets are required, and admission is free.
Congress Funds A.T. Projects
Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (October 30, 2009)—Public agencies and private conservancies soon will be able to add thousands of acres of buffer lands around the Appalachian Trail from Maine to Tennessee, thanks to $9.8 million in appropriations approved by Congress late Thursday and sent to President Obama for signature before Sunday.
The funding comes as major projects along the Virginia quarter of the Appalachian Trail, supported with almost $2 million in federal appropriations last year, are close to settlement.
EPA Helps Protect the A.T.
Asheville, N.C. (October 21, 2009)—A $20,000 community stewardship grant from the Environmental Protection Agency will allow the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) to teach citizen-scientists how to monitor rare, threatened, and endangered (RTE) plants, monitor and control invasive exotic (IE) plant species, and begin restoration of ecosystems harmed by IE plants.
ATC Awarded Land Protection Grant from The Conservation Alliance
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (October 14, 2009)—A just-announced $30,000 grant from The Conservation Alliance is a major step forward for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) in its drive to protect from development 1,050 acres along the legendary footpath in south-central Pennsylvania’s White Rocks area.
Tennessee A.T. Advocates Mark Half-Way Milestone
(October 7, 2009)— The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) and its volunteers in Tennessee are celebrating the midpoint in their journey to collect 1,000 applications for a specialty Appalachian Trail (A.T.) license plate that, once produced, will provide significant ongoing funding to maintain and conserve the 280 Tennessee miles of the legendary 2,178-mile footpath.
Five hundred Tennesseans have stepped forward to show their support of the A.T. with their license plate, including Elizabeth O’Conner, of Chattanooga who says she’s hoping to somehow share the magic of the trail so that others might be drawn to it and experience its wonders as she has.
A.T. Community Forum, Oct 26
The Appalachian Trail Conservancy and Cumberland County, Pennsylvania extend an open invitation to residents to attend the Appalachian Trail Community Forum on October 26 at the Carlisle Theater (40 West High Street Carlisle, PA). The public event will connect citizens and municipal officials who are interested in preserving the experience of the Trail.
Host a "Watch Party" to Help the A.T.
If you get National Geographic Television in your area, consider hosting a “watch party” for your friends and neighbors on November 10 for the debut of “Wild Spaces: The Appalachian Trail”. This visually spectacular 50-minute documentary covers this place we care so deeply about protecting – our own A.T.
“It offers the perfect venue for friends who cherish the Trail to say ‘ATC does important work and they really need your membership now, more than ever,’” says Laurie Wise, ATC’s Annual Fund Director.
If you plan to host a “watch party” for your friends and neighbors, please contact ATC and let us know how many people you expect. We’ll send you ATC membership information to pass along at your party, so we can all work to protect this wild space we love so much.
Request a host party packet by sending the number of guests you expect along with your name and address to info@appalachiantrail.org with the subject line “Watch Party”.
Share Your A.T Stories & Photos
There are two opportunities available to share your experiences and stories from the Appalachian Trail. One is with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History (submit by Oct. 10, 2009) and the other is with USA Today (submit by Sept. 4, 2009).
Volunteers Sought for Invasive-Plants in S. Nantahala Wilderness
Asheville, N.C. (August 21, 2009) — The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) is seeking volunteers to participate in an invasive-plant workshop on the evening of Friday, August 28, and an invasive exotic plant inventory on Saturday, August 29.
Volunteers Sought for Invasive-Plant Inventory in S. Nantahala Wilderness
Asheville, N.C. (August 3, 2009) — The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) is seeking volunteers to participate in an invasive plant workshop on Friday, August 14 and to conduct invasive plant inventory Saturday, August 15 and Sunday, August 16. These workdays will occur on the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) in the Southern Nantahala Wilderness. The focus of this volunteer effort is to educate people about the threats of invasive exotic plants, and how to identify and inventory invasive species to help managers control these populations in the future. Backpacking, camping, and a three day commitment are encouraged, due to the remote location of this work project.
Barefoot Sisters Launch Book Tour at A.T. Visitors Center
Harpers Ferry, W. Va (July 28, 2009) – AT the late spring of 2000, Lucy Letcher, 25, and her just-graduated sister, Susan, 21, set out hiking the Appalachian Trail from their home in Maine to Georgia. At noon on Tuesday, August 4, the “Barefoot Sisters”—known on the trail as “Isis” and “Jackrabbit”—begin a signing tour for the first of their two books, The Barefoot Sisters Southbound, in the Appalachian Trail Visitors Center at the Appalachian Trail Conservancy national headquarters in Harpers Ferry, W.Va.
REI Supports ATC Ridgerunner Program
Harpers Ferry, W.Va (July 21, 2009)—Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) today announced that it has received a $25,000 grant from Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI), a national outdoor retail co-op committed to connecting people with nature. The grant supports ATC’s ridgerunner program, a key means for educating hikers in important conservation practices and informing trail managers of real-time conditions along the most-used national scenic trail.
Great Barrington A.T. Community Partner Celebration
S. Egremont, Mass (July 25, 2009) – The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) hosted neighbors and partners of the Great Barrington Trails and Greenways Alliance on July 24 at the ATC Kellogg Conservation Center in celebration of the successful 2009 A. T. Community Partners program. This is event served as a big ‘thank you’ to the many volunteers, organizations, and businesses that have gone the extra mile to make Great Barrington and its surrounding areas a more hike, bike, and walk-friendly place.
Honorary Membership Awarded
Castleton, Vermont (July 20, 2009) - The Bylaws of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy provide for a singular award, at the discretion of the Board. It is called "Honorary Membership," a singularly modest category for what it applauds—"an individual who has made a distinguished contribution to the Appalachian Trail project."
Earl Shaffer and the Appalachian Trail Opens at the Smithsonian
Washington, D.C. (June 10, 2009)—“Earl Shaffer and the Appalachian Trail,” celebrating the early years of the Appalachian Trail project and Shaffer’s historic 1948 thru-hike, opens today in the Albert Small Documents Room of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.
Volunteers Sought for Invasive Plant Removal on Roan Highlands
Asheville, N.C. (July 7, 2009) — The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) is seeking volunteers to conduct invasive plant removal on Roan Highlands on Friday July 10 and Saturday July 11. The focus of this volunteer effort is to identify and remove coltsfoot and learn about the impacts these invasive exotic plants have on the native flora in the unique grassy bald habitat of Roan Highlands.
W.VA. Gov. Manchin Visits A.T. in Harpers Ferry
HARPERS FERRY, W.Va. (June 11)—West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin III today dedicated a series of enhancements to the Appalachian Trail in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and the town, saluting the private and public agencies and volunteers involved in the multiyear project.
W.Va. Gov. Manchin to Visit A.T.
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (June 9, 2009) - On Thursday, June 11, at 11 a.m., West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin will dedicate state-funded improvements to the Appalachian Trail in Harpers Ferry and recognize the volunteers who implemented the projects. The ceremonies, organized by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, will take place on “The Point”.
American Honda Foundation Awards Major Grant to ATC Classroom Program
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (June 4, 2009)—The American Honda Foundation has awarded a $50,000 grant to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s innovative program to engage teachers and pupils in using the 14-state range of the legendary Appalachian Trail as a teaching and learning tool.
Conservancy Opens New A.T. Section; Governor Manchin to Dedicate
Harpers Ferry, W.Va. (June 1, 2009)—The northernmost mile of the Appalachian Trail in West Virginia is getting a lot of new looks, and the public is invited to join trail workers in a set of “first peeks” this Saturday before Gov. Joe Manchin officially dedicates them June 11.
The enhancements include
National Trails Day Celebrations in Harpers Ferry
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (June 1, 2009) - Join the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) in a series of A.T.-related celebrations in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 6. Highlights include opening the newest part of the Appalachian Trail as a relocation in the historic downtown area of Harpers Ferry is dedicated.
ATC Awarded Wilderness Stewardship Grant from National Forest Foundation
Asheville, N.C. (May 12, 2009)—The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) will be leading volunteers into federally designated wilderness areas in North Carolina and Virginia to monitor invasive-exotic plant species. Thanks to a generous grant from the National Forest Foundation, ATC will support the U.S. Forest Service in the Nantahala National Forest and the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area in efforts to protect the ecological balance in some of the more than two dozen wilderness areas that the A.T. traverses.
Calendar Photos
Deadline for submission is June 30, 2009
Guidelines for photo submission:
Submissions must be digital images or 35mm slides at a minimum of 300 ppi (pixels per inch) at 13 inches high, saved as a TIFF, EPS or Photoshop file.
ATC is Sole Trail-Management Organization to Earn BBB Charity Seal
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (April 20, 2009)—The Appalachian Trail Conservancy, headquartered in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., is the only trail-management organization awarded the Better Business Bureau Charity Seal, according to a list (attached) of 251 such groups appearing this month in USA Today.
Ridgerunner Podcasts Now Available
Asheville, N.C. (March 11, 2009) – Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) Ridgerunners are hired to hike and camp on the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) to report conditions, monitor water sources, and spread important news related to hiker safety and Leave No Trace. Their relevant and timely reports on the state of the Trail have only been available to the ATC and its management partners, until now.
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