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29.2-.T 68 I ClemsonUniversil mi III 1604 8 860 694 THE NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM •"•/, *»'.%& ».« ite> > \ i EDERAL BLICATIOM •r*v \ 30" THE NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM AT Prepared bythe Federal Interagency Council on Trails November2008 *fy In1988, cyclistspeerintoatunnelalong theElroySpartaBike Trail, aNational Recreation Trailnominatedin1971. Photo: WisconsinDepartmentofNatural Resources. CONTENTS Introduction/Purpose Statement 1 Whatis the National Trails System? 3 Celebrating Our Successes 5 The Benefits ofthe National Trails System 7 The Obstacles to Full Performance 10 Recommendations 11 Conclusion 13 AppendixA- Executive Order 13195 14 Appendix B - NST and NHTAdministration 16 Appendix C - NST and NHT Corridor Lengths 17 Appendix D - NST and NHT On-The-Ground Management, byAgency ...18 Appendix E - National Recreation Trails on Federal Lands 19 Appendix F - Organizations Supportingthe National Trails System 20 Cover:AnAppalachianNationalScenic a. Trailhikerpausestoenjoybeautifulviews. Photo:Appalachian TrailConservancy. i to CM Facingpage: CoveredwagonatScotts "" BluffNationalMonument, 2006. Photo: o NationalParkService (NPS). PUBLIC DOCUMENTS DEPOSITORY ITEM o JAN 2 2009 o CLEMSON CM LIERARY >r: ' EzraMeekerstandsbyChimneyRock inwesternNebraskaduringhisfirstre- enactmenttripalongtheOregon Trailin 1906. Photo:DavidWelch. Childrenride bikesopposite Washington, D.C., alongtheMountVernon Trail, acomponentofthePotomacHeritage NationalScenic Trail. Photo:NPS. Adogsledmushergreetsasnowmachine NHT operatoralongtheIditarod in Alaska. Photo:KevinKeeler/BLM. THE NATIONAL INTRODUCTION/ PURPOSE STATEMENT TRAILS SYSTEM AT The National Trails System connects people to our land, ourscenic wonders, ourheritage, our cultures, and our communities. This diverse network ofsustained andprotected trails strives to provide education,foster appreciation and enjoyment, protect resources, and support enriching and inspiring experiences through partnerships, community involvement, and citizen action. - Partnership for the National Trails System, 2003 years in the making, the National Trails System is maturing into a true nationwide network oftrails as the resultof Federal, State, and local governmental bodiesworkingin close partnershipwith thousands ofenthusiasticvolunteers and dozens ofnonprofit organizations. Passed in 1968, the National Trails SystemActhas been amended manytimes. Volunteers have proven to be the heart and soul ofthe System. Because each national trail in the National Trails System is assigned to one or more Federal agencies, this report offers a Federal interagencyperspective on the state ofthe National Trails System in 2008. National trails are complex. Some are long, some short. Manyinvolve built elements such as bridges and steps, restrooms, visitor centers, markers, AutotourroutesignsalongInterstate blazes, and highway signs. Manyinclude a land corridor ofcherishedviews US5inKansasCity, Missouri, June, 2008. Photo:StevenElkinton/NPS. orrare and sacred cultural sites. Some trails cross large amounts ofFederal land,while others mostlyinvolve private landowners, local park authorities, public road rights-of-way, and state and tribal reservations. These trails involve complex organizational issues: partnership agreements, fund raising, volunteers, and special events. Some are a single route, while others form complexbraided networks. " . "The establishment ofa nationwide system oftrails will be an accomplishment worthy ofaplace beside othermajor conservationprograms. The . . fundamental objective ofa nationwide system oftrails is to provide simple, inexpensive recreation opportunitiesfor all people by having an abundance oftrailsforwalking, cycling, and horseback riding near home, as well asproviding some majorhistoric and scenic interstate trails ofnational significance. PresidentJohnsonsignstheNationalTrailsSystemActintolawonOctober2, 1968. -Stewart Udallintestimony, Ionn.tePrhiootroS:eLcrBeJtaLriybrSatreyw,aArudstUidna,ll,TXL.adyBirdJohnson, andotherhigh-levelofficialslook March 6, 1967, inGPO, Hearing BeforetheSubcommitteeon NationalParksandRecreation. . onHR4865andRelatedBills To This reportdescribes the currentstatus ofAmerica's national scenic and EstablishaNationwideSystemof historic trails, aswell as the othertrail types created bythe National Trails Trails, March6-7, 1967, SerialNo. SystemAct: national recreationtrails, rail-trails, and connecting and side 09-4, p. 23. trails. In addition, ithighlightsvarious Federal programs thatassistthese trails. Recommended actions are offered to address existingunmetneeds and better coordinate consistency amongthevarious agencies. The Federal Interagency Council on Trailswas chartered in 1969 to foster interagency collaboration and make recommendations to the secretaries ofthe Interiorand Agriculture aboutvarious aspects ofthe National Trails System. Federal agencymembers ofthe Council havejoined togetherto submitthis reportto inform our own agencies and departments aboutthe full spectrum of current Federal involvementin the National Trails System. Currentinteragency authorities and agreements thatunderlie this report include: 1968 The NationalTrails SystemAct, as amended (16 USC 1241-1251) 2001 Executive Order 13195, TrailsforAmerica inthe 21st Century 2006 TheNational TrailsSystem,MemorandumofUnderstanding, signed by sixagencies, all participants in the Council. Submittedby: StevenElkinton, NationalParkService (Chair, Federal InteragencyCouncilonTrails) NathanCaldwell, U.S.FishandWildlife Service ChristopherDouwes, FederalHighwayAdministration Deb Salt, BureauofLand Management JonathanStephens, USDAForestService Peppino Persio, U.S.ArmyCorpsofEngineers WHAT THE IS The National Trails System, authorized bythe National Trails System Act of NATIONAL TRAILS 1968, as amended (16 UnitedStates Code 1241-1251), includes fourtypes of trails: SYSTEM? National Scenic Trails (NSTs) National Historic Trails (NHTs) National Recreation Trails (NRTs), and Connecting and Side Trails. NSTs and NHTs can onlybe established by Congress, while NRTs and connectingand side trail designations are formally recognized bythe Secretaries ofthe Interior and Agriculture. National Scenic Trails offersuperlative corridors ofrecreation in continuous and protected corridors thatcross America's diverse landforms. The firsttwo were theAppalachian and Pacific CrestTrails. Today eight NSTs cross 29 states and total 14,600 miles in combined lengths. Ofthis mileage, 11,080 miles (76%) are complete and open to the public (seeAppendices C and D). National Historic Trails teach history. Each follows a chain ofsites and physical embodiments (ruts, grave sites, structures, and ruins) thattell the story ofAmerica's growth. They are often not continuous, and the level of historic integritymayvaryfrom pristine to radically altered. Added to the NPStrailsstafferKay Threlkeldtakes System in 1978, there are now 18 NHTs in32 states totaling32,400 miles notesalongtheroutesoffouroverlapping in designated routes. Related statistics include almost20,500 miles ofauto historictrailsattheheadwatersofthe SweetivaterRiverincentralWyoming. tourroute, 2,935 miles ofre-tracementtrail, 1,933 high potential sites and Photo:NPS. segments, and over 120visitorcenters (see Appendices C and D). — National Recreation Trails are usually local in nature although afew stretch longerthan 100 miles. They are found in every state and Puerto Rico. Each yearthe secretary ofthe Interior, upon application, recognizes several dozen NRTs. The SecretaryofAgriculture oversees recognition ofNRTs within the National Forest System. Currentlythere are 1,055 NRTs totaling over 19,000 miles. They canbe single-use ormulti-use, paved or natural surfaced, onwater or land, urban orrural, motorized ornon-motorized. (A summary ofFederally-managed NRTs is found inAppendix E.) As forconnectingand sidetrails, secretarial action has officially registered two, both finalized in 1990. The 86-mileAnvik Connectoris inAlaska,while the 14-mile Timm's Hill Trail is found in northernWisconsin. Rail-trails are also authorized bythe National Trails SystemActwhich enables the Surface Transportation Board to preserve abandoned railroad rights-of-wayforuse as recreationtrails on an interim basis. The resulting Volunteersivorkon theHermanGulch "rail-to-trails"movement, launched firstin the United States and nowfound TrailinColorado, a2005National Trails worldwide, has preserved over 15,000 miles offormerrailroad corridors as Dayproject. Photo: ContinentalDivide recreational trails. TrailAlliance. Belowleft:AyouthcrewfromOssining, NY,workstorelocatetheAppalachianNST Trail administration is a trailwide function thatincludes interagency onBearMountaininHarrimanState consultation, coordination, planning, compliance, and graphics and logos. Park. Photo:StevenElkinton/NPS. Appendices B and F showeach ofthe 26 NSTs' and NHTs' administering Belowright:RossMarshall, Presidentof agencies, aswell as significantpartnerorganizations. thePartnershipfortheNational Trails System, standsbyawaysideexhibit Trail management refers to on-the-ground responsibilities involved alongtheOregon TrailinIndependence, Missouri, 2008. Photo:StevenElkinton/ with maintenance, signage,visitor services and safety, permits, resource NPS. management and monitoring, areaplanning, volunteercoordination, and local promotion. Many Federal agencies are involved in the management ofspecific trail sites and segments. (Appendix D outlines the Federal management jurisdictions foreach ofthe26 NSTs and NHTs.) " CELEBRATING OUR SUCCESSES "That view, or that viewshed or that cultural landscape or — historic landscape it is part ofthe important experience fora useror a visitor, to . . . And those places. in the case of historic trails, it evokes some sense ofplace that can be very powerful. It is a thrill, and . . it sometimes makes you shiver a bit because ofthe experience Dr.BruceCole, ChairmanoftheNationalEndowmentfortheHumanities, givesthe that you've been able to have a Stand Up TallerAwardtoEleanorCraigandHeatherRasmussenfromAccessibleArts hundred years later. inKansasCity, Kansas,fortheDiscovery Trailsprogram introducingvisuallyimpaired studentstoAmerica'shistorictrails. FirstLadyLauraBushoverseesthe WhiteHouse ceremony, January28, 2008. Photo:President'sCommitteeon theArtsandHumanities. -Dr. JereKrakow retiredNPS, oralhistory intervieiv, 2008, p. 17 Since its inception 40 years ago, the National Trails System has blossomed from two trails of4,700 miles in combined lengths to 26 trails thattotal over 46,000 miles. Overthe years, avariety ofFederal agencies havejoinedwith the National Park Service, the USDA Forest Service, and the Bureau ofLand Managementto administer and manage these trails. The National TrailsSystemAnnualReportfor2007 issued bythe Federal , Interagency Council on Trails, offered a snapshotofthe current status ofthe 26 national scenic and historic trails and howfartheyhave progressed since 1968. Administrative budgetfor26 trails $11.5 million Total length ofNSTs open to the public 11,080 miles Total length ofNSTs still to be built - 5,000 miles Total length ofNHTs open to the public 2,935 miles NHT Total length of auto tourroutes 20,500 miles Many ofthe trail offices have extensive data systems, GIS mapping services, and websites. Each trail also is a complexweb ofcitizen partnerships held togetherby a common motivation to preserve, protect, and make available to the public these outstandingtrail resources. As trails have been established, people have organized to supportthem (see Appendix F). Florida TrailAssociationstaffand volunteersjoinNPSDirectorFran Mainella in2006alongtheFloridaNST. Photo:Florida TrailAssociation. — "The [trail manager] is actually Manyinnovations occur alongthese trails theyareveritable laboratories someone, aprivate landowner, ofcreative partnerships. In fiscalyears 2007 and 2008, a samplingofsuch a state government employee, projects and programs included: afederal agency employee, or The $837,000 ConnectTrails to Parks program funding 14 projectswhere office that has trail on lands national trails intersectwith national park areas. that they own ormanage. Apetroglyph recordingprojectalongthe Ala Kahakai NHT. Administration done by the The Appalachian Trail Mega-Transectas anorth-south diagnostic toolto National Park Service [or understand North American natural resource dynamics. BLM, orFS]fora historic trail • Theweb-based John Smith LandscapeVisualization projectwith is really coordinating with all Pennsylvania State Universityand the Smithsonian Institution to explore these many ownerships and the 17th Centuryenvironmentofthe Chesapeake Bay. managements the protection FloridaTrailAssociation's Gateway Communities Program to promote andpreservation ofthe trail close-to-home ecotourism throughout Florida. resources and the telling Apartnershipwith Mexico's Institute de Antropologiay Historia (INAH)- ofthe story, what we call Sonoraand the Sonora Office ofTourism to establish the Juan Bautista de interpretation ofthe trail, to Anza NHT across Sonoraprovince. the public through a variety of Anew Urban Identity Strip to showcase the North Country NST in towns means. andvillages. -Dr. JereKrakow, retiredNPS, Anewmarketingalliance forthe Potomac Heritage NST formed at a oralhistoryinterview, 2008, p. 8 conference entitled "Balancing Nature and Commerce in Communities Adjacentto Public Lands." Such projects strengthen and extend a network ofprojects thatwill increasingly showAmericans howvaluable these trails are to the Nation as awhole and to individual communities in response to each area's unique conditions. Projects like these are compellingexamples thatilluminate the rich educational, conservation, recreational, and heritagevalues ofthe National Trails System to communities and individuals.