Hikers enjoy a beautiful August day on a guided hike in the Allegheny National Forest. (Photographer Alisha Glasgow)

This year, the ANF Chapter of the North Country Trail Association focused on two goals; improving the drainage on the Trail and offering more and varied guided hikes.

The chapter led at least one hike each month. Our special hikes included: an Interpretive Hike on tree identification, a Scavenger Hunt hike, an Introductory Backpack Hike and a Leaf Peeper Hike. Our first day, New Year’s Hike, continues to be our biggest draw. Almost 150 people participated in the guided hikes so far this year. Our last hike of 2024 is scheduled for Sunday, Dec 15 at 10 AM. Hikers will meet at the Rt 6 Trailhead, located on Rt 6 about 2 miles east of Ludlow, and hike south through the lovely rolling hills leading to Fox’s Dam and the Tionesta Scenic Area. We’d love to see you there! Look for details on our Facebook page.

 

Along with our guided hikes, the Annual Allegheny 100 Hiking Challenge brought 200 hikers from across the nation into the area, doing a great job of promoting both the ANF and the North Country Trail.

Hikers appreciate dry feet! Chapter volunteers tackled our second goal of improving drainage in many ways. One method was to reroute the Trail onto drier ground. Six small reroutes accomplished that. Volunteers also worked on repairing and building bridges. Eight small bridges were built and twenty four were repaired. The repairs ranged from a minor issue, like repairing a failed tread, to resetting a 30 ft bridge that had been moved off of its foundation by stream flow. Other methods employed to repair drainage included building structures into the trail. Eight water bars directed water off the trail. Twelve check dams stopped erosion of the trail on old road grades. Sixteen feet of turnpiking created a raised trail through marshy areas. Finally, volunteers cleared leaves and organic matter off the Trail and out of the ditches to reduce water collecting on the Trail.

This group widened 36’ of bog bridge over a marshy area. They also raised it higher out of the water by lifting each section and adding height to the crossbeams. (Photographer Bill Lallman)

The North Country National Scenic Trail (NCT) stretches over 4800 miles from Vermont to North Dakota. That’s over twice the length of other National Scenic Trails, such as the Appalachian Trail or the Pacific Crest Trail. The ANF Chapter maintains and promotes almost 100 miles of the NCT. To do so, it takes a community of volunteers. in 2024, 103 different volunteers helped to maintain trail and run our special events. Besides leading hikes, running the A-100 and working on drainage, many other projects were tackled. Volunteers refurbished trail informational kiosks, stained two shelters, blazed 24.5 miles of trail, installed signage to help hikers follow the Trail and cleared the Trail of downfall.

The ANF Chapter works in partnership with four government agencies. The U. S. Forest Service provides support, training, equipment and supplies and storage space for tools. The Forest Service also reviews the environmental aspect of new construction by the Chapter and helps them place structures and new trail in the appropriate spots. The North Country Trail Association provides us with training and support. The NCT is a unit of the National Park Service, so they also help the ANF Chapter with training, support and equipment. Finally, the U. S. Corp of Engineers hosts 1.3 miles of the NCT in Kellettville and assists us with issues there.

In 2025, the Chapter hopes to design two big bridges in the Tracy Ridge Area, construct three reroutes, and paint blaze another 25 miles of Trail. They will also be running the 13th Annual A-100 Hiking Challenge and monthly hikes. All of this, along with maintaining and promoting the Trail take the work of many volunteers.

To help out, to join a guided hike or to participate in the A-100, look up the Chapter at https://northcountrytrail.org/trail/pennsylvania/anf/ or email them at [email protected].

Guest Author Tina Toole, North Country Trail Association, Allegheny National Forest Chapter