I am very excited to announce the result of all those meetings I have been going to in Gainesville, GA. the past year. After much deliberation and debate, we, the trail user groups are working together! And, get this, we are working with the U.S. Forest Service! Who would of thought that John and Jane Q public could work with a government agency? Well it’s happening. And in case you don’t believe me, you all are invited to the Co Trails kick-off meeting. Read further for info:
Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest and CoTrails Volunteers
work together to launch strategic effort to connect volunteers
with sustainable trail needs
The Chattahoochee-‐Oconee National Forests and the CoTrails volunteer group announce a weekend of meetings and workshops January 20-‐22, aimed at identifying problem areas and solutions in the national forest trail system, helping determine maintenance needs, and providing volunteer training.
The public is invited to these gatherings, all to be held at Unicoi State Park and Lodge near Helen, GA and offered at no cost.
Trails don’t take care of themselves—CoTrails volunteers do! Please join us!
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 Nationa 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.
For the CoTrails Strategic Plan, visit www.CoTrails.org.
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.
