2012 VTGC Symposium Presenter List

2012 Vermont Trail Symposium

Event Presentation Descriptions We would like to thank the following presenters for sharing their knowledge with us at the

2012 VT Trail Symposium! Everyone will participate in the same morning sessions. You will

need to pick from the following tracts in the afternoon: Trail Structures, Mountain Bike

Trails, Wetlands, Recreation Trail Resources, Stone Structures, Mechanized Trail Equipment,

or Trail Easements. You can find more information about the workshops and presentations

offered below. Enjoy!

Morning Presentations Heather Furman

10:30am-11:30am

Concept to Completion: Mobbs Farm Trail

Heather Furman has worked in the conservation, recreation and natural resource fields for nearly 20 years. Early in her career Heather spent 3 years in the Himalayan region of Nepal focused on community reforestation projects and sustainable small-scale farming. Upon her return to the US, Heather moved to Vermont and obtained an MS in Natural Resource Planning from the University of Vermont while working for the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps and the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation. She is the founding President of the Climbing Resource Access Group of Vermont (CRAG-VT) where she led the organization in its first acquisitions of land to protect public access to popular rock and ice climbing areas. Heather also served on the Board of Directors of the Access Fund, a national non-profit climbing advocacy organization based in Boulder, Colorado.

Currently Heather serves as Executive Director for Stowe Land Trust. Since 2003, she has helped the organization conserve over 1000 acres and oversees the management of several popular recreation areas. Heather is also Chair of the Mobbs Farm Committee in Jericho, Vermont,

charged with managing a 265 acre community-owned property. She is an avid trail runner and participates regularly in races up to 50 miles long. Heather lives in Jericho Center with her husband Dave. Heather will be giving a general synopsis of the Mobbs Farm Trail project from concept to completion. This project is a prime example of the many players and facets that are incorporated into a recreation trail project.

Laird MacDowell

11:30pm-12:30pm

Making a large-scale trail project happen-The history to date of the Lamoille

Valley Rail Trail

Resides in Jeffersonville, VT and has worked as a chemist for the past 32 years with IBM Corporation and works weekends in the winter as an instructor at the Smugglers’ Notch Resort Nordic Center. Laird has a BS in Biology from Johnson State College and a BS in chemistry from Trinity College (Burlington). Currently serving as Chair of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail Committee and co-chair of the Cambridge

Greenway Path Committee. Recreational activities include mountain biking, inline skating, snowshoeing and snowboarding. Believes strongly in the construction of recreational paths in Vermont communities primarily to provide dedicated paths for cyclists and pedestrians to avoid conflict with road traffic. The history to date of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail (LVRT) will be presented including all the recent Act 250 proceedings. The LVRT, once completed, will consist of a 93 mile long, four season recreation path spanning the State of Vermont from Swanton to St. Johnsbury, with many sections of the gravel path adjacent to the Lamoille River on the former Lamoille Valley rail line. The path will be used for walking, running, cycling and horseback riding in the warmer months and for snowmobiling, cross country skiing, snowshoeing and dog sledding in the winter months.

Afternoon Workshops/Presentations

Josh Ryan

Low Impact Trail Design and Construction

1:30pm-2:30pm

Josh Ryan is the owner and manager of

Timber & Stone, LLC, a trail design and

construction business based in Woodbury,

VT. Timber & Stone, LLC offers trail

design, construction expertise, and

education workshops to land managers

who seek a sustainable approach to trail

construction. Josh has managed the field

programs of the Vermont Youth

Conservation Corps and has taught college

courses in Trail Design and Construction.

Hybrid trail contracting partners professional trailbuilders with students, stewards, or

volunteers to construct trails. The end result is a technically sound trail, less cost to the

sponsoring organization, and a group of workers who have been trained in the skill of trail

construction.

This workshop will explore specific examples of this construction model and offer suggestions

as to how you can construct trails similarly.

Trail Structures

GMC Bridge over the Winooski Dave Hardy 2:30pm-4:30pm

Receiving his first trail maintenance seminar from Seymour Smith, the second maintainer/manager of Connecticut’s Appalachian Trail since 1925, Dave Hardy led volunteer

maintenance trips in New Hampshire for Appalachian Mountain Club before moving to Vermont in 1991 to pursue his calling to work with volunteers and seasonal staff on the Long Trail in Vermont. Since 1999 he has been Director of Trail Programs for Green Mountain Club and during his tenure GMC has forged enduring relationships with VYCC and VT Forests, Parks and Recreation. GMC also works closely with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and Green Mountain National Forest to manage the entire Appalachian Trail in Vermont and help move the North Country National Scenic Trail into Vermont. GMC, a private non-profit club with membership open to all, is Vermont’s largest non-profit organization with over 10,000 members. GMC mobilizes 1,000 volunteers per year contributing over 30,000 hours annually to hiking trails in America’s 14th state. When not permitting suspension bridges, Hardy is an

enthusiastic and award winning homebrewer. He shares a home with his partner Carol and two Maine coon cats. Dave will explain the process of proposing, developing the plans for, and implementing the construction of the new Long Trail Winooski Bridge.

Water Trail Structures

Walter Opuszynski and Noah Pollock

4:00pm-5:30pm

Walter Opuszynski is the Trail Director for the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, a 740 mile paddle trail

extending from Old Forge, NY to Fort Kent, ME. Walter also serves as chair of the Vermont Trails and

Greenways Council and is chair of the Public Outreach and Marketing subcommittee of the Lamoille

Valley Rail Trail Committee. Walter firmly believes that recreation trails can reduce our carbon footprint

and add to the mental and physical health of public while spurring Vermont’s economy.

Noah hails from Delmar, NY, and graduated from Cornell University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources. In 2007, he earned a Master's degree from the Rubenstein School for Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Vermont, where he studied sustainable community development and ecological economics. His thesis examined the economic impact of paddler tourism and recreation along the waterways that make up the Northern Forest Canoe Trail. Since earning his degree, Noah has continued his work with the NFCT, first as an intern, and then as the NFCT Field Coordinator, assisting with intern and waterway work trip programs, building on his experience leading trail crews with the Student Conservation Association.

Walter and Noah will co-present a hands-on workshop about new structures in development for water

trails. These structures have been developed through the Northern Forest Canoe Trail’s field programs

and include floating log ladders, self-cleaning stone staircases, and cable anchored bog bridging. The

group will be working to build a floating log ladder. Please bring work gloves and eye protection if you

are participating in this workshop.

Mountain Bike Trails

Managing a Network of Mountain Bike Trails C.J. Scott 4:00pm-5:30pm

CJ has been working at Kingdom Trail Association for 11 years, and is now the Trails Manager for the renowned 100+ mile mountain bike trail system located in East Burke, Vermont. He assist's in the management and everyday operations of the 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization, which includes direct management of the trail crews; trail design, construction and maintenance, general conservation, and operation and maintenance of machinery during both summer & winter seasons.

He holds a degree in Adventure Based Programming from Lyndon State College, Vermont and is also a graduate of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), participating in a Summer Semester in the Rockies, Teton Valley Branch, Idaho. In 2004 he Thru-hiked the entire 2,100+ mile Appalachian Trail, traveling northbound from Georgia to Maine. His passion for the outdoors is reflected in his crazy obsession of mountain biking, hunting, hiking, snowboarding, fishing, and any other excuse to get him in his natural outdoor surroundings. He lives in Wheelock, Vermont with his amazing wife and two beautiful children.

His presentation will cover the following topics:

A brief history of KTA

Working with landowners/state agencies

Coordinating/appointing a Trail Committee

Vision and expansion of the trail system - developing a 5 year trail plan

Crew/project management

Risk Management

Volunteer Work Days

Bike Park Operations

Wetlands

Peter Jensen

Wetland Trail Structure Design

4:00pm-5:30pm

Peter Jensen is a trail planner/builder with more than 30 years

experience planning and constructing pedestrian trails throughout the

Northeast. His company is a member of the Professional Trailbuilders

Association. He worked for the Appalachian Mountain Club until 1988

when he started his own business in the Berkshires of Massachusetts.

In early 2005 he reorganized the business into Peter S. Jensen &

Associates, LLC. He served as the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s

representative to the U. S. Access Board’s Regulatory Negotiation

Committee on Accessibility Guidelines for Outdoor Developed Areas from 1997 to 1999 where

he helped shape regulations for development of new trails, camping facilities, picnic sites, and

beaches. He continues planning, design, construction, and consulting on the development of

accessible trails. Training crew leaders, youth, volunteers, and agency/non-profit staff is also an

important component of his work.

Recreational Trail Resources

America’s Great Outdoors Initiative

Kate Williams

4:00pm-5:30pm

Kate Williams has served as Executive Director of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail since March

2004. During that time, she has overseen the completion of the 13-map set covering the entire

route, the publication of three books, including the official guidebook, and the development of

three active programs: 1) Trail Stewardship; 2) Community Economic Development; and 3)

Connecting People and Place. Kate is also Chair of the Board of the National Outdoor

Leadership School, and is actively involved in her community in the Mad River Valley. In all of

this work, Kate’s focus has been on building strong partnerships to more effectively connect

people with the outdoors.

Kate will share what she has learned about the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative, particularly

what it might mean for trail in New England. She looks forward to questions and contributions

from participants in the session to help create the most complete picture possible about the

status and opportunities of this national initiative.

Finding the Funding and Resources to Get Your Trail on the Ground

Jennifer Waite

2:30pm-4:00pm

Jennifer Waite is the Director of Vermont Projects for the National Park Service Rivers & Trails

Program (RTCA). RTCA is the community assistance arm of NPS, providing technical assistance

to help communities and organizations create trails, protect rivers and enhance natural areas.

RTCA helps communities plan, organize partnerships and achieve on-the-ground success for the

projects they initiate. In Vermont, Jennifer has worked with many projects including the Cross

Vermont Trail, Woodstock Trails Partnership, Northern Forest Canoe Trail, and the West River

Trail. She has been involved in the Vermont Trails and Greenways Council since 1989, most

recently serving on the Recreation Trails Grant committee.

Jennifer will be leading a workshop about how to gather the myriad of funding and other

resources needed to take a trail project from idea to on-the-ground success. She’ll be using the

Historic Faulkner Trail Restoration project as an example of creating a strategy for challenging,

multi-year trail projects. Workshop participants are encouraged to bring their own success

stories to share.

Stone Structures

Charley MacMartin and Jessica Ricketson Stone Structures Workshop 2:30pm-5:30pm

Charley MacMartin is a Vermont dry-stone waller based in Hinesburg. He has over 15 years of experience and has trained through Britain's Dry Stone Walling Association. His stone work has been featured in Vermont Life and on Vermont Public Radio. Charley runs workshops on dry stone walling during the winter through his business, Queen City Soil & Stone. He will co-present with Jess Ricketson, vice chair of the Vemont Trails and Greenways Council. Their workshop will focus on the basic principles for dry stone walling and their application to trail work.

Mechanized Equipment

Alex Hoffmeier

Mechanized Trail Construction: Choosing the Right Machine for the Job

2:30-4:00 PM

Alex Hoffmeier works for Timber & Stone, LLC, a

company specializing in trail design, planning, and

construction. He has worked on trail projects

throughout the northeast ranging in size from a 15 foot

long bridge to installing 400 stone stairs near Niagara

Falls. Combining his background in landscape planning

and design with construction, he has found that trail

work utilizes both skill sets and continually challenges

him. On any given day he can be found behind the

controls of an excavator, setting stone by hand,

building a bridge, or working with volunteers.

Alex will offer an overview of specialized low impact

trail construction machinery. There will be a classroom slideshow highlighting a variety of

machines used for building trails as well as a breakdown of efficient and effective operation. An

emphasis on minimizing site impact, the import of material to remote sites, and the

construction of multi-use and naturally surfaced trails will be discussed. A machine

demonstration will take place during the second half of the workshop.

Trail Easements

Amy Kelsey

4:00pm-5:30pm

Protecting Your Trails

PROTECTING YOUR TRAILS

Learn the basics about how you can protect your trail system. We will

discuss everything from simple permission forms to perpetual Trail

Easements. We will discuss determining the value of a Trail Easement,

funding sources, and ongoing stewardship responsibilities.

Amy is responsible for all aspects of trail development, improvement,

maintenance, and conservation on the Catamount Trail, Vermont¹s

300-mile backcountry ski trail. When she is not inside coordinating

trail projects, she is likely leading work parties, instructing backcountry ski clinics, or scouting

new routes for the Trail. Prior to joining the CTA staff, Amy worked in outdoor education and

land-use planning. She lives with her family in Underhill, VT.