Trail Notes is a monthly email that goes out to Pacific Northwest Trail Association members, providing a deeper look into the PNT, trail folks, and our organization. If you have a question about this month’s topic, send them to Robynlynn@pnt.org, – we may answer yours when we make this edition of Trail Notes public on our blog. Ideas for a future edition or feedback on the series? Send along your thoughts, we’d love to hear from you!
Hi there!
I had the chance to meet a bunch of you during our Roundups in Bellingham and Republic in October, and it was really fun to hear trail stories, make new friends and – of course – take advantage of some phenomenal beverages at Wander Brewing and the Republic Brewhouse. We appreciate their hospitality and hope you had a chance to hang out with us. If not – we’ll do it again in the spring! Make sure to check out the blog for a little more information.
When we get together, one of the things we always hear is how much folks love the yellow “Thunderbird” service marker that identifies the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail. People are eager to have stickers, merch, and patches with the logo regardless of how many miles of the trail they’ve hiked. We frequently hear that it is the “coolest” of the service markers representing national scenic trails, and we can’t argue, however…the service marker is being retired.
Here’s the story. The “Thu
nderbird Logo” was lovingly created by a non-tribal artist in the 1990s without the input of any of the 20+ federally recognized tribes whose land the PNT crosses. While we know this was a well-intentioned attempt to acknowledge Indigenous presence, the symbol’s appropriation, as well as its use across a broad region where its style is not representative of all the many unique Indigenous cultures that the trail winds through, is inappropriate. To begin to correct things the Forest Service (who own the current Thunderbird service mark) and PNTA are working with the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA) to involve tribal community members in creating a replacement.
A Call for Artists has been launched to find a new design:
“The American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA), in collaboration with the U.S. Forest Service and the Pacific Northwest Trail Association (PNTA), is proud to announce an exciting new opportunity for Native American artists to leave a lasting mark on one of the country’s most scenic and culturally significant trails.
We are inviting Native American Indian artists, tribally endorsed artists, or tribally affiliated creative professionals to submit proposals for the official service mark (logo) of the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail (PNT)—a majestic 1,200-mile trail that stretches from the Rocky Mountains of Glacier National Park to the Pacific Ocean. Artists whose tribes have ancestral connections to the lands along the PNT are encouraged to bring their vision and cultural heritage to life through this one-of-a-kind logo design opportunity.
The chosen logo design will become the official visual identity of the PNT and will be used for trail markers, highway signage, digital media, and printed promotional materials. The design must celebrate both the breathtaking landscapes of the Northwest and honor the cultural heritage of the Native American communities whose ancestral lands the trail crosses. The logo will showcase elements of Indigenous traditions, natural landscapes, and ecological diversity while providing trail visitors with an enriched understanding of the trail’s deep cultural significance.”
We are grateful that this process has created new opportunities for conversation with tribes whose traditional lands are impacted by the trail.
The project timeline, set by AIANTA, aims for a public reveal of the new service mark by early 2026. While we wait – and as we approach the 50th (!) anniversary of the trail’s conception – we’ve dusted off some original PNT logos that were created and used by PNTA in the 1970s!
The 1974 Crown to Coast logo was emblazoned on the first printed guide for hiking the Pacific Northwest Trail, which was just two pages of turn-by-turn directions to get from the Rockies to the sea.
When we were working on processing and preserving the PNTA archives earlier this year, we came across a number of photos of early PNT supporters wearing the round Crown to Coast design that were hand-labeled “1978” by Ron Strickland. This recreation stays faithful to the original and is a particular favorite of our staff.
Currently, these two designs are available on stickers, with t-shirts coming soon!
As always, we appreciate your support, but I’d be remiss in not reminding you that as the giving season approaches, PNT relies on its members to provide us with the agility to address the needs of the trail, support the organizational infrastructure to run our trail maintenance and volunteer programs and leave a legacy of a complete, protected Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail for generations to come. The holidays are a GREAT opportunity to give a meaningful gift of membership to someone who loves wild places!
Whatever your Thanksgiving tradition is, I hope you enjoy it and take a moment to be grateful for this beautiful planet and the life it supports. As members of PNT, we are the stewards of a magical part of the big green world and take that responsibility to heart.
See you out there,
