PNTA Saw Training 2026: “The Season Is Off and Running!”

Clearing blowdowns on the PNT takes skilled hands and sharp blades. This month near Baker Lake, a new cohort started learning both.  

Eleven rising outdoor leaders, pictured at left, joined PNTA’s Western Washington Regional Manager, Sterling Collins-Hill and Technical Advisor, Connor Clifford along with Bridget Wisniewski of Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, and Joe Remenar, of the Back Country Horsemen, to renew their crosscut certifications for the upcoming season of trail work. The crews look forward to spending much of their season deep in the backcountry of the Pasayten, Mount Baker and Buckhorn Wildernesses where traditional hand tools still reign supreme.

“The season is off and running!” said Sterling, “We are excited to be well on our way to opening up routes to the Boundary Trail in the Pasayten, working both Hannegan and Bell Pass Trails around Mt. Baker, and improving Gold Creek, Sleepy Hollow and Mt. Zion out on the Olympic National Forest. Before long we will also pick up where past crews have left off repairing the Chilliwack and Brush Creek Trails in North Cascades National Park after massive damage caused by the fires of 2023. 

This year’s crew members are as experienced as any the PNTA has ever fielded and we look forward to all of the great work they will do this summer.”

The crews worked through the rain to perfect their crosscut saw technique until the blades sang even through the wet wood, spewing perfectly rounded noodles into the dirt. As some crew members practiced crosscutting, others honed their axe technique, building precision and muscle that will only increase as the season progresses. 

Since the beginning of June, PNTA performance crews have been out on the trail clearing logs and repairing tread. Ray Phillips, pictured at right, is one of the western Washington crew leaders, and worked on the Sleepy Hollow Trail in Olympic National Forest repairing tread and drains. 

“I feel so lucky everyday to wake up and work in an area of public land that many people aren’t able to visit,” Ray Phillips said, “It encourages me and my crew to continue fighting for public lands, and gives us hope even as there are budget cuts affecting access and funding to such places. It’s also incredibly important to connect with the land, and view it as something that is a part of us. I think people often forget that we are with nature, not next to or against it.”

PNTA performance crews are paid professional trail maintainers who work full time at maintaining and improving the PNT in support of your next outdoor adventure. They’re fueled by peanut butter tortillas and the generous financial contributions of people just like you. You can help their season be as long and productive as it can be through this link. We really appreciate your support!