Youth Crews
For 25 years, the Pacific Northwest Trail Association has engaged local youth in a variety of academic, vocational, and volunteer community service programs. Today, we administer youth programs which engage local youth in service to our public lands.
Trail Work
Along the 1,200 mile PNT, we engage and partner with a wide variety of organizations in trail stewardship. Our Performance Trail Crews work to construct trails and backcountry infrastructure to US Forest Service standards.
Volunteers
We partner with volunteers to help build a better PNT. Volunteers helped to create this mountain-to-sea route and continue to help to maintain, advocate, and to protect this remarkable long-distance trail.
Trail Information
For over 40 years, the PNTA has been the primary source of information about the PNT. We improve access to this public resource by offering free trail maps and other information online and through community outreach. Providing information on permits, regulations, and Leave No Trace principles helps to protect the experience and to protect the trail for the enjoyment of future generations.
Advocacy
Decades of advocacy by the Pacific Northwest Trail Association earned the Pacific Northwest Trail a place in our National Trails System. In 2009, our efforts earned the PNT congressional designation as a National Scenic Trail—the gold standard among long-distance trails in America. Today, we are working to permanently protect the trail corridor of the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail.
Outreach
In 2017, the PNTA met with more than 3,000 outdoor enthusiasts. Presentations and outreach events inspired PNT users to explore the PNT and to get involved with trail stewardship in their communities. Twelve guided hikes along the trail revealed the hidden history of the PNT, and explored the diverse ecosystems along the mountain-to-sea route.
Staff
Our small but dedicated team is made up of a diverse body of advocates working to protect and share the wonders of the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail. Many of our staff members actively volunteer as trail stewards and participate in the long-term planning for the future of the trail corridor.
Board of Directors
Pacific Northwest Trail Association Board Members provide mission-based leadership and strategic governance for the PNTA. Board members are involved with fundraising, outreach, strategic planning and programmatic oversight.
PNTA Members
PNTA members include advocates from our trail side communities and long-distance trail enthusiasts the world over. For over forty years, our members helped to create the trail corridor and continue to play an active role in its protection. Their advocacy and financial support helps us to build a better PNT and allows us to do trail work where funding is not available.
Trail Users
The 1200 mile Pacific Northwest Trail is a continuous, primarily non-motorized route of outstanding recreation opportunity. The trail is primarily used by hikers, backpackers, and equestrians, who enjoy it one day at a time, or as a complete end-to-end adventure. The PNT provides a world-class opportunity to experience the diversity of ecosystems and communities in the Northwestern United States.
Partner Organizations
The PNTA maintains tread all along its 1,200 mile path, but we don’t do it alone. We partner with volunteer organizations, like the Back Country Horsemen of America, trail maintenance organizations, and local land managers in the maintenance and protection of the Pacific Northwest Trail. In turn, the PNT benefits communities across its trail corridor, providing residents with opportunities for outdoor recreation and local businesses with economic opportunities.
Trailside Communities
Part of the experience of any trip on the PNT, historic western towns and vibrant coastal communities welcome PNT users from near and far. Sited on or near the trail corridor, these trailside communities support the PNT with local trail clubs, which play an important role in the maintenance of the PNT. Good samaritans and other volunteers aid long-distance hikers on their crown-to-coast adventures and contribute to the long-term management of the trail.