IMBA Answers Call of the Wild

Assessing trails in Sitka with folks from the Tongass National Forest, Sitka Trail Works, City of Sitka Parks and Recreation and Bill Hughes of Yellow Jersey Cycle Shop.
The trails in Sitka have been built with an extra layer of surfacing material to withstand the elements of this northern rainforest.
Even the bookstore in town has to take extra precautions because of the persistent rain.
Rich Furst piloted his fishing boat to Kruzof Island and ferried us ashore for our next adventure.
We were treated to mystical singletrack on Kruzof Island, with sightings of spawning salmon, a family of bald eagles and a grizzly bear.
Denali National Park is rewriting their management plan to better accommodate increased popularity.
Landmanagers, trail enthusiasts and local mountain bikers from the Recreation Rendezvous checking out trails at Kepler/Bradley Lakes State Recreation Area.
Mike Goodwin, (center in back) District Ranger and Trails Specialist at Kepler/Bradley is interested in opening some of these trails to mountain biking with the help of local riders.
Rose Austin, founder of the Anchorage WOMBATS and owner of Paramount Cycles enjoys the fall colors and singletrack at Kepler/Bradley.
Lisa admiring one more place that's going to be very, very difficult to leave.

It took five years, but the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew finally visited its 50th state, Alaska, in September. The Crew first spent a few days in Sitka on Alaska's southern coast assessing trails with Bill Hughes of Yellow Jersey Cycle Shop. The Crew met with various Sitka trail groups and local, state and federal land management agencies to share their ideas and discuss new trails for mountain biking. In Anchorage, the Crew rode and inspected trails with Kevin Keeler of the National Park Service's Rivers, Trails & Conservation Assistance program. Up the road in Wasilla, the Crew met with Mike Goodwin of Alaska Department of Natural Resources to ride the trail system at Kepler-Bradley Lake State Park and give Goodwin feedback and suggestions on his plans to develop an interconnected trail network. The grand finale of the trip was a Crew-led slideshow presentation and on-trail workshop for land managers and trailbuilding professionals at the Alaska Recreation Rendezvous 2001. IMBA's presentation was a big success and the participants came away with a new understanding of ways to design trails that are sustainable, appealing and challenging. Special thanks to RTCA Program Manager Jack Mosby for his help in making this visit a big success.

Keep reading for the Crew's Alaska journal...

September, 2001

After a summer-long tour of more than 15 western states, we (the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew No.2, Joey Klein and Lisa Cramton) left our Outback behind and flew north to Alaska.

Bill Hughes, owner of the Yellow Jersey Cycle Shop, greeted us at the Sitka airport. He whisked us away for a tour of the various trailheads around town. Sitka is blessed with a new trail system created through the cooperation of several land agencies including Sitka Trail Works, Tongass National Forest, Alaska State Parks, Sitka National Historical Park and Sitka Parks and Recreation. We spent several days with folks from these groups assessing the trails, looking at ways to improve them and discussing new trails for mountain biking.

Currently, most of the Sitka trails are closed to mountain biking due to concerns about erosion, user conflict and safety. Thanks to a wet environment, most of the trails have been built to impressive standards thanks to local trail experts Barth and Anne-Marie. Their Forest-Muskeg Trail and Mosquito Cove Trail are two examples of sustainable design and construction. Our suggestions were that increasing trail mileage and forming linked loops might disperse people and help mitigate user conflict. We also thought that the addition of challenging trails further from town would satisfy advanced riders. We presented a slideshow and discussed many ways to address local concerns and encouraged the cycling community to take an active role in future trails.

Our next mission took us to Anchorage where we watched the final race of the Alaska State Mountain Bike series. Lisa's friend Adrienne scored first place in the women's sport division for the year. Adrienne works for Denali National Park and is currently involved in a new travel management plan for Denali, the second largest national park in the US. After a post race meal she led us on a gorgeous stroll up Alaska's busiest hiking trail leading to Flattop Mountain.

On our days off we made it to Talkeetna for some impressive views of Denali. We then aimed south to check out trails around Alyeska Ski Resort. From Whittier we took a ferry and cruised through giant blue icebergs bound for Valdez. We met Dean Cummings, an old ski buddy from Arapaho Basin. Dean and his wife Karen run H2O Guides, taking experienced skiers down some of the most precipitous mountains in the world. We had just enough time for a quick heli-trip around the spectacular Valdez Glacier and then it was time to head back over Thomson Pass towards Anchorage.

In Wasilla we took part in the Alaska Recreation Rendezvous 2001, a statewide gathering of Alaskan outdoor recreation leaders. We worked extensively with Jack Mosby, Program Manager for the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program. Land Managers from the City of Homer, Kincaid Park in Anchorage, Alaska State Parks, Alaska DOT and Trail Mix, Inc from Juneau all came to our slideshow. Representatives of the National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council came all the way from Idaho and California to participate. That afternoon Mike Goodwin, District Ranger for the Matanuska/Copper River Ranger District organized an IMBA-led trail tour at Kepler/Bradley Lakes State Recreation Area. The great views and variety of trails in the park impressed everyone. We discussed why this trail system is so successful - the first few miles of the system being the most popular, and designed to be wide and relatively easy. As we walked further from the trailhead we looked at more narrow, challenging trails. We pointed out natural features that could be incorporated to keep trail users interested and on the path.

Our trip to the last frontier of Alaska was a success. As usual, we enjoyed working with great landmanagers and passionate mountain bikers. Special thanks to Sara and Charles of Sitka Trail Works, Mike Goodwin of Kepler Lake, Rose Austin of WOMATS and other local riders. It was uplifting to work with Jack and Kevin of the National Parks Service (Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program). It was wonderful to see they are doing the same thing IMBA has also done for years. Bringing people together to preserve the land they love through trails.

Joey and Lisa