Join the Partnership for the National Trails System as it holds a Workshop on Historic Trail Preservation May 6 – 8th in Phoenix, Arizona. The Workshop will take place at the Bureau of Land Management National Training Center, 9828 N. 31st Ave. Lodging is available at government rate at The Four Points by Sheraton Phoenix Metrocenter, just a few blocks from the BLM Training Center and across from the huge Metrocenter Shopping Mall.
This Historic Trail Preservation Workshop is an important step in an ongoing initiative to develop the capacity within trail organizations and Federal agencies to systematically preserve the on-the-ground historic, cultural, and natural resources so critical to maintaining the integrity of the national historic trails and to providing inspiring experiences for visitors to them. This Workshop will focus on strategies, means, and methods to preserve these critical resources. Dave Welch, the Oregon-California Trails Association’s National Preservation Officer, will present the successful strategy they use to map, assess, and monitor trail resources on private and public land. He will demonstrate the techniques in the classroom and in the field.
The Workshop will also address the Visual Resource Management system used by the BLM and similar methods the Forest Service and Park Service use to protect viewsheds around significant resources and the land use planning done by each agency. Ways to work with local and national land trusts to preserve trail resources on private land and how to use various funds provided through SAFETEA-LU (the five-year Federal transportation program), the National Park Service and BLM Challenge Cost-Share Programs will be covered. We will also provide an update on implementation of the Bureau of Land Management’s 10-year National Scenic & Historic Trails Strategy.
By participating in this Workshop you will:
- Become familiar with a variety of best practice tools now in use to assess, preserve, and monitor national historic trail resources.
- Experience a field location where fragile trail resources are endangered by a variety of threats and learn about ways to eliminate or mitigate them.
- Understand the basic goals of the National Historic Trails Preservation Initiative/Strategy and know how your organization or agency can participate in it.
Since this Workshop is an important step in implementing a strategy to preserve each and all national historic trails it will be highly interactive with plenty of time for discussion and information exchange. Two components of the workshop will focus on the preservation strategy – first for individual trails and then for all the trails. Since our workshop in Kansas City in May 2006, Dave Welch has been leading a small group developing an historic trail preservation strategy. He presented the draft strategy during the Historic Trails Caucus meeting at the 11th Trails Conference in Duluth last September and asked that all historic trail organizations review the concept in detail. Dave’s briefing from Duluth is available on OCTA’s website in the preservation section. If you have questions concerning the strategy, please contact Dave Welch .
Registration for the Workshop
The Workshop fee is $75 per person through April 22nd. After April 22nd the fee is $100 per person. This fee is payable by credit card online and includes 3 lunches and the field trip. Click here to register online.
You can also register and pay with a check. Download the Registration Form (PDF) and mailing it along with a check payable to the Partnership for the National Trails System to:
Partnership for the National Trails System
122 West Washington Ave., Suite 830, Madison, WI 53703
Lodging and Travel
For hotel reservations, please call (602) 997-5900; or you can contact The Four Points by Sheraton Phoenix Metrocenter. Please refer to "Partnership for the National Trails Systems ~ Historic Trails Workshop" when making your reservation to get the discounted government rate of $122/night. The lodging includes breakfast and a manager's reception at the hotel on Wednesday evening from 6:30 to 8:30 PM.
The room block rate is good from Monday, May 5 through Friday, May 9, but you must reserve your room by Monday, April 14 because rooms will be removed from the block after this date.
To travel to The Four Points by Sheraton Phoenix Metrocenter from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
Click here for a Google Map.
Take the 24th Street Exit and travel west to Interstate 10 West. Take I-10 West to Interstate 17 North and then proceed to Peoria Avenue. Turn left onto Peoria Avenue and turn left again onto 28th Drive. Turn left onto Metro Parkway, and the hotel is on the right.
Super Shuttle service is available from Sky Harbor Airport at $18 per trip. Call 1-800-BLUE VAN (258-3826).
