WHO WE ARE
The North Country Trail Association is a grassroots nonprofit organization striving to build, maintain, protect and promote the North Country National Scenic Trail. The Trail itself is intended to be a premier footpath, modeled after its cousin, the Appalachian Trail. However, we expect the NCT to reach an astounding 4,600 miles when it's complete, the longest hiking trail in the United States. As you might guess we have an enormous and ongoing task ahead of us. Our organization furthers and complements the work of the National Park Service in establishing the trail on the ground.
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the North Country Trail Association is to develop, maintain, preserve and promote the North Country National Scenic Trail through a national network of volunteers, chapters, partner organizations and government agencies.
The Association achieves its mission by creating, encouraging and supporting programs of public education, membership services, recreational opportunities and resource and corridor protection in keeping with its Vision for the Trail.
VISION FOR THE TRAIL
Our vision for the North Country Trail is that of a premier footpath of national significance, offering a superb experience for hikers in a permanently protected corridor, traversing and interpreting the richly diverse environmental, cultural, and historic features of the northern United States.
To meet this vision, our goals are for the trail to become:
- A continuous hiking trail of the highest caliber with foot travel accorded the highest priority to the exclusion of other uses except in short, specifically designated sections.
- A corridor of consistently and clearly marked treadways, blending with local character as appropriate and permanently protected, whenever possible, as a public hiking trail.
- Unique among National Trails in showcasing the rich variety of historical, cultural, and environmental features in the northern United States.
- A model of resource protection and quality recreational opportunity of national significance with emphasis on identifying, interpreting and promoting features for educational and recreational benefit.
- An example of highly successful partnerships among the various entities providing funding, management of and service to the trail.
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HISTORY
The North Country National Scenic Trail was authorized by Congress in 1980, and the Association was formed in 1981. National Scenic Trails are administered by the National Park Service, and local sections are managed by local authorites (as varied the US Forest Service to Township Boards). History buffs and those who want to know how the North Country Trail Association got started might want to read Our History. This link takes you to a great overview not only of the trail but also the Association itself. This piece, written by our former magazine editor Wes Boyd, brings you up to 1999. If you'd like earlier information, you also might check out The Early History by Tom Gilbert of the NPS.
A volunteer committee has taken on the huge task of preserving the history of the Trail before some of the early memories are gone.
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ORGANIZATION
The North Country Trail Association:
- has a paid membership of over 3000 households. Counting members of affiliate organizations, over 10,000 individuals support the NCTA
- is governed by a Board of Directors. These people are volunteers, elected by the membership. The Board meets three times a year
- partners with the National Park Service to create policy and guidance for the Trail
- has full and part time staff including a Director of Trail Management, three Regional Trail Coordinators, a Cartographer and GIS specialist, and support staff for member services, accounting, development and communication, and trail shop
- contracts out for Web Site Management
- charters Chapters to maintain and promote local sections of the trail
- forms Affiliate partnerships with other trail organizations who have significant sections of trail concurrent with the NCT.
- delegates many "on-the-ground" responsibilites, such as building and maintenance oversight, to four Trail Councils
- relies largely on volunteers to complete the thousands of tasks necessary to fulfil our mission
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COMMUNICATION
The North Star is a quarterly magazine, published by the Association. Membership in the NCTA will bring this outstanding publication to your door.
We continually strive to improve and update this website, attempting to make it a high quality resource for people interested in the Trail.
Once a month an email newsletter called News Briefs is sent to a list of people who want to know more internal news of the working of the organization. Send an email to request to be added to this list. Please put "e-Forum" in the subject line.
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GET INVOLVED
PARTICIPATE - Use the Trail Calendar to find an event near you. Choose from programs, meetings, conferences, hikes and more.
VOLUNTEER
JOIN
GET MORE INFO BY MAIL
CONTACT US - Find us by e-mail, US mail, phone, or in person.
ANNUAL REPORTS
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