Sustainable Trails

I'm thinking about getting intotrail design as a career. Does anyone have any experience, tips, etc. about this topic that could help me out?

So far as I know, no one today has a full time job designing trails. The heyday of trail building is long over. These days there are far more miles of trail out there than there is money to maintain them, so new trails are a bit of a rarity.

Such new trails that are built would tend to be built in brand new parks and other new recreation sites. Because governments at all levels are hurting for money, new parks are also a rarity. Again, just maintaining the parks and campgrounds that have already been built is a big struggle these days. Fees are rising and parks are closing instead.

Good luck, but you might want to consider another direction to go in.

I have much the same reaction as aimless. Working in the NPS, I never heard on anyone who was a full time designer of trails. Most large parks (Yosemite, et al. will have a crew which is primarily involved in trail maintenance, which frequently involves rerouting and reconstruction, which I understand can be surprisingly complex - trails can and often should be rather sophisticated constructions, especially if they drain properly.

I would suspect you will also have to build and design other widgets, with a reputation eventually as the go to person when a trail is needed.

My first job in the NPS was trail crew, and later on, directing an archeological project, I built (actually, my sterling crew did most of the work, except for the dynamiting) an access trail to a ruin (Gila Cliff Dwellings) which became part of the main tour route.

With a major interest in trails, you would want to check out job opportunities at NPS design and construction offices, and possibly in some of the larger parks. I am sure somewhat the same procedure would work for the US Forest Service and other state and federal land managing agencies. Consider seasonal jobs -the traditional portal for a career in these agencies.

I am sure there are opportunities. I have marveled at the thoughtful design of some trails, and on others, cursed the ancestry of the knucklehead who built in so many unnecessary grades. Get out there and straighten them out!

From Aimless' post and the link you supplied, it would sound like one approach to a career might be the re-design of existing trails. (I've hiked a bunch of them that violate most, if not all, of the principles in the link.) While most trails have large portions that probably are OK as is, almost every trail has some problem: a segment turns into a creek at the first sign of rain, the uphills go straight up and straight down and erode quickly, or they're just a long, dull walk through the underbrush on the way to nowhere. There could be a career in re-designing these segments.

Another thing, for me, that makes some trails unpleasant to walk are the staircases that go down one side of a ravine and up the other. It prevents these steep sides from eroding, and makes a trail more accessible to those who aren't physically able to handle the ascent or descent otherwise - I understand that. But surely there's a better way? Perhaps run the trail around the head of the ravine? Seems like that might be fertile ground for re-engineering existing trails, too.

You would probably want to contact the various state departments of natural resources and the US Forest Service and perhaps US Park Service. It would seem like state and federal forests might be more promising than actual parks, since they tend to be less developed and more oriented toward managing the resource than catering to the crowds.

Like Aimless, I'm not sure you'll be able to do trail design as a full-time job - but after you talk to the various state and local DNRs, you might have a real good idea of how to broaden your curriculum to also include other subjects that would make you an attractive job candidate for a position involving trail design as one part of the job.

When I was in college, and visiting another college that was fairly new, a friend of mine told me how college pathways should be designed. Basically, don't put in any pathways the first few years. The students will naturally carve out the best routes to a from buildings. Then, after a few years, pave those paths. Otherwise, you end up with a bunch of paved paths that no one walks on, and a bunch of dirt paths that everyone walks on.

Anyways, I am sure the same applies to trails.

I did exactly that at a park in which I worked where we opened up an outlying portion of an Indian pueblo. We just let visitors find their way for a couple of weeks, and the most popular path was then improved.

The trail design needs to be different based on the amount of traffic. An interstate highway is designed different than a neighborhood street.

Most trail started as game trails long before there were humans. They need periodic reroutes and updates if the traffic volumn changes.

Also, they may need altered if the game isn't going where the people need to go. (Sorry, couldn't resist. )

Just a thought as I my limited experience in this area was working for my uncle's landscape company when I was a teen and once actually participating in building a fitness trail. This was a long time ago.

Perhaps you could expand your base of knowledge to include landscape design. This would include corporate campuses, residences, neighborhoods, apartment complexes, parks, etc. Some of these will need trails and paths built, re-designed, etc. Eventually one might be able to specialize in trails, but starting out with a broader skill set one is more likely to find employment.

I suggest contacting your local gear shop and/or state and local parks. Many of them have volunteer trail crews that help with maintenance. Ive done a fair amount of trail building and maintaining with my local mountain biking club and also with REI as a volunteer at some state parks. I agree with Aimless, most work is done to maintain existing trail so building new ones might not be the way to go. Make sure you put in some good quality trail maintenance days with some volunteer crews. Building and maintaining trails often sounds more fun than it is. It can be hard, hot, back breaking work but very rewarding. Plus its a great way to give back to the trails that give us all so much joy. Good Luck!

Agreed with Aimless.

I have a few friends that have done trail work at Acadia National Park, and a few of the islands part of a Maine wide island kayak trail led by the Maine Island Kayak Association. Most of the trails were already established. There was one rare case where they made a new trail on Marshall Island in Blue Hill Bay. It is indeed a lot of work. Mad props to those trail workers.