Why Ride For Trails?
Hiking trails are the blood vessels that bring wilderness areas alive to visitors of our National Parks. They are also the way we are able to protect resources in the diverse ecosystems throughout the National Park system. Hiking trails is the way that our busy lives melt away and we can be in total solitude to experience wilderness.
Big Bend National Park is no exception and the trail crew's mission is to perform maintenance and construction along the 200+ miles of trails within the Park boundaries. Much of Big Bend National Park is recommended wilderness and therefore motorized tools and equipment are not utilized to maintain or construct trails. The trail crew performs this work with traditional hand tools, spike camping in extremely remote areas, and being supplied only by what a mule pack string can provide to them. Imagine the wealth of experiences you would have by working on a crew that sleeps on the desert floor under an ocean of stars, floats the Rio Grande through magnificent canyons and spends each day hiking miles over rugged terrain. It is a lifestyle as much as a job and it is not for those who don't like to be pushed to the limits.
The support from the Annual Ride For Trails Motorcycle Rally is an important ingredient in providing necessary tools, support and volunteers to the hiking trails in Big Bend National Park. Because of your support we can provide opportunities for visitors to experience this truly humbling landscape and come away with memories that will last a lifetime.
Thank you for your support of the Big Bend National Park Trail and Stock Program.
- Erik Walker, Trails Foreman
