Amplifying Voices Across Our Community

Everyone deserves access to trails. We're supporting community partners and breaking down barriers, so that the trails of the future belong to everyone. And by amplifying voices from across the trail community and sharing stories, we can help people know we all belong in the outdoors.

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Hiker Headlines: Wildfire season starts, now hiring, free day, closures

Jun 18, 2026

This Friday is Juneteenth, and parking fees will be waived on state-managed lands. WTA is hiring for a seasonal trail crew leader. Join us at a backpacking workshop in mid-July. Goodell Creek Campground and Mallardy Road are currently closed. And wildfire season is upon us!

From accident to wheelchair accessibility advocate — a journey back to nature

Ian Mackay is using his experience to help others with limited mobility enjoy time on trail. By Jessi Loerch

A pathway to outdoor leadership: Volunteering with Outdoor Asian

May 20, 2026

Saira Shahid shares her path to the outdoors and becoming a volunteer leader with Outdoor Asian.

Hiker Headlines: Mountain Loop Highway, many roads reopening soon; Stehekin limited services; new free day

May 14, 2026

The Forest Service added a new fee-free day. WTA launched our Outdoor Leadership Training co-instructor program! Many road openings are on the horizon. The Mount Baker Highway will be closed on the morning of May 24 for the Ski to Sea race. And, read the Seattle Times' editorial about how the Forest Service reorganization spells bad news for our public lands.

Rolling out safety: How a student inspired a new gear solution

Apr 22, 2026

Thanks to a collaborative effort between WTA, the BRIDGES program and Switchback Repair - WTA's OLT program has a safe solution to knife and utensil storage.

'An incredible accomplishment' — How WTA helped get 20K kids outside

Mar 04, 2026

WTA’s Outdoor Leadership Training program has supported over 20,000 youth experiences thanks to our gear libraries and funding assistance.

Seattle Mountain Rescue is there to help when things go wrong

Seattle Mountain Rescue volunteers have been helping hikers and other people who love the outdoors for decades. | By Tiffany Chou

Ambassadors connect hikers to trails and WTA's mission

Dec 26, 2025

WTA ambassadors across the state connect with the public to share WTA’s mission of sustainable trails for everyone, forever. From talking to hikers at a popular trailhead, the state fair or conventions, ambassadors meet Washingtonians wherever they are to educate hikers and to highlight all the ways WTA supports Washington trails.

5 WTA partner organizations to support this GivingTuesday

Dec 02, 2025

Washington Trails Association believes that trails are for everyone, forever. We seek to create a community of avid outdoor enthusiasts. This year for GivingTuesday, we are highlighting five WTA partner groups. Please consider sharing your generosity with these organizations.

Warm hands, happy feet: WTA’s gear library and Outdoor Research’s gear help kids get outside

Nov 19, 2025

WTA’s Outdoor Leadership Training program has been helping youth get outside for more than a decade. But getting outdoors often requires gear, which can be spendy. Support from partners like Outdoor Research, who donates winter gear, helps keep kids warm and dry when they get outside.

How pack llamas are helping hikers with Parkinson's return to trail

When a lifelong hiker was diagnosed with the disease, he found a way to keep getting outside. And he helped others do the same. By Chloe Ferrone

Creating a Path for Outdoor Leaders

WTA celebrates 5 years of helping build a better future for trails through the Emerging Leaders Program | By MJ Mahan and Krista Dooley.

From fear to safety

Hiking isn't fun or beneficial when you face discrimination on trail. Here's how one researcher is shaping a more welcoming outdoors for BIPOC recreators. By Linnea Atherly

Many hands make light work — how one Trailblazer troop gives back by cleaning tents and more

Sep 29, 2025

The members of Girl Scout Trailblazer troop 4389 regularly help out at WTA’s Seattle gear library to ensure that the gear is clean, in good working condition and ready to lend out to other youth programs. Their dedication helps ensure that more than 3,100 pieces of gear in the Seattle gear library are regularly maintained and ready for use.

Trip reports for the soul: How writing trip reports shifted my entire perspective

I made a goal to write 100 trip reports in a year. I didn’t expect it to change the way I thought about hiking. | By Tiffany Chou

Returning to the trail after a big change — one parent's story

I discovered hiking as an adult and fell in love. But I lost track of that passion after parenthood. Here’s how I found it again — and how I’m getting out more than ever. By Sarah Nordstrom

Public lands are places of belonging. We cannot stand to lose them

In a time of disconnection, national public lands connect us — back to ourselves, to our loved ones, to the natural world and to everyone with whom we share these places. By Linnea Johnson.

Post 84 helps hundreds of high schoolers get outside every year

Jun 11, 2025

Post 84, a partner with WTA’s Outdoor Leadership Training program since 2018, helps teenaged campers from the Puget Sound area get outside by offering more than a dozen camping trips a year. WTA's gear library makes it possible for even more teens to attend the trips.

Building connections to nature

Woodland Park Zoo is a leading expert in wildlife conservation and empathy-based curriculum in their education programs. The Wonder in Nature photography camp, a part of their Community Collaborative, partners with WTA through our gear lending library-- ensuring youth are comfortable outside by lending backpacks, rain gear, warm layers and hiking boots. By Erin McQuin

How youth are fighting climate grief with action

Apr 14, 2025

Time outside helps the youth with Climate Action Families in their work to advance climate justice. By Emory Ranes