Dear Trail Enthusiast,

June is Bustin' Out All Over again!  It's summer, get out for a hike, bring a friend, and invite a family!   

It was a couple of days after college graduation in May 40 years ago, I found myself loaded with a backpack and hiking up the approach trail to Springer Mountain to begin a thru-hike on the Appalachian Trail.  But how did I end up there? It was from being introduced to the AT while a youth. It was a Scout Troop leader who would take us Scouts on weekend hikes and week-long 50-mile backpack trips on the Appalachian Trail. It was an elderly lady at my church, a member of ATC, who would bring her copy of Trailway News that she had read, marked, and footnoted articles for me to read, inspiring a young person to dream.

Why do I bring this up? It's because we each have a role in mentoring young people and the next generation of hikers to lace up their boots, pick up their pack, Pulaski, and tools to hike a trail, make memories, and give back through trail care, donations, or volunteering their special skill sets. If you enjoy hiking, you may want to share the experience with others and work to preserve it for those you may never meet, who can walk a trail you helped maintain.

Congratulations to our eleven club recipients of the KTA Grants to Clubs who are making a difference in preserving our trail experiences. There are so many outstanding things happening in our local trail clubs. Grant funds, part of the annual interest distribution from our endowment fund, are making a real "feet on the ground" impact on trails throughout Pennsylvania.

Our KTA Trail Care program for 2025 is in full swing. Plan to participate in one or more of the remaining trail maintenance events that Jenn Ulmer and the Trail Care Committee have lined up for us, and invite a friend. Check out our website for details.

KTA Trail Care is using Panther Run Cabin in Sproul State Forest as a base for our trail maintenance events in the PA Wilds. Be sure to attend a Trail Care in that area to visit the cabin.

The Scott Farm, located along the Appalachian Trail, will eventually become KTA's headquarters. KTA has been preparing the Scott Farm Trailhead Master Site Plan in collaboration with our consultants. We hope to have the master plan available soon.    

It's not too soon to start thinking about nominating members and clubs for our various service awards. They include Certificates of Achievement, Volunteer of the Year, Club of the Year, the new Leave No Trace Award, and the Citation Award for lifetime achievement. These will be presented at our KTA Hiking Awards Celebration. The celebration will occur on Saturday, December 6, at the beautiful Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art in Millersburg, PA. Please put his date on your calendar for a special day of celebration. Please see our website for a listing and description of these awards. The Awards Committee will be seeking nominations for these awards. Start considering members and clubs to nominate. We have some of the most outstanding volunteers in our hiking organizations. Please consider nominating someone or a club that you think is worthy of recognition.

Be sure to log your miles to keep track of your miles for one of the several Hiking Awards.
We have special awards for the Young Hiker Award and the Teen Hiker Award.

A comprehensive list of KTA hikes, events, webinars, activities, and trail care opportunities is available.  There is so much to do. Please visit our website and sign up for one or more, and bring a friend.

Our KTA Fall Council meeting will be nestled among the many hikes and activities at the Keystone  Hiking & Outdoor Weekend in the Pennsylvania Wilds on October 17-19. Please add these dates to your calendar and visit our website to register, allowing you to plan your attendance.  

On behalf of the Board and the membership, I want to thank Brook and all our staff for the excellent job they are doing to further our mission. 

For the trails and those who wander on them!

Thanks
Wayne E. Gross
President, Board of Directors 
Keystone Trails Association
The Statewide voice of Pennsylvania Hikers

👋 Meet Howard, a KTA supporter from Montgomery County!

Q: What makes hiking in Pennsylvania special/meaningful to you?
A: "Grew up in a very densely populated area and when I discovered the AT many years ago it opened me up to the beauty and magic of the forests of Pennsylvania."

Q: What type of hiking do you typically prefer most often?
A: "Mostly full day hikes and night hikes "

Q: When did you start hiking?
A: "30 years ago."

Q: What are you currently excited about in your hiking life?
A: "I'll be leading two hikes during the KTA Spring Hiking Weekend. In the coming year, I plan to hike all the maintained sections of the Appalachian Trail that are looked after by the Blue Mountain Eagle Climbing Club and the Allentown Hiking Club."

Q: Which hiking trails do you enjoy/recommend that are near where you live?
A: "Wissahickon Valley Park - Wissahickon Gorge North Loop"

Q: Which hiking trails do you recommend (anywhere in PA)?
A: "The Pinnacle AT Hike from Hawk Mountain Road and Port Clinton AT Hike to Eckville" 

Q: What do you value most about KTA's mission?
A: "KTA's commitment to supporting and educating hiking and trail maintaining clubs and providing timely education and information."

Do you care about providing, protecting, preserving, and promoting recreational hiking trails and hiking opportunities in Pennsylvania?
​That's why KTA is here! Help ensure this mission continues to be fulfilled. ​https://www.kta-hike.org/donate.html

Dear Member & Friends,
​
Spring is upon us! Get out for a hike and bring a friend!   

I want to thank you for your efforts in furthering our mission of providing, preserving, protecting, and promoting recreational hiking trails and hiking opportunities in Pennsylvania. Each of you, through trail maintenance in your club and throughout the state, advocacy on issues affecting our trails, and by  leading hikes, are making a difference at a grassroots level.

There is a lot going on with KTA in 2025 as we progress on the second year of our five-year strategic plan. Efforts continue with Scott Farm planning; the site will eventually become KTA's headquarters. The Board has approved the lease of the Panther Run Cabin in Sproul State Forest as a base for our Trail Care efforts in the PA Wilds. ​Through the efforts of our Executive Director, Brook Lenker, KTA has completed an application a hopeful 2026- 2027 DCNR grant.

The Board and I wish to give a special shout out to our Executive Director, Brook Lenker, who has been navigating us through the many changes that have been occurring - all for the better.

There is a full list of KTA events, activities, and trail care opportunities. Please visit our website and sign up for one or more and bring a friend. 

We have our upcoming KTA Spring Hiking Weekend at Raystown Lake on April 25-27, 2025. A few activities still have space available. Please take an opportunity to go to our website and sign up by April 14 to attend. Hoping to see you there.
​
For the trails and those who wander on them!

Thanks
​Wayne E. Gross
President, Board of Directors 
Keystone Trails Association
The Statewide Voice of Pennsylvania Hikers

Dear Member and Friend of KTA,

Spring is soon here! The maple sap flows here in the Poconos – a harbinger of a Pennsylvania spring yet to come. 

I want to thank you for your efforts in furthering our mission of providing, preserving, protecting, and promoting recreational hiking trails and hiking opportunities in Pennsylvania. At a pivotal grassroots level, each of you is making a difference. Whether through trail maintenance, volunteering with local hiking clubs, adding your voice to advocacy issues affecting our trails, or leading a local hike, we thank you.

Plan your hikes for 2025 to earn one of the many hiking awards this year. Check out our website for the details regarding each hiking award. In addition, throughout the coming year, please consider your fellow hikers and clubs for nomination for Certificates of Achievement, Volunteer of the Year, Club of the Year, and the KTA Citation Award for Lifetime Achievement. You can also plan to take on a 100-Mile Trail Challenge during the year.

Local clubs who are in need of a grant to support club trail projects, please apply for a 2025 KTA mini-grant. These funds are from the 2025 interest disbursement from our Keystone Trails Endowment fund. We want to see these funds go to help clubs make a real impact locally on our beautiful Pennsylvania Hiking Trails.

The Board and I wish to give a special shout-out to our Executive Director, Brook Lenker, who has been navigating us through the many changes that have been occurring - all for the better and our entire dedicated staff.

A full list of 2025 KTA events, activities, and trail care opportunities exists.  Please visit our website and add these events to your calendar, sign up for one or more, and bring a friend.  Better yet, support KTA by purchasing your 2025 KTA calendar at our online store and add your favorite KTA activities.

We have our upcoming KTA Spring Hiking Weekend at Raystown Lake on April 25-27. The registration is filling up fast. If you want to be part of this exciting weekend of activities, please register now. Hoping to see you there.

See you at the trailhead and on the trail.

For the trails and those who wander on them!

Thanks
Wayne E. Gross
President, Board of Directors 
Keystone Trails Association
The Statewide Voice of Pennsylvania Hikers

​

Our participants shared their unforgettable Keystone Trails International Trip to St. John through beautiful haikus and stunning photos!

Each poem captures a moment of the breathtaking scenery and heartfelt connections made along the way. Here’s a glimpse of their creative expressions!

Dear Hiker,

Happy New Year!

Winter's cold, stillness, and sometimes white snow blankets our hiking trails. Consider joining a winter hike with a hiking group near you and check out the wonders of this season. It's during this period that the plants and animals that we enjoy on our spring hikes rest and prepare for it's arrival. Seeds and buds are dormant and will become the flowers of spring and summer and the fruits of summer and fall.​

We also have the opportunity to plant the seeds for our organization's future success and "hiking fruits."  Continuing to grow our endowment fund is essential to providing long-term financial stability to our organization.  

Please consider donating to The Keystone Trails Endowment Fund sometime this year as a lasting legacy to the mission of KTA.  KTA organizational member clubs and other groups may also contribute to the fund. Consider donating in honor or memory of a club member who has made a difference in your club or the hiking community.  

An application is available at the KTA website; linked here. Even if you can't donate to a set giving level, all contributions to the fund add up over time.  The principal remains in the endowment fund.  The earnings from the fund investments are used to support KTA's mini-grants to clubs and the organization's general operations. 

Consider KTA in your estate planning to positively impact Pennsylvania Trails for future generations.

Donors will be recognized at the awards presentation this fall.  The Board thanks you for your contribution to this important fund.

Plan your hikes for 2025 to earn one of the year's many hiking awards.  Check out our website for the details regarding each hiking award.  In addition, throughout the coming year, please consider your fellow hikers and clubs for nomination for Certificates of Achievement, Volunteer of the Year, Club of the Year, and the KTA Citation Award for Lifetime Achievement.    You can also plan to take on a 100-mile Trail Challenge during the year.

See you at the trailhead and on the trail.

For the trails and those who wander on them!

Thanks
Wayne E. Gross
President, Board of Directors 
Keystone Trails Association
​The Statewide Voice of Pennsylvania Hikers

👋 Meet Kevin, a KTA supporter from Lower Merion Township!

Q: What makes hiking in Pennsylvania special/meaningful to you?
A: "Easy access. Diverse variety of trails.  Lots of history. "

Q: What type of hiking do you typically prefer most often?
A: "Backpacking "

Q: When did you start hiking?
A: "Decades ago"

Q: What are you currently excited about in your hiking life?
A: "I’m starting the AT in Georgia this year and plan on trekking back to PA by the summer.  Next year,
I’ll resume the adventure in PA and hike to Maine. "

Q: Which hiking trails do you enjoy/recommend that are near where you live?
A: "I like to do day hikes in nearby Ridley State Park. "

Q: Which hiking trails do you recommend (anywhere in PA)?
A: "Loyalsock, Black Forest, Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail, AT, Black Forest, Old Logger’s" 

Q: What do you value most about KTA's mission?
A: "Everything!​​"

Do you care about providing, protecting, preserving, and promoting recreational hiking trails and hiking opportunities in Pennsylvania?
​That's why KTA is here! Help ensure this mission continues to be fulfilled. ​https://www.kta-hike.org/donate.html

👋 Meet John, a KTA supporter from Boiling Springs, Pa!

Q: What makes hiking in Pennsylvania special/meaningful to you?
A: "The next mile with its imaginary anticipation; the last mile for its unexpected rewards."

Q: What type of hiking do you typically prefer most often?
A: "Of late, exploring side treks from main trails. "

Q: When did you start hiking?
A: "1952-1960 and again 1972-current."

Q: What are you currently excited about in your hiking life?
A: "Exploration and discovery with buddies."

Q: Which hiking trails do you enjoy/recommend that are near where you live?
A: "AT, Michaux SF, Tuscarora SF, PaConservancy Trails (LeTort Spring, Cove Mtn} Gettysburg Battlefield, SouthMiddleton parks)"

Q: Which hiking trails do you recommend (anywhere in PA)?
A: "AT, State Forest Trails (particularly those associated with KTA's SFTA), State Park Trails" 

Q: What do you value most about KTA's mission?
A: "Creation and Maintenance of PATrails via Hiking Clubs and volunteers​.​​"

Do you care about providing, protecting, preserving, and promoting recreational hiking trails and hiking opportunities in Pennsylvania?
​That's why KTA is here! Help ensure this mission continues to be fulfilled. ​https://www.kta-hike.org/donate.html