Leaving No Trace in the Loxahatchee Landscape
Photo courtesy of Hannah Campbell
by Jenna Taylor, Central/South Trail Program Manager
One of the first concerns the trail crew leaders hear when talking to a prospective new volunteer, “Oh, I’m probably not strong enough to do that type of work,” or “I want to help, but I don’t know how to do trail maintenance.” While it is true that some of the work on the Florida National Scenic Trail (Florida Trail) takes a specialized set of skills or certifications to, say, remove a downed tree with a chainsaw, there are definitely tasks along the trail that everyone can do. One of those incredibly important tasks is good old fashioned litter cleanup. Our partners at the University of Florida estimated that the Florida Trail saw 375,00 visitors last year. Imagine if each one of those visitors unintentionally dropped even one piece of trash. Add to that, trash that washes down the Kissimmee and Suwannee Rivers, floats down from helium balloon releases, or is tossed out of windows and the trail starts looking well, pretty trashy.
The Loxahatchee Chapter of the Florida Trail Association (FTA) saw the hesitation to jump in with both feet into trail maintenance by potential volunteers as an opportunity, and in 2021, they launched a new initiative called Trail Keepers. Trail Keepers focuses on the Ocean to Lake (OTL) trail which runs from Hobe Sound Beach Park to Lake Okeechobee. This 61.4 mile trail is a popular destination for hikers who are new to Florida hiking and want to experience it in a smaller dose rather than, or before, tackling the entire Florida Trail. It is also a favorite among seasoned Florida hikers who come back year after year to complete this section. Through the Trail Keepers program, volunteers, new and seasoned, are provided with a reusable dry bag branded with the Trail
Keepers program logo. Once a month, this crew of volunteers strictly focuses on removing litter and debris from the landscape along the OTL. The Loxahatchee chapter’s Trail Keepers program was created by Hannah Campbell, a long time supporter of the FTA. When she began as an activity leader with the chapter, she started out by leading backpacking trips and classes. “Out of this subgroup, we were trying to come up with new ideas to
Footprint
Spring 2021
Ocean to Lake Trail Marker
31
