Appalachian Trail Conservancy Launches AT Resiliency Fund in Wake of Helene
The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) has announced a new Appalachian Trail Resiliency Fund “to gather the significant resources needed to repair damaged Trail infrastructure, restore the surrounding landscape, and help A.T. Communities and trail towns recover.”
Donations to the Appalachian Trail Resiliency Fund will support rebuilding on the trail itself and in local communities. Trail restoration efforts will include damage assessment, cleanup, habitat restoration, and climate resiliency planning. The fund will provide staff resources and grants to small businesses that support AT hikers in trail towns.
ATC’s Board of Directors has pledged $20,000 to kickstart the fund. Meanwhile, all profits from the Conservancy’s Ultimate Appalachian Trail Store will go directly to the fund through the end of 2024. Members of the public can also donate directly to the fund here.
Outdoor brands including Vermont’s Wise Pine Hostel and the popular hiking app AllTrails have also made significant contributions to the Resiliency Fund. “Stewardship of our public lands is at the heart of our work at AllTrails,” says AllTrails Head of Public Lands Partnerships Pitt Grewe. “We’re committed to helping the Appalachian Trail and its communities recover from Hurricane Helene. Our pledge to the A.T. Resiliency Fund is a promise to support the ATC in getting people back to the trails they love.”
“The road to recovery won’t be measured in weeks or months, but likely years.”
In terms of sheer geographic footprint, ATC says Helene was the largest natural disaster in the trail’s 100-year history. Hundreds of miles of the AT remain closed in the south. The Conservancy continues to advise hikers to avoid the area, as landslide risk remains high and emergency services are limited. Click here for up-to-date information on hurricane-related trail closures.
“The road to recovery won’t be measured in weeks or months, but likely years in sections of the A.T. where Helene decimated trees and left the treadway impossible to find,” said ATC President and CEO Sandi Marra. ”The ATC is committed to providing support to our A.T. Communities and to rehabilitating the Trail and landscape—no matter how long it takes. Our goal for the Appalachian Trail Resiliency Fund is to support rebuilding efforts and, in time, ensure that we deliver on our promise of an open and continuous Trail.”
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