September 2019 E-blaze

September 2019 National Public Lands Day “Our public lands – whether a national park or monument, wildlife refuge, forest or prairie – make each one of us land-rich. It is our inheritance as citizens of a country called America.” – Terry Tempest Williams North Florida Trail Program Manager, Jeff Glenn, writes: This past weekend, the FTA partnered with REI in […]

August 2019 E-blaze

August 2019 New Beginnings A message from the FTA’s new Trail Program Director Trail Program Director, Kelly Wiener writes: After serving the past month as the Interim Trail Program Director following Alex Stigliano’s departure, I am pleased to announce to our membership that I have accepted the board’s offer to step into the role permanently. […]

Big Oak Celebration Hike

June 2019 E-blaze

June 2019 Alaqua Bridge Inaugural Ribbon Cutting Florida’s Newest and Longest Suspension Bridge On Friday, June 14, the Florida Trail Association, Eglin Air Force Base, and FT Coalition Partners celebrated the Florida Trail’s newest and longest suspension bridge with an inaugural ribbon cutting in Eglin. Planning and construction of the 70-foot Alaqua “Demon” Bridge over […]

May 2019 E-blaze

May 2019 2019 Florida Folk Festival North Florida Trail Program Manager, Jeff Glenn, writes: The 67th annual Florida Folk Festival took place at Stephen Foster State Park in White Springs this past Memorial Day Weekend. The Florida Trail Association was there doing outreach work for three days talking to festival goers about the trail and soaking […]

April 2019 E-blaze

April 2019 FTA Award Recipients 2019 FTA Annual Meeting We had another productive FTA Annual Meeting, Chapter Council and Board Meeting on April 6 in Gainesville, FL. This year’s annual meeting was jam-packed with exciting updates and important acknowledgements including: Announcement & Swearing In Ceremony for the Board of Directors & Officers Trail Operations Report […]

March 2019 E-blaze

March 2019 Progress in Econfina Hurricane Michael Recovery Efforts Two- Penny Bridge Panhandle Trail Program Manager, Adam Fryska, writes: By now, the FTA community is well aware of the tremendous damage done by Hurricane Michael to the Econfina Section of the Florida Trail. On March 1-3, the Panhandle Chapter hosted the first major Volunteer Work […]

Warrior Expeditions: Ride the Divide

FT Program Director, Alex Stigliano writes,  I first learned of Warrior Expeditions in 2014, shortly after joining the FT Program staff, and I immediately connected to their mission. I came from a professional background of leading people on multi-day backcountry expeditions. I saw first-hand the transformative effect of time spent outdoors. I believe nature can bring […]

February 2019 E-blaze

February 2019 Big Cypress Backcountry Trail Maintenance January 30th to February 4th, 2019 Central & South Florida Trail Manager, Kelly Wiener, writes: The 2019 Big Cypress Backcountry Volunteer Work Party was a resounding success! With the uncertainty surrounding the federal shutdown, we worked hard to coordinate with local volunteers and National Park Service staff to […]

Juniper Prairie Wilderness Now Open to Overnight Camping

US Forest Service encourages responsible recreation   TALLAHASSEE, Fla., March 19, 2019 – The U.S. Forest Service recently reopened the Juniper Prairie Wilderness and Juniper Run to both overnight camping and day use after the areas were closed for 30 days due to dangerous bear activity. U.S. Forest Service officials, in consultation with the Florida […]