Help construct new link along the King of Trails

Do you enjoy backcountry hiking and have a few days to spare this summer? The Continental Divide Trail Alliance is seeking volunteers to help construct a new 50-mile stretch of the so-called "King of Trails" to link Mount Elbert to Monarch Pass in the Collegiate Peaks near Leadville, Colorado. Stretching 3,100 miles along the backbone of America from Canada to Mexico--and meandering through the states of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico--the Continental Divide Trail accesses some of the most wild and scenic places left in the world. Established by Congress as a National Scenic Trail in 1978, it will be the most significant trail system in the world when completed.

The Continental Divide Trail Alliance has played a central role in the completion, management, and protection of the Trail since 1995. The Alliance coordinates more than 500 volunteers to work on projects along the trail every year and encourages public and private partnerships in order to link the trail's significant resources and foster an appreciation of America's natural lands. As the group's motto says, "The Trail Unites Us."

Volunteers need have no previous trail-building experience--just a desire to help and a love of the outdoors. All tools and training are provided by the Alliance's professional crew leaders. (The volunteer section of the Alliance website also provides very detailed lists of what to pack for the experience--particularly useful for those volunteers new to backcountry hiking and camping.) In 2009, crew chefs fed the hungry workers, a program the Alliance plans to continue this summer.