National Trails Day Success

June 25, 2021

On Saturday, June 5, 100 volunteers from Gallatin Valley Land Trust, the Gallatin Watershed Council, Bozeman Parks and Recreation, Montana Conservation Corps, and the Bozeman community met to get their hands dirty and celebrate National Trails Day. National Trails Day is GVLT’s largest volunteer project of the year, always occurring alongside national events on the first Saturday in June. Each year GVLT chooses a different trail that needs a little TLC. This year, Tuckerman Park celebrated its 20th anniversary, and it was the perfect spot to host National Trails Day.

Spearheaded by Lisa and Russ Tuckerman – who pledged $50,000 of their own money – the community crusade to help the City of Bozeman acquire a 10-acre buffer between Sourdough Trail and the Sundance Springs residential subdivision began back in 1994. The generous donation from the Tuckermans, a grant from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, funding from Gallatin County, City of Bozeman, and the support of 449 residents and businesses contributed to the purchase of the 10-acre property. Tuckerman Park was open to the public in 2001.

Today, Tuckerman Park is a popular recreation site for hiking, biking, bird watching, fishing, and more. It serves as a wildlife corridor that protects both Sourdough Creek and Nash Spring Creek and provides a safe route for young students commuting to and from Sacajawea Middle School. Artists, outdoor enthusiasts, and everyone in between can enjoy this special place and its access to Sourdough Trail.

For National Trails Day, GVLT identified a series of projects to keep the park and the nearby trails in tip top shape. Projects include planting trees, improving trail tread, resurfacing trails, bridge repairs. In just three hours, volunteers:

  • Spread more than 70 tons of gravel on the Tuckerman Park trails
  • Restored 3 pedestrian bridges and enhanced bridge approaches
  • Refreshed 1/2 mile of trail on Sourdough Trail, including removing encroaching vegetation
  • Planted 316 trees and reset a bench along Matthew Bird Creek
  • Celebrated 20 years of beautiful open space and trails at Tuckerman Park!

Bozeman’s community trails rely on the stewardship and etiquette of all trail users. With trails busier than ever, volunteer projects like National Trails Day are an opportunity for trail users to give back to the spaces they love, ensuring that they’ll be in good shape for people to enjoy for generations to come. Many thanks to our National Trails Day partners: City of Bozeman Parks & Forestry, Gallatin County Parks, Sundance Springs Homeowners, West Meadows Homeowners, Bozeman Noon Rotary, Gallatin Watershed Council, Montana Conservation Corps, American Hiking Society and others. It’s amazing what we can accomplish with a little elbow grease and a shared vision. Here’s to enjoying trails all summer long!

Interested in volunteering with GVLT for a trails project with your friends, business, or organization? Contact Cooper at cooper@gvlt.org.