New Hampshire Wins Two National Trail Awards

10/30/2020

Two New Hampshire trail projects were chosen by the Coalition for Recreational Trails (CRT) as recipients of the 2020 Tom Petri Recreational Trails Program Achievement Awards. Twelve projects in total were honored at the virtual ceremony that was live streamed on Facebook.

The Monadnock Trail Improvement Project accomplished by the SCA NH AmeriCorps was selected in the Youth Conservation/Service Corps and Community Outreach Category for recognition. The SCA NH AmeriCorps conservation services crew spent 10 weeks working on the White Cross and White Dot trails at Monadnock State Park improving 4.5 miles of trail. Improvements included new rock steps, rock staircases, and closing social trails that bypassed eroded areas.

Senator Shaheen is her letter of support to the Coalition of Recreational Trails said, “This high-priority project brought together key public and private stakeholders to address deferred maintenance issues on Mount Monadnock – one of the most hiked mountains in the world…” Representative Kuster also lent support of the project and wrote, “This comprehensive improvement project will be critical to ensuring accessibility and safety on these high-use trails for years to come…”

The second project to receive recognition was the Milan Trail Huggers Nash Stream Bridge in the Construction and Design category. This project diverted ATVs from local town bridge to lessen the impact on area homeowners. The bridge’s length of 90’ is substantial and was designed in pieces so it could be delivered using a standard flat-bed trailer. The bridge was bolted together on-site using over 500 bolts.

Department Natural and Cultural Resources Commissioner Sarah Stewart attended the ceremony thanking the coalition for recognizing two outstanding trail projects in New Hampshire. She noted, “New Hampshire relies on our outdoors to attract visitors and these improvements to the state’s trail system are only two of thousands of projects funded by the Recreational Trails Program.”

Video Link: https://www.facebook.com/railstotrails/videos/630245034308696/

The Recreational Trails Program (RTP) is an assistance program of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). See the RTP website.