ELKINS, W.Va. (WVDN) — The Mon Forest Towns Partnership (MFTP) has announced a fundraising campaign to support the launch of a dedicated seasonal trail crew in the Monongahela National Forest’s (MNF) North Zone beginning in 2027. The campaign addresses a well-documented and growing maintenance backlog across the North Zone’s 566 miles of multi-use trail, a resource that draws visitors from across the region and anchors the outdoor recreation economies of the twelve gateway communities MFTP serves.
The MNF is West Virginia’s largest recreation asset, encompassing over 920,000 acres, with nearly 900 miles of multi-use trail and 200 developed recreation sites. Responsibility for trail maintenance falls to a limited number of recreation-focused Forest Service employees, none dedicated solely to trail maintenance, who rely heavily on volunteers and partner organizations to keep the system open. Despite those efforts, the scale of need has continued to outpace available resources, leaving a significant backlog of deferred maintenance throughout the Forest.
MFTP’s North Zone Trail Crew pilot replicates a model already proven effective in the MNF’s South Zone, where the Great American Outdoors Act funding supports a contracted crew through the Snowshoe Highlands Area Recreation Collaborative (SHARC). MFTP and the U.S. Forest Service are partnering to bring the same approach north, with USFS funding covering half of the project cost. MFTP is now raising the remaining half through grants and this public campaign. The three-person seasonal crew will perform a “first pass” of trail maintenance – widening corridors, clearing downfall, and improving drainage – at a rate of 3 to 5 miles per day, with a goal of improving more than 300 miles in the first season alone.
“There is a clear need. The passion of the trail maintenance volunteers across the region and the dedication of our Forest Service partners simply cannot keep pace with the scale of the North Zone’s trail needs. This new seasonal crew is designed to be the essential support system they deserve,” said MFTP Executive Director Josh Nease. “Now we’re asking the communities and trail users who depend on this Forest to help us close the funding gap. A well-maintained trail isn’t just a better experience for visitors, it’s a healthier ecosystem and a stronger economic driver for the towns that border it.”
The North Zone, which covers the Cheat-Potomac and Greenbrier Ranger Districts, contains many of the forest’s most recognizable assets, from the Otter Creek and Laurel Fork Wilderness Areas to the Canaan Mountain and Seneca Creek Backcountry Trail Systems. MFTP envisions the pilot as the foundation for a long-term program capable of serving every mile of North Zone trail and eventually expanding to support other recreation land managers throughout the region. To learn more or contribute, visit https://monforesttowns.org/support/nztc.
