Due to COVID-19 concerns, and the Green Mountain Club’s goal of keeping staff, volunteers, members and the public safe and healthy, the 2021 season of Volunteer Long Trail Patrol has been canceled. We’ll miss this season’s wonderful volunteer ethic and are disappointed we won’t be able to host you for a week of excellent trail work projects. The Green Mountain Club’s COVID-19 Response is constantly evolving and we encourage you to engage with us through Virtual Events and Workshops.
If you’re local to the Long Trail System and interested in other volunteer opportunities, please visit Volunteer Opportunities for other ways to support the Long Trail.
We look forward to getting out together in the 2022 Field Season!
Run away and join the trail crew for a week! Meet new people of all ages and backgrounds while working and living on the trail. Learn how to build and maintain hiking trails. Or, if you’re already an experienced trail maintainer, practice your skills on some neat projects.
Based out of the Mt. Tabor Work Center in Mt. Tabor, Vermont, a Volunteer Long Trail Patrol (VLTP) crew consists of 4-6 rotating volunteers led by a GMC Crew Leader and an Assistant Crew Leader. Volunteer crew members work for a week at a time (with the option of working single or multiple weeks) along the Long Trail/Appalachian Trail on projects such as building puncheon, turnpikes, water bars, side-hill tread, and bridges. Most VLTP projects are in the Green Mountain National Forest, and some are in federally designated Wilderness areas.
VLTP crews work Friday through Tuesday in the field in most weather. They work with rock and lumber, as well as native timber as projects require. Crew volunteers arrive in Mt. Tabor, VT, at the Mt. Tabor Work Center each Thursday and have a communal dinner with VLTP crew staff. Friday through Monday nights, crews camp near their worksites and share a communal camp kitchen, as well as camp chores. The GMC provides transportation to the worksite’s trailhead, food for the crew during the workweek, tools, personal protective equipment, and some group equipment (stove, fuel, cookware, first aid supplies), as well as some personal gear for volunteers to borrow. Communal day-off housing is available in Mt. Tabor. You must be 18 or older to participate.
What you’ll do on VLTP:
- Learn to use tools such as rockbars and pick-mattocks for their maximum mechanical advantage
- Turn a 50-ft mud pit into a dry, sustainable, and pleasant hiking surface which will persist for decades
- Eat delicious food, make new friends, and give back to Vermont’s hiking trails!
The 2021 VLTP Season has been canceled.
Please consider joining the VLTP for the 2022 Field Season and view GMC’s other volunteer opportunities!
If you have any questions about VLTP, please contact Lorne Currier at [email protected].
