Green Mountain Club

Maintaining & Protecting Vermont's Long Trail Since 1910

  • About
    • About The Green Mountain Club
      • Bylaws
      • Annual Reports
      • Strategic Plan
    • Visitor Center
    • Barnes Camp Visitor Center
    • GMC Rental Cabins
    • Board of Directors
    • GMC Staff
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Corporate Sponsors
    • Our Business Partners
    • Contact Us
  • Hiking
    • Trail Updates
    • Hiking 101
    • Trail Systems
      • The Long Trail
      • Appalachian Trail in Vermont
      • Kingdom Heritage Trails in the Northeast Kingdom
    • Hiking Recommendations
    • Accessible Trails around Vermont
    • Thru-Hike the Long Trail
    • Trip Planning
      • Hiking in Groups
      • Guidebooks, Maps & Gear
      • Food Storage Regulations
      • Bear Boxes
    • Wildlife on the Trails
      • Food Storage Regulations
      • Bear Boxes
    • Fall Hiking
    • Winter Hiking
    • Mud Season
    • Long Trail End-to-Ender Certification
  • Conservation
    • Protecting the Long Trail
    • Land Conservation
    • Strategic Conservation Plan
    • Field Programs
    • Burrows Trail Project
    • Regional Partnerships
    • Vermont’s Alpine Zones
  • Education & Events
    • Events & Workshops
    • Service Learning & Group Outings
    • Calendar of Events & Outings
    • Leave No Trace
  • News
    • Trail Updates
    • Blog
    • Long Trail News
    • Press Releases
    • Monthly Newsletter
  • Volunteer
    • Volunteer Opportunities
    • Volunteer Long Trail Patrol
    • Volunteer Reports
    • Application
    • Volunteer Code of Conduct
  • Members
    • GMC Membership – Join or Renew Today
    • Your Membership Benefits
    • Business Membership
    • Green Mountain Club Annual Meeting
  • Donate
    • Ways to Give
    • Donate Now
  • SHOP

What does ‘Strategic Conservation Planning’ Mean for the Long Trail?

September 8, 2022 by GMC Staff 1 Comment

Director of Conservation Mollie Flanigan is responsible for strategic conservation planning
Mollie Flanigan. Photo by: S. Larsen

In 1986 the Green Mountain Club realized that changes in landownership in the Northern Forest region threatened the continuity of the northern Long Trail. Handshake agreements were no longer enough to secure access to the trail. More than 60 miles of the trail in northern Vermont crossed private land, with 30 miles on land for sale, and the remaining miles were in danger of development, trail closings, and postings.

Most of the southernmost 200 miles of the trail had been protected earlier, since they passed through the public lands of the Green Mountain National Forest, the Appalachian National Scenic Trail corridor owned by the National Park Service, and state forests and parks. But the northern portion of the trail was largely on private land.

The future of America’s first long-distance hiking trail was at risk. In response, GMC launched the Long Trail Protection Campaign, a partnership among GMC, other land trust non-profits, the State of Vermont, and donors, all working to create a permanent, protected corridor for the Long Trail from Massachusetts to Canada.

In the 36 years since, the Long Trail Protection Campaign has completed more than 100 trail protection projects, conserved more than 25,000 acres of land, and protected more than 60 miles of the Long Trail. Today only six miles of Long Trail remain without legal protection, and GMC continues to negotiate with landowners to legally protect the Long Trail as opportunities arise.

I joined GMC in 2016 to manage GMC’s Land Conservation Program, after much of this tremendous conservation work had been completed. My job was to steward the many acres the club had conserved, and to carry on the work of the Long Trail Protection Campaign.

As I delved into the records, I was humbled by the momentous work GMC had already done, and by the program’s continuing charge: Secure a permanent protected corridor for the entire Long Trail. The deeper I delved, however, the more questions about that charge I uncovered.

What should be considered as a “protected” section of Long Trail?
How wide a “corridor” must the Long Trail have to qualify as the “footpath in the wilderness”?
Should the width of the corridor be uniform, or vary depending on landscape and context?
Should all side trails also be legally protected? If so, are the present routes of side trails appropriate for investment in legal protection, or should some of them be rerouted or left unprotected?

I realized the program had a choice: to structure its work as GMC had managed the campaign so far, or to take a step back to reassess the needs of the Long Trail System, and work to develop a ‘strategic conservation plan.’ I chose to try the latter.

Strategic conservation planning is a framework used by land trust organizations to plan conservation goals, and ensure they are working proactively to protect the resources they aim to conserve. By taking time to plan, an organization can assess the current need for land protection and what threats and challenges its lands face, set updated goals and measure success in meeting them, identify partnership opportunities, and develop an updated plan of action.

A lot has changed in GMC, Vermont, and the field of land conservation in the last 36 years. Taking time to reflect on where we are today and map our organization’s priorities for the future seemed like the best path. So in the spring of 2021 I asked the GMC Land Conservation Committee to form a working group to help me develop a strategic conservation plan. Together we’re in a two-year planning effort to chart conservation goals for the Long Trail System.

So far we’ve defined what we hope to accomplish through this planning effort and the values that will guide the campaign (see below). We’ve drafted criteria for whether a section of trail will be considered permanently protected, partially protected, or unprotected. We’ve also assembled the mapping database and datasets that describe the status of the trail system, and identified the parcels of land along its trails.

The planning effort requires regular working group meetings, GIS mapping, and recording the process the club has used and decisions it has made so they can be reassessed to decide what to do in the future.

We are mid-way through the planning process. By this time next year we hope to have a final report for our members outlining the vision, goals and challenges, and the path GMC plans to use to continue the tremendous work of the Long Trail Protection Campaign.

Ron Osborn and Mollie Flanigan
Ron Osborn and Mollie Flanigan. Photo courtesy: Rob Reives

GMC’s Strategic Conservation Planning Goals:

  • Formalize its values and geographic scope
  • Establish metrics of success
  • Assess the need and process for protecting the Long Trail System
  • Update conservation criteria for corridor land conservation projects
  • Identify and build partnerships
  • Elevate awareness and support

This article appears in the Summer 2022 edition of the Long Trail News under the title, “The Future of the Long Trail Protection Campaign: Strategic Conservation Planning is Underway.” It is written by Mollie Flanigan, Director of Land Conservation.

Filed Under: From the Field, History, Trail

Comments

  1. PTS Terbaik says

    September 8, 2022 at 9:35 pm

    why does a change in land ownership in the Northern Forest region threaten the survival of the northern Long Trail?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Summer Hiking Bingo

May 31, 2025

GMC wants to help you make the most of your summer with Summer Hiking Bingo! These challenges are designed to help you get outside, learn new hiking skills, and connect with the hiking community. Download and print your own or stop in at GMC's Visitor Center to pick up your bingo board. When you're … Read more

About Mud Season HikeVT Trail Recommendations Become a Member Trip Planning Trail Maps Volunteer Opportunities

Mission

The Green Mountain Club is the founder and maintainer of the Long Trail - the oldest long distance hiking trail in America. Established in 1910 to build this trail stretching the length of Vermont, the club now also maintains the Appalachian Trail in Vermont and trails in the Northeast Kingdom in its mission to "make the Vermont mountains play a larger part in the life of the people." Read more...

Featured Sponsors

Athletic Brewing Logo
Athletic_Primary_WhiteBG
Outdoor Gear Exchange logo
oge
Darn Tough logo
darn tough
Burlington Beer Company logo
Burlington Beer Company logo
802 Cars logo
802 cars
Lawson's Finest Liquids logo
lawsons-finest-liquids-black
Eastern Mountain Sports logo
EMS
Mountain Goat logo
Mountain Goat logo
Lenny's Shoe & Apparel logo
Lennys-Logo
Concept 2 logo
concept2
Sugarbush Resort logo
sugarbush-logo
The Alchemist Brewery logo
alchemist
Johnson Farm & Garden, Hardware and Rental logo
Johnson Farm & Garden, Hardware and Rental

Connect

4711 Waterbury-Stowe Road
Waterbury Center, Vermont 05677
802.244.7037 | Email GMC

Click here for current hours.
Email us for hiking advice. 

Copyright © 2025 Green Mountain Club · All Rights Reserved. · Site by Earthlogic.