Over $37,000 Donated to Restore Trails Closed After the Fire

Annie Lindgren

North Forty News

After the Cameron Peak fire, hundreds of miles of trails in Northern Colorado remain inaccessible and dangerous because of fire damage. The work of rebuilding trails is time-intensive and expensive. Rebuilding can take years unless the community comes together to help reopen those trails. Poudre Wilderness Volunteers (PWV) decided to raise funds to help with trail restoration efforts.

The Poudre Wilderness Volunteers are humbled to announce successful crowdfunding campaign efforts. Over a month, hundreds of donors from 34 Colorado communities and 13 different states contributed over $37,000 to the cause. PWV members, friends, family, local businesses, churches, news outlets, and hikers near and far made this happen. The goal had been $25,000.

“This happened because you opened your heart, opened your wallet, wrote that email, and shared that post. Thank you, thank you, thank you,” shares PWV.

The work of restoring the trails has started. For those interested in helping to restore the trails, PWV will be hosting community workdays on June 19, 20, July 17, 18, and August 14, 15, 21, 22. Details on volunteering and registration are found on www.pwv.org. PWV is also offering private workdays for organizations looking to get outdoors for a team-building event and help get us back onto the trails. 

Each year PWV launches patrols to survey the conditions and remove dangerous and fallen trees from across the trails. They have twenty-five years of experience working with the U.S. Forest Service keeping the forest safe for public use. With the impact of Covid 19, the need for a safe refuge for the public is even more immediate.

Since 2005, PWV has donated a total of 331,625 volunteer hours, worth $7,298,038, to the United States Forest Service. They have three hundred members who donate their time to make PWV a success. In addition to the volunteer force, they recruit community members to safely assist crews in trail building, tree removal, and other critical tasks. To get involved, or learn more, check out www.pwv.org.

“When we are hiking on our rebuilt trails, we will think of the wide-reaching community that helped make it possible. Thank you for your generosity and support,” shared PWV.