Our Lost Trails Found campaign is working to save trails that are at-risk of disappearing completely — preserving access to our stunning backcountry for generations to come. Through your generous support, boots-on-the-ground trail maintenance, voices in Congress and innovative partnerships, we are putting trails back on the map.
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Help us keep backcountry trails on the map.
Our Work
Building Partnerships
To maximize the impact of our Lost Trails Found campaign, WTA is working to bring together public land agencies and trail organizations from across the state to identify, fund and execute trail maintenance priorities in Washington's beautiful backcountry.
Through collaboration, we can pool our resources and expertise into building a sustainable backcountry trail system.
Putting Trails Back on the Map
Miles of trails into Washington’s wild and remote landscapes are not receiving the maintenance they need. The routes are or are at risk of, becoming lost. We need boots on the ground now to bring these trails back into hiking shape.
Through our professional Lost Trails Found crews and volunteer Backcountry Response Teams, we can devote thousands of hours of work to our backcountry favorites.
Advocating for Federal Trail Funding
Budget cuts and increasingly extreme fire seasons have undermined land managers’ ability to keep backcountry trails clear and maintained for hikers.
We're working at the national level to increase land manager budgets and shrink the differed maintenance backlog across our federal lands.
Keep up with our advocacy efforts
Stories From the Field
Meet the 2024 Lost Trails Found paid crews
WTA's Lost Trails Found paid crews have a big summer of trail work planned. Meet some of the maintainers doing this tough work and learn what they're looking forward to in 2024. By Joseph Gonzalez
Wildfires Damage Backcountry Trails. Here's Where WTA Is Helping Restore Them.
With wildfires burning bigger and hotter across remote areas of Washington, WTA's Lost Trails Found campaign commits year-after-year to restoring and rebuilding resilient trail networks in areas like the Pasayten Wilderness, the Entiat Wilderness and — now — an area of the Naches Ranger District east of Mount Rainier.
How WTA’s behind-the-scenes work elevates our backcountry trail maintenance
Backcountry trail maintenance is more than trail tools and long days outside — it's the massive efforts of seasonal crew members, land managers and office coordination, and Zack Sklar helps make it happen. By Joseph Gonzalez