News & Events

Yavapai Trails Association Awarded Funding by the
National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance

Prescott, AZ, June 22, 2020 – In early June 2020, Yavapai Trails Association (YTA) was one of 39 organizations in the nation to be awarded funding to complete a project that will utilize private donations, volunteer resources, and Forest Service funding through an agreement with the National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance (NWSA). The $10,000 grant award will be utilized to fund a critical backlog of maintenance on Wolverton Mountain Trail #9415 in the Prescott National Forest. This five-mile segment of trail is part of the marque 54 -mile non-motorized Circle Trail that is the “hub” of most of the trails in the greater Prescott area. The Wolverton Trail is a widely popular trail amongst mountain biking, hiking, and equestrian community. The American Conservation Experience will be hired to do part of the trail work and the Over the Hill Gang, a volunteer trail maintenance crew will work on the remainder of the trail.

It is anticipated that the work on the Wolverton Trail will commence in early September.  The work will consist of brushing and short sections of rock armoring to stabilize the trail tread.  All group volunteer trail work has currently been suspended due to the pandemic, but will resume when it is determined to be safe to do so.

YTA is pleased to once again partner with the Prescott National Forest to assist in obtaining and maintaining sustainable trails in Yavapai County. We also appreciate the donors who have been generous to back this project. A million thanks to all the volunteers who so willingly put in many hours of service. We are grateful as are the thousands of trail users.

A quote from the NWSA Grant Committee: “The NWSA is excited to offer this 3rd round of funding to support the volunteers, nonprofit organizations, and agency partners who are stewarding the National Forest trail system on their local public lands. These trail stewardship projects will accomplish much work needed to improve and sustain trail conditions in our National Forests. Americans are lucky to have such diverse and beautiful National Forest lands across our country, but we are even luckier to have caring stewards who give their time and their energy to this unique American resource.”

For more information please contact Jason Williams, Prescott NF Trails & Wilderness Manger at (928) 777-2220 or Ann Hendrickson, YTA President (262) 893-9479.

​2020 Hiking Spree CANCELED

Due to the global pandemic, we are sorry to announce the Hiking Spree 2020 will not take place.  We feel the annual kick off at the Highlands Center for Natural History is a cornerstone to this event.  Since it is unknown if a large crowd will be able to safely congregate, it is difficult to plan.

YTA is committed to continuing the long tradition of the Hiking Spree.  We look forward to 2021 to continue the Hiking Spree.

What is Hiking Spree?

This collaboration between Yavapai Trails Association and the Highlands Center is a community wide event that takes place each fall and can be completed at participant’s own pace. People from all over the state come to Prescott to hike 8 out of 12 trails within the Prescott National Forest and the City of Prescott between September and December. A collector’s medallion is available for purchase when completed brochures are returned to the Highlands Center. Medallions are newly designed each year to reflect some special aspect of Arizona’s natural history and have become collector’s items.