ITN receives USFWS Alaska Region Outstanding Partner award for 2011

Whether it concerns trail-building techniques, causes of erosion, or impacts from marine debris, the ITN has a lot to teach to the youth of Kodiak.  Since 2009 we partnered with the Kodiak Refuge Youth Conservation Corps to assist in conservation projects. In 2011, a two week ITN effort removed 3,000 lbs of marine debris from the Kodiak Refuge. In addition to those in the YCC, students were brought in from across the country to experience and improve the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge.

At the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Alaska Regional Director’s Awards ceremony yesterday, the Service recognized ITN for their efforts on behalf of the wild resources that belong to all Alaskans. Geoff Haskett, the Service’s Alaska Regional Director, said, “Partnerships are at the heart of meaningful conservation, and they are essential if we are to be truly effective in conserving Alaska’s fish, wildlife, and habitats. The organizations recognized today demonstrate this, and I’m grateful to have had an opportunity to celebrate their contributions.”

Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge Manager Gary Wheeler presents ITN President Patrick Saltonstall and Executive Director Andy Schroeder with the Regional Director's "Outstanding Partner" award for excellence.

The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. They are both a leader and trusted partner in fish and wildlife conservation, known for our scientific excellence, stewardship of lands and natural resources, dedicated professionals, and commitment to public service. 

Fun in the Snow

This week ITN used a Polaris Ranger fitted with tracks and a custom-built sled from Northern Sled Works to haul bridge materials down the Sunny Cove trail on Spruce Island, Alaska. 

Using this method we can haul up to 1000 lbs per load (more on flat surfaces) with practically zero impact on the soil.  We will return to Spruce Island this week to try the same thing with gravel.  


This is a 3-4 year project begun in 2011 and involves the hardening of 2.25 miles of tread and rebuilding of 14 bridges on an historic trail connecting the settlement of Sunny Cove on Spruce Island with the village of Ouzinkie.  Although most of Spruce Island is privately owned, this is a public trail  and is protected the a 17(b) federal easement administered by the BLM.

Executive Director's Report, March 2012

Even though our board of director's meets monthly, it still sometimes seems like eons between meetings.  It's been five weeks since our last meeting, and a lot has happened!

We are seeking applicants for a new position at ITN:  Director of Outreach, Education, and Marine Programs.  The position entails full-time, work-from-home employment with benefits, flexible hours, and rewarding field work and travel opportunities.  See Alaska Jobs Job Order #193444 or email info@islandtrails.org for application instructions. 

Completing Safe Routes surveys.  N. Kesling photo.

Our Safe routes to Schools  (SR2S) program continues to build momentum.  We are in the data collection phase a  year-long effort to identify ways to increase the safety and occurrences of elementary and middle school students walking or biking to school.  At last week's parent-teacher conferences we set up banks of laptops in the school hallways to enable parents to complete the surveys on-site, and to answer questions about the SR2S programs.   We are asking everyone, whether a parent or not, to complete the appropriate survey at our website www.islandtrails.org/saferoutes.  While you're at it, you can register to win a bike helmet from Island Trails Network.

We've been asked if we plan to eliminate safe routes planning for Main Elementary. Quite the contrary; Our planning efforts are for the students, not schools, and closing one school will not reduce the number of students in the school district.  Students who formerly attended Main Elementary will be attending a new school and may be traveling a longer and less familiar route, making Safe Routes planning even more important.   

The Kodiak Public Library Association has almost achieved its fundraising goal of $13M for a new community library to be built atop borough hill, and have been consulting ITN to ensure adequate pedestrian and bicycle access to the facility.  This month I met with Paul Converse of KPLA and we walked the area  and identified several potential trail connections in the area.  ITN believes the trails associated with the library development could serve not just the library, but could provide greater connectivity and fluidity between the downtown, borough hill, and midtown and further encourage walking and biking as a healthy, safe, and practical way to navigate our neighborhoods.

I was a guest at the USCG Auxiliary meeting this month, where I spoke to over thirty Auxiliary members about marine debris in Kodiak, our efforts to remove it and  educate folks about it, and the emerging threats caused by the 2011 Japan tsunami  and the increasing number of ghost pots occupying Womens Bay.  You can learn more about these issues by reading our blog.  ITN has a longstanding partnership with this organization, beginning with the Pillar Creek marine debris clean-up in 2007.  ITN was awarded the 2010 Safe Boating Award by the Kodiak flotilla of the USCG Auxiliary for our efforts in improving kayaking safety.  We hope to continue and strengthen our partnership with this energetic and proactive group of volunteers.

ITN, like the Coast Guard Auxiliary is a volunteer-driven organization.  But as a state and federally-recognized non-profit entity, we are perhaps even more so.  At ITN, we rely on our members to fund our day-to-day operations, we furnish volunteer labor as a match for grant-funded projects and we derive our strategic goals in part from the desires of our membership.  We are in the midst of our largest volunteer recruitment effort of the year--the run-up to the Kodiak Outdoor Film Festival.  This event, to be held April 6th at the Kodiak Harbor Convention Center, is our biggest gathering of Island Trails Network members all year.  But there is more to membership than just an evening of pizza and entertainment.  Your membership demonstrates your commitment to healthy trails, waterways and coastline throughout the archipelago.  It represents your belief in the importance of trail safety, ethics, and etiquette.  It shows your support for pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure throughout our populated areas.  Whether you plan on attending the film festival or not, please take this opportunity to renew your membership to Island Trails Network.  www.islandtrails.org/join

For those planning to submit a film to the KOFF, don't forget next weekend is Philip Tschersich’s free iMovie workshop. Philip teaches the basics of iMovie in one evening including importing video, understanding the iMovie environment, marking clips as favorites or rejects, adding clips to a storyboard, addition transitions, titles, beat markers and lyrics, adjusting stabilization, color, cropping, rotation, and clip speed, and exporting movies. The workshop will be held at the KNWR visitor’s center from 7-9 PM March 20th. Come one, come many.  Admission is free!

Grooming winter trails near Nemetz Gazebo.  N. Kesling Photo.

Our grooming of a 5k multi-use winter trail at Swampy Acres has been well-received.   We obtained permission from Natives of Kodiak and the USCG to use a loop beginning and ending near Nemetz Gazebo as a demonstration project to see how a groomed winter trail would fare in that area.  The trail is approximately 4-6 feet wide, with a classic track on one side and a smooth corduroy surface on the other.  The terrain is suitable for beginning skiers and snowshoers, with most grades at or below 5% and only one section exceeding  10%.  Although there are no signs, the trail has separate lanes for shoe and ski traffic along most of its length, and user groups have so far respected each other's terrain.  From my observations, it looks like the trail receives at least some use every day, and dozens of users on the weekends.  This week, we will groom the trail for a third time and continue to monitor use.  We appreciate the Coast Guard's cooperation in lending us their tow-behind groomer and granting us gate access.