April 2025

What a fun time at our Spring Social at Luna Blu Lodge! It was a great evening of mingling with like-minded folks and to share our big plans for 2025, including:

• The completion of three new mountain bike single-track trails in the Bethel Community Forest as part of the Main Street to the Mountains Master Plan created by the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA)
• The purchase of the 28-acre Alpine Meadows property adjacent to the Bethel Community Forest and the design for the Trail Center to be built on the property.
• Development of initial trails, including an All-Persons Trail, in the Rumford Community Forest.
• Finishing the 1.6 mile Whitecap Cliffs Hiking Trail from the Bethel Community Forest to the top of Whitecap at Sunday River.
• Building and opening 2 miles of new purpose built mountain bike single-track at Telstar High School.
• Ramping up fundraising efforts to purchase the Pisten Bully 100 snow groomer by October 2026, which IWT was able to demo this past winter,
• Plans to secure acreage of the former Chadbourne Tree Farm lands of which IWT will be the land manager under a permanent easement.

Our top goal for the evening was to raise $40,000 to upgrade the Community Access Trail System (CATS) from Vernon Street in Bethel through the wetland which has been an issue for several years. IWT has permission from the landowner to raise up the trail, install culverts, and lay down gravel.

If you are interested in donating to this important project, click the button below.

Special thanks to Luna Blu for providing a unique venue for the event!

Have you Renewed Your Summer Membership?

Mother nature likes throwing us a few curveballs, but we are so ready for warmer temperatures, sunny weather, and busting out the mountain bike and hiking boots for another epic summer of adventures.

Why renew or become a member? Membership dollars help us maintain our existing warmer weather trail networks as well as provide funding for new trails, including hiking, mountain biking, and multi-use trails. New members receive an awesome IWT swag item (hat or t-shirt.) Happy Trails!

Finds in the Forest

Hike any trail in New England and you are sure to see a variety of colored blazes (painted marks on trees) which help keep you on the trail while also indicating the type of trail you are on (shared-use, alternate trail, etc.) But they can also indicate land boundaries, which can be very important for forest landowners.

Why are they important? The answer is two-fold: They can minimize the risk of timber trespassers on your property, and can help you avoid trespassing on your neighbors’ land when you cut trees or build roads and trails.

The above photograph is from Travis, our Lands Coordinator, blazing the property lines of the Rumford Community Forest. You can learn more about boundary tree blazing by reading the Spring 2025 Northern Woodland article linked below.