The Western MA Exchange

There's so much happening in the Western MA chapter, and we'd love for you to be a part of it! Whether you're drawn to the trails, the roads, or bringing families together in the great outdoors, there's an activity waiting for you. Join us on National Trails Day (June 7th) for scenic hikes, bike rides, or paddling adventures in the beautiful Berkshires, Connecticut River Valley and beyond. Celebrate National Bike Month by riding with our Bicycling Committee – whether you're a beginner or seasoned cyclist, we have rides and resources just for you. Or, if you're passionate about helping families connect with nature, consider volunteering with our Family Programs Committee. They host fun, hands-on adventures for kids and adults all year long. However you choose to participate, there's a place for you. So come explore, give back, and have fun – you bring the energy, we'll bring the adventure! Come join us! Kathy Martin, Western MA Chapter Chair

Save the date: Celebrate National Trails Day June 7^th

National Trails Day is celebrated annually on the first Saturday in June. This year, the Western MA Chapter invites you to a day of celebration in Cheshire on Saturday, June 7, 2025. We are offering many different activities on this day so you can choose your own adventure! We are hosting a hike on the Appalachian Trail to the Cheshire Cobbles with a beautiful view of Mt Greylock and Cheshire Reservoir, a bike ride along the Ashwillticook Rail Trail that travels along the shore of the reservoir from Lanesborogh to North Adams, and an opportunity to paddle on the reservoir surrounded by the beautiful Berkshire Mountains. Or, you can give back to the trails with several trail maintenance opportunities. You can meet some of the Executive Committee members at our table at Diane's Twist on Main Street in Cheshire, get some cool swag, and learn more about what we do in the Chapter. If you'd rather do something in the Connecticut River Valley, our New England Trail Committee will be hosting a hike at the Holyoke Range State Park. If you're looking for something more challenging, you can join the group that will be hiking Mt Cube in NH. You will need to register for the activity you choose. Not all of the events have been posted yet so please keep checking. We hope to see you on National Trails Day!

May is National Bike Month

This is the perfect time to let you know about our Bicycling Committee. Made up entirely of volunteers, our Bicycling Committee plans rides in Western MA from easier warm-up rides in the spring to challenging rides in the Berkshires with rolling hills. If you are new to recreational cycling, you can reach out to the Bicycling Committee to inquire about an Intro to Recreational Cycling ride that would include a beginner ride with low mileage and an educational component focusing on basic riding skills, safety, and bike maintenance. There are other ways you can get involved in National Bike Safety Month. First, go to the Bicycling Committee page where you'll find great resources for cyclists and a listing of our upcoming rides to join. You can also celebrate by joining the Bike to Work Week (May 12-18) or the Bike to Work Day on May 16^th. So, dust off that bike and come ride with us!

Family Programs Opportunity

Are you looking for a fun way to share your skills and enthusiasm for the outdoors? The Family Programs Committee would love to have you assist with their outings. The Family Programs Committee schedules adventures in western MA every month throughout the year. These adventures include family-friendly hikes, experiential outdoor activities that teach outdoor skills and conservation concepts, seasonal crafts and games, camping, family nights, and much more. We strive to instill confidence, collaboration, understanding and an appreciation of the outdoors so as to foster respect and stewardship of our planet and all living things. Our focus is to get everyone outdoors. Children of all ages and their families (including grandparents) are invited to join us. We invite you to come volunteer your time to our child-friendly outdoor adventures and experience the joy of watching little ones grow and learn and become stewards of our planet. Your ideas will be welcomed! For more information please send a message to familyprograms@amc-wma.org.

iNaturalist Flowers and Fauna of the A.T.

This project is a smartphone-oriented extension of AMC's long-term monitoring program Mountain Watch, which has been tracking how plants are responding to climate change since 2004. Learn more about how to get involved with this community science effort here.

We're hosting a hike on the Appalachian National Scenic Trail to the Cheshire Cobbles with a beautiful view of Mt Greylock and Cheshire Reservoir, a bike ride along the Ashwillticook Rail Trail that travels along the shore of the reservoir from Lanesborough to North Adams, and an opportunity to paddle on the reservoir surrounded by the beautiful Berkshire Mountains, as seen in this photo. Or, you can give back to the trails with several trail maintenance opportunities. You can meet some of the Executive Committee members at our table at Diane's Twist on Main Street in Cheshire, get some cool swag and a snack, and learn more about what we do in the Chapter. If you'd rather stay in the Connecticut River Valley, the New England Trail Maintenance Committee will be leading a hike at the Holyoke Range State Park. And if you're looking for something more challenging, you can join the group that will be hiking Mt. Cube in New Hampshire. You will need to register for the activity you choose. Not all of the events have been posted yet so please keep checking. We hope you will come celebrate National Trails Day with us!

The NET is a 235-mile hiking trail route that has been in existence for over half a century. It travels through 41 communities in CT and MA, and is comprised primarily of the historic Mattabesett, Metacomet, and Monadnock (M-M-M) Trail systems. Visit the NET Hike Challenge 2025 page for more information, printable for kids, and FAQ's. Then, get your kids, the dog, family or friends and head out on the trail!

TAKE ACTION TODAY »

Celebrate National Park Week by hiking a section or two this week or join us as we work to maintain these beautiful trails. You can find lots of helpful information, links to trail maps, and opportunities to get involved in trail maintenance projects by going to the Committees page and selecting AT Management or NET Management. And don't forget to visit the NPS website for some fun videos celebrating this year's theme- National Park Playlist.

Did you know that the Chapter is entirely volunteer led? We want to express our sincere gratitude to all the volunteers in the Western MA Chapter! We are beyond grateful that you have chosen to share your skills, enthusiasm and passion for the outdoors with us! Meet some of our volunteers and find out ways that you can give back and get involved on our Volunteer pages. MORE PHOTOS »

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WATCH »

From planning and leading recreational activities to seasonal trail work – here's what our committees were up to last month.

20s/30s

Recent events include two XC skiing events at Notchview with the Worcester Chapter (02/22/2025 and 03/08/2025) and a hike at Mt Toby State Reservation (03/29/2025) ✧ The 20s/30s+ WhatsApp group now has over 70 members! ✧ Posted flyers on bulletin boards at local businesses throughout the valley and created an Instagram account

A.T. Management

There have been 2 wildlife transects since our last meeting: one on Race Mountain and the other in the Hop Brook area of Tyringham ✧ Seasonal project work has begun and includes bog bridge replacement and repair near the Shays' Rebellion monument in Sheffield, boundary maintenance around the Tyringham Cobble, brush clearing and blueberry bush trimming on Warner Hill in Hinsdale, and cleanup with chainsaws at 2 overnight sites after many hazardous trees were felled by professionals ✧ See the Outdoor Connector (OC) for details on upcoming A.T. projects and how to volunteer ✧ Volunteer recruitment needs include natural heritage monitors, trail maintainers, corridor monitors, and a shelter coordinator ✧ Next meeting: May 5, 2025

Communications

Our social media accounts continue to gain new followers. All Instagram data points showed improvement this month, while Facebook showed mixed results, despite an increase in the number of posts for the month. All of the data points for the emailed newsletter rose this month, including opening and link clicks ✧ Facebook: 27 posts (top post: Introducing Kim Carlino as a new MAL) ✧ Instagram: 19 posts (top post: Photos from the hike in Granby on March 5) ✧ Newsletters: 4086 messages sent ✧ Website: ongoing updates (activities, Western MA Exchange, conservation news, monthly maintenance)

Community Engagement

Working on an explanation of Affinity Trips and Allyship Guidelines ✧ Women+ Affinity Guided Wildflower Hike in the Southern Berkshires has been posted on OC ✧ The Interchapter Committee has been renamed the Community Engagement Committee and we are now meeting only bimonthly ✧ The Speaker Series has been renamed Community Voices Speaker Series ✧ We are hosting Karen Foster from AOA on May 1 2025 at 7:00 PM; she will speak on trip planning and preparation for folks with accessibility needs ✧ The Paddling Committee will have a transfer bench for use on the Trail Day paddle in the Berkshires. Interested volunteers can sign up to volunteer with AOA on Sign-Up-Genius ✧ Needed fixes on the All Persons Trail at Noble View have been reported to AMC ✧ Dawne attended an information session co-sponsored by Trails for All and AMC. The purpose of this session was to get the word out about "An Act Expanding Access To Trails For People Of All Abilities" (MA Bill S.548 H.915)

Family Programs

Nancy Condon, in collaboration with the Springfield Naturalist Club, designed a Vernal Pool Family Hike for Sunday April 6; outreach for this event has started ✧ The April StoryWalk^®, "Its Spring", will be installed on April 1, 2025 ✧ Dawne continues to take the lead in posting Family Programs into the OC; Laura starts OC training in April ✧ Reached out to a potential Family Programming committee member ✧ Contacted Hilltown Community Health Center to determine StoryWalk^® continuation at Noble View

Hiking

13 trip leaders were active this past quarter for 22 events

Membership

Obtaining AMC Western MA business cards and other literature ✧ Distributing AMC-branded cards to chapter chairs to share w/leaders ✧ Upcoming tabling event: National Trails Day at Diane's Twist on the Ashuwilticook Trail in Cheshire (06/07/2025, 10AM-2PM). Activities include a bike ride on the Ashuwilticook, a short hike on the A.T. near Cheshire, and paddling on Cheshire Lake. Refreshments will be provided. Giveaways: AMC cooling towels, new business cards, and pins ordered from the American Hiking Society ✧ Planning for promotional events continues

NET Management

The NET Mgmt Committee met on March 11 for 2025 Project Planning ✧ Connor Piechota - New England Trails Volunteer Program Supervisor was hired and will be assisting the NET Coordinator with the Holyoke Teen Crew and NET volunteer projects ✧ Adopters have already logged over 250 hours and removed 45 blowdowns ✧ The Adopter Spring Gathering was held on April 5 at the Notch Visitor Center at Mt Holyoke SP - over 20 adopters attended ✧ NET adopters will again assist on April 27 in conducting a trail clearing on Section 7 ( Mt Tom), in preparation for the Seven Sisters Trail Race scheduled for May 3

Paddling

The Paddling Committee last met on 03/19/2025; committee goals and plans for 2025 were discussed ✧ The Whitewater subcommittee will focus on our whitewater program, with Ann Gillard and another TBD volunteer organizing events ✧ Ann Gillard is working with Leigh Eubank of Hampshire College to arrange for whitewater kayaks and equipment to be borrowed for AMC trips ✧ Ann Gillard is developing whitewater leader training curriculum with input from others ✧ View upcoming trips on the OC

Miriam Maistelman, NET Coordinator, described upcoming trail work projects, which include the AMC Pro Trails crew, Holyoke Teen Crew and NET volunteers. Instruction was provided on AMC's new Outdoors Connector and upcoming training opportunities at Trail Skills College were summarized. We are grateful to all the trail adopters who volunteer their time and energy to care for the NET! If you want to learn how to get involved, visit our NET page for more information or contact the Western MA NET Chair.

AMC RESOURCES »

This is a moderate to strenuous hike due to elevation changes and rocky terrain. The RFT route takes hikers over the top of the Range not once but twice, taking advantage of lower "saddles" in the ridge. The terrain is varied, with steep ascents and descents and also gentler flat or rolling rambles. Along the way, hikers experience both the northern and southern faces of the Range, portions of the famous ridgetop route with stunning views, and the lovely Lithia Springs Reservoir. This hike features varied landscapes, including hardwood forests, open ledges, and occasional steep sections that provide a good workout. We'll take breaks to enjoy the views and appreciate the natural beauty that inspired poet Robert Frost, for whom the trail is named. REGISTER »

AMC RESOURCES »

April is Conservation Month in the Chapter. We recently sponsored an online talk about the dangers of rodenticides on birds of prey and periodically offer trash clean-up and invasive species removal events. Earth Day is April 22nd and we'd like to invite you to test your knowledge of Earth Day trivia by taking our Earth Day and How Long Does It Take? interactive quizzes to test your knowledge of Leave No Trace principles. What can you do for the environment? Bring a bag on your hikes to gather trash, clear trails of small branches, join one of our trail maintenance projects, or reach out to your representatives to support legislation that protects the environment. Go to the Protection page to learn more. And, if you're not already a member, you can join AMC to support all of the work we do to protect and conserve land along the Appalachian Trail Corridor.

UPCOMING ACTIVITIES »

MORE PHOTOS »