Group working to protect local trails
Published in the Delta Wind - February 27,2014

Have you heard of or seen us at some of the local events last year? We are a grass roots group of trail
users in the Delta Junction Area dedicated to improving and protecting the variety of trails around Delta and creating new ones. We have been soliciting public input and working on creating a Community Trail Plan. The Delta Junction Community Trail Plan is important for all trail users in our community to ensure preservation and access to our local trails.  The Vision of this project is to create a community-wide trail system that will provide a place for year-round outdoor
recreational activities and trail opportunities for people of all ages, abilities, income, and trail interests in the Delta area.
 Just Imagine;
A sustainable trail up Donnelly Dome       
“Delta River Walk Trail” with fabulous views of the mountains along the Delta River         
A Nature Trail right next to Delta High School!       
And more……Whatever our community wants.
 In addition to working on trails, we have been hosting community events to encourage people to get out and be active.  We will also be writing a series of articles here in the Delta Wind entitled “Trail Talk” which will feature a variety of topics relating to trails, outdoor activities, equipment and updates on our projects. 
If you are a trapper, runner, musher, biker, skier, ATV’er, snowmachiner/snowmobiler, walker, snowshoer, equestrian rider, skijorer, dirt biker, hiker, mud trucker, recreationalist of any kind that utilizes some part or form of a trail, we need your input and assistance in creating the Delta Junction Community Trail Plan. This is Your Trail Plan. Are you interested in sharing your ideas, writing articles, helping with membership, outreach, grant writing, trail work, events?  Come to our next monthly Work Group meeting, February 27th 5:30-7:00pm at the CoOp Extension conference room Jarvis Building.   
Help us with this exciting project for all trail users in the Delta area!   
March 8th-“Celebrate the Sun with DJTA” Quartz Lake=Skiing, Ice Fishing, Bon Fire, Ski Joring Demo! Snow Shoeing,  Come Join the Fun! For more info;
Follow us on Facebook (facebook.com/DeltaJunctionTrails) or visit our new website deltajunctiontrails.com and support us by becoming a member!  

Happy Trails……
Mindy Eggleston, DJTA Chair
907-322-4644


 

 Sharing the trails
Published in the Delta Wind - January 23, 2014

 Here we are in darkest days of winter but that does not mean Alaskans are holed up inside waiting for spring, many feel that this is the best time of year time to get out and explore our local trails. 
A good snow pack opens up miles and miles of country that is less accessible at other times of the year.  Delta Junction is surrounded by incredibly vast wilderness, which attracts a diverse group of trail users. There are snow machiners, skiers, dog mushers, skijors, hikers, and even some bikers out there enjoying the snow and trails.  
 
Winter is also trapping season in Alaska and many trail users like to bring their dogs along for a hike, ski or ride. Pet owners often worry that their dog could be caught in a trap. While this is definitely possible it is good to know that trappers do not want to catch your dog for many reasons; many trappers are pet lovers themselves, harming pets gives trappers a bad name and catching a dog means that they will not catch anything else. There are things you can do to reduce the possibility of your pet getting caught and the best way is to become more familiar with trapping. 
 
The Delta Trails Association will be teaming up with a couple local trappers to host a workshop designed to teach non-trappers about trapping regulations, how to recognize a trap line and how to release a pet from a trap.  We will be showing a 30- minute video produced by the Alaska Trappers Association which addresses concerns about dogs getting into traps and participants will have the
chance to get a hands on demonstration on how to operate and remove several different types of traps. 
 
Our hope is that by helping non-trappers to better understand trapping that we can alleviate some concerns and make winter trail use safer and more enjoyable for everyone.
 
Please join us at 5:00 on January 27th at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game office here in Delta Junction.  If you have any questions call 895-5362.
 
Delta Junction Trails
Association