Dig in for Trails Day

Saturday is National Trails Day and trail users will have several ways to give back around the valley, with numerous organizations and agencies offering opportunities to help contribute to the upkeep of trail systems throughout the area.

q Several organizations will sponsor a Trails Day celebration at Lone Pine and Herron parks near Kalispell. Anyone wishing to help with trail maintenance or cleanup should meet at 8:30 a.m. at the north Foy’s Lake parking lot. Bring work gloves, sturdy shoes and water. For more information, contact Helen at 406-755-8089.

A free barbecue lunch will be provided by Kalispell Daybreak Rotary at 12:30 p.m., followed by a family-friendly “Foy’s Fest” gathering at Kalispell Brewing Co. from 2-4 p.m. organized by Foy’s to Blacktail Trails. The event will include free snacks, Patagonia gear giveaways and a chance to learn about the happenings at Herron Park. For details about Foy’s Fest, visit www.foystoblacktailtrails.org.

q Whitefish Legacy Partners, the Montana Wilderness Association and Montana Conservation Corps will hold a Trails Day celebration at Spencer Mountain from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Volunteer crews will be brushing, clearing the trail corridor and building a short re-route on the new 8-mile loop of the Whitefish Trail.

No trail work experience is necessary, but bring gloves, lunch, water and rain gear. The group will meet at the Twin Bridges trailhead at 9 a.m. For more information or to sign up, contact Carla Belski at 406-862-3880 or by email at carla@whitefishlegacy.org.

q The Whitefish Lake Institute will host a trail work day at 10 a.m. at the Living Wetlands Interpretive Trail in Whitefish. Meet at Viking Creek Road and Wisconsin Avenue, and bring boots, gloves, bug spray and sunscreen. The institute will provide lunch. To RSVP or get more information, call 406-862-4327.

Reporter Samuel Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.