Trail Life USA and Tread Lightly! Announce Outdoor Preservation Partnership
Orlando, FL – Today, Trail Life USA (TLUSA) takes another major step in building its outdoor adventure program by announcing a partnership with Tread Lightly!. Together, Tread Lightly! and TLUSA will promote outdoor education, awareness, and habitat restoration projects that will preserve wilderness lands and teach environmentally friendly practices for all outdoor activities.
“Our partnership will teach outdoor stewardship and provide lasting benefits to our communities,” said Mark Hancock, Chief Operating Officer of TLUSA. “‘To be a good steward of creation’ is a key tenet of our Trailman Oath.”
This partnership will give thousands of youth a first-hand experience in natural use programs. Tread Lightly! has become a provider of outdoor education and conservation practices since their founding in 1990. “Our programs will work together to teach the best ways to experience the outdoors so that future generations are able to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors,” Hancock said.
Tread Lightly! is a vocal advocate for the best practices in outdoor use and is a leader in conservation and sustainable outdoor recreation. Their federal partners include the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service and Army Corps of Engineers.
The key concepts of Tread Lightly!’s natural use program are:
Travel Responsibly – on land by staying on designated roads, trails and area. Go over, not around, obstacles to avoid widening the trails. Cross streams only at designated fords. When possible, avoid wet, muddy trails. On water, stay on designated waterways and launch your watercraft in designated areas.
Respect the Rights of Others – including private property owners, all recreational trail users, campers and others so they can enjoy their recreational activities undisturbed. Leave gates as you found them. Yield right of way to those passing you or going uphill. On water, respect anglers, swimmers, skiers, boaters, divers and those on or near shore.
Educate Yourself – prior to your trip by obtaining travel maps and regulations from public agencies. Plan for your trip, take recreation skills classes and know how to operate your equipment safely.
Avoid Sensitive Areas – on land such as meadows, lake shores, wetlands and streams. Stay on designated routes. This protects wildlife habitats and sensitive soils from damage. Don’t disturb historical, archeological or paleontological sites. On water, avoid operating your watercraft in shallow waters or near shorelines at high speeds.
Do Your Part – by modeling appropriate behavior, leaving the area better than you found it, properly disposing of waste, minimizing the use of fire, avoiding the spread of invasive species and repairing degraded areas.
The combined concepts of Tread Lightly! and TLUSA will be put into action this spring as materials are distributed to all TLUSA units across America.
For more information on Trail Life USA, go to www.TrailLifeUSA.com.
For more information on Tread Lightly!, go to http://www.treadlightly.
