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HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Hopefully you’re settling into the New Year and looking forward to healthy activities outdoors with friends, family or in the blissful quiet of solitude this year.
 
All of us at the Arizona Trail Association thank you for your support and encourage you to make the Arizona Trail (AZT) a priority in 2020. If you’re looking for ways to get involved in a meaningful way, please consider… Most importantly, take a hike (or run or ride) and enjoy the breathtaking landscapes the Arizona Trail traverses…through deserts, mountains, canyons, forests and communities from Mexico to Utah.
 
Everything you need to know about the trail and our organization can be found at aztrail.org. Or email anytime. You can also leave a message on our voicemail (602-252-4794) and someone will get back to you soon.

You’re Invited to the Annual Meeting on February 1
Please join us to celebrate accomplishments over the past year (and 25 years!) and talk about what the future holds for the Arizona Trail Association and the Arizona National Scenic Trail when the Annual Meeting returns to the Desert Botanical Garden on Saturday, February 1 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
 
Enjoy the company of trail enthusiasts from throughout Arizona plus engaging speakers, informational displays, and more! Registration is $30 per person and includes a catered lunch and beverages plus coffee service and breakfast snacks in the morning. Live music from world flute virtuoso Gary Stroutsos will be part of this year's event. After the meeting, enjoy the incredible Desert Botanical Garden (admission is included with your registration).
 
Tickets are available through the ATA Store here.
 
Seating is limited, so get your tickets before they’re all gone! And please share this invitation with others who have an affinity for the Arizona Trail.
 
Featured speakers include:
Darwin Rakestraw (aka Darwin onthetrail)
This accomplished thru-hiker and YouTuber will share details about his forthcoming Arizona Trail documentary film, Through the Great Southwest, and share a sneak peek of the film with everyone in attendance.
 
Kimber Lanning
Kimber is the founder of Local First Arizona, and is an entrepreneur, business leader and community development specialist who works to cultivate strong self-reliant communities and inspire a higher quality of life for people across Arizona. Her passions include fostering cultural diversity and inclusion, economic resilience and responsible growth for Arizona.

AZT Documentary Film Premiere

Mark your calendar for Monday, February 17 when Through the Great Southwest premieres at the Orpheum Theater in Flagstaff. Through the Great Southwest is a documentary film about the Arizona Trail, which showcases amazingly beautiful and diverse terrain and has an equally significant impact on the lives of those who hike, ride, run, and support the trail across the state of Arizona.

Outdoor Evolution Founder Darwin Rakestraw (aka Darwin onthetrail) makes his directorial debut with this film project inspired by the history, geography, community, and users of the 800-mile National Scenic Trail.

Advance tickets for the film premiere are available here.

In addition to showing the full-length documentary film, the evening will include a Q&A session with Darwin and ATA Executive Director Matthew Nelson. An exclusive Outdoor Evolution beer, brewed in collaboration with Arizona Wilderness Brewery, will be on tap and available for the first time for this special event. Doors open at 7 p.m.

Proceeds will benefit the Arizona Trail Association and our mission to protect and maintain the trail. Check out the film trailer here. We hope to see you there!

Julie Polovitch Joins the ATA Team
We are proud to welcome Julie Polovitch to the Arizona Trail Association staff. Julie’s passion for ecology, recreation, public lands conservation, and social justice permeate her work as an outdoor educator. Before being hired as the ATA’s Youth Outreach & Education Coordinator last year, Julie taught, designed curriculum, and conducted outreach for a diverse set of programs across six states—though no place has ever tugged at her heartstrings quite like Arizona. She aims to share her love for the Colorado Plateau with youth in order to foster stronger connections with Arizona’s landscapes, nurture healthy communities, and empower stewardship.
 
Julie graduated from Prescott College with a degree in Environmental Education in 2014, then thru-hiked the Arizona Trail in 2015. Since that time, Julie has continuously sought out backpacking, rock climbing, and canyoneering adventures in Arizona’s wildest places. She will help sustain the ATA’s Seeds of Stewardship and Gear Girls programs throughout northern Arizona. Look for her and enthusiastic groups of youth when you’re on the trail near Flagstaff.
 
If you’d like to learn more about Gear Girls, Seeds of Stewardship, or how you can support these innovative stewardship programs for youth, just reach out to Julie.

Flagstaff Trails Initiative Releases New Trail Strategy
Trails are part of what make Flagstaff what it is – a place that embraces its extraordinary setting on the Colorado Plateau. The Flagstaff Trails Initiative is a collaborative community building project that’s looking to take Flagstaff’s trails – including the Arizona National Scenic Trail – to the next level of sustainability.
 
Please take a few minutes to read the DRAFT Flagstaff Regional Trail Strategy and provide comments by February 7. The FTI website also includes an interactive map to help guide the process. You will be impressed with what this committed group of trail users, agency partners and others have accomplished! Your input is encouraged.
 
We hope this collaborative trail planning endeavor will provide a positive model for other communities to follow. Working together, we can make good trails extraordinary.

Grand Canyon Adventures is a proud supporter of the Arizona Trail Association. Grand Canyon Adventures is one of the premier adventure tour agencies leading trips through the American Southwest. From Grand Canyon to Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend to Sedona (and beyond,) let Grand Canyon Adventures take you to the heart of the Southwest's most spectacular places. View their website for more information. https://www.dothecanyon.com/

Grand Canyon Adventures is a Ponderosa Pine level Business Partner.
 Please support the local businesses that support the ATA.
Copyright © 2020 Arizona Trail Association. All rights reserved.

Arizona Trail Association
738 N. 5th Avenue, Suite 201
Tucson, Arizona 85705
www.aztrail.org

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