Volunteer

Each year hundreds of people join Washington Trails Association as volunteers - on the trail, in the office and with the public at events. It's a great way to meet wonderful people, do important work and have some serious fun.

Volunteers haul a stringer on a volunteer vacation to Hart Lake. By Arlo Smith

Get Involved as a Volunteer Today!

Trail Work Parties

Washington Trails Association schedules more than 600 work parties each year, contributing 80,000 hours of trail work to the US Forest Service, National Park Service, Washington Department of National Resources and Washington's state and county parks.

You don't need to have any prior experience (or be particularly strong) to join one of our Trail Teams - just sign up for a work party and we'll do the rest. 

View the Work Party Calendar - One and two day work parties throughout the state.

Backcountry Response Teams (BCRTs) - 3 to 4-day trips that take self-supported trail maintenance crews further into the backcountry to address maintenance needs

Volunteer Vacations - Every summer WTA hosts several week-long work parties in fabulous locations.

Youth Volunteer Vacations - WTA also offers several week-long vacations specifically designed for high school students 14-18 years old.

In this section, you can also:

• Learn more about the kind of trail work we do.
• Find out answers to common questions about trail work.
  

TrailsFest

Be a part of WTA's annual outdoor festival!  There are a variety of ways you can be part of the fun: spread the word on our publicity team, learn about the behind the scenes aspects with set-up or tear down, or help staff the kids activities booth.  Check out the full list of TrailsFest volunteer opportunities or sign-up here.

Office Volunteers

There's work to be done at the WTA office, too.  Each month, generally on the last Tuesday of the month, we host a renewal mailing party. Sign up for a few hours and you'll see the principle of "many hands make light work" in action. We may also have volunteer opportunities throughout the month as well, depending on the season. Projects include filling merchandise orders, labeling postcards, mailing membership packages, database work, fact checking and address correcting. The WTA office is located conveniently in Belltown – dangerously close to Top Pot Donuts. Office hours are 9am - 5pm M-F.

If you are interested in helping WTA staff serve our members, please contact us! Call Kara Chin at 206-625-1367 or email kara@wta.org.

Outreach Volunteers

Educating the public about WTA and the policy work we do to protect trails is a great way for hikers to learn more about policy and meet some great people. Whether it's phonebanking on an issue that needs immediate action or tabling at an event where you can introduce members of the general public to WTA and trail issues, there is always work to be done and a good time to be had.

If you are interested in volunteering for an advocacy phonebank or an outreach tabling event contact Kindra Ramos at kindra@wta.org or 206-625-1367.

Other Ways You Can Help

Contribute to the Website

This website works because people like you are willing to make it better:

• Submit a Trip Report - Write a report on your latest hike. Let everyone know what shape the trail is in.
• Write a Hiking Guidebook entry - Write a guide-book-style description of your favorite hike and we'll add it to our online list of Trail Reviews.
• Submit a photograph to our Photo Gallery - Send us a scanned image of your favorite outdoor photograph.
• Contribute a recipe to our Backcountry Kitchen - Share your favorite backcountry meal ideas.

Become a WTA Member of WTA

Not Enough Time?  A large portion of WTA's operating budget comes from membership dues and private donations. If you use this site regularly, please consider becoming a WTA member.  Several different membership levels are available from Senior/Student Rambler at $20 up to Fireside Circle membership at $500.