A motorcycle-loving advocacy group recently made a big ride to save trails in Grand County.
The Trails Preservation Alliance is a Colorado Springs-based non-profit whose mission is to protect and improve access to motorized single-track trails.
While promoting responsible and accessible off-highway vehicle recreation, the outdoors nonprofit partners with a wide range of outdoor enthusiasts, such as hikers, mountain bikers, horseback riders and land managers, to ensure trails are sustainably and equitably managed.
A three-person trail crew from the alliance recently traveled to Grand County to reopen West Stillwater Pass Trail, a U.S. Forest Service trail that was damaged by the East Troublesome Fire in 2020 and had been closed ever since - until now.
This project was the alliance's fourth hitch of the 2025 season. A hitch refers to the eight-day work period. The trail crew operates on an eight days on and six days off rotation and has 14 hitches scheduled for the 2025 season in Colorado.
The group tackled a substantial project in the U.S. Forest Service's Sulphur Ranger District. They cleared more than 700 trees during the eight-day work period, allowing the opening of the West Stillwater Pass Trail that has been closed for over four years.
From June 4-11, the crew worked closely with Forest Service recreation staffer, Andrew McElwee, to cover a total of 226 trail miles by motorcycle and maintain over 48 miles of trail.
A total of 728 downed trees were cut to clear access on burned trail corridors. Much of the work took place in high burn severity zones where fire blowdown, erosion and vegetation regrowth had blocked access.
Other notable figures from the early June hitch include:
- 18 new drainage features built to protect trails from post-fire erosion
- 130 feet of trail reconstructed by hand in fire-damaged sections
- Three trail water crossings repaired and stabilized
- Six large boulders placed to anchor tread and reduce future erosion
- Six trees felled to eliminate dangerous hang-ups.
Hang-ups are trees that have fallen, but somehow get stuck on another tree, or otherwise cannot fall.
In addition to West Stillwater Pass, work was done on other existing trail corridors included Willow Creek, Illinois Pass, Sherman Creek, Gilsonite Trail, Jack Park and Radial Mountain.
A news release writes that this hitch marked a "critical opportunity for in-person coordination" between the alliance and Sulphur Ranger District staff.
Troy Sitton, a veteran trail foreman, and the rest of the trail crew have supported five different Bureau of Land Management Field Offices and Forest Service Ranger Districts since late April, when the work season began.
For Sitton, he was already familiar with the Granby area because he previously worked with the Forest Service's Suphur Ranger District out of Granby. He worked as part of the off-highway vehicle state trail crew, where he did trail work and much more.
The West Stillwater Pass Trail was an extremely new trail, according to Sitton, and it was open for about a month before the fire hit.
"This is a trail that was brand new, then closed a month later from the fire. It has never been ridden all the way through since. So it has hundreds of one foot tall trees growing in, sticks, and rocks," Sitton said.
As a result, the trail crew removed 2,150 feet of debris from existing trails.
"Over 2,000 feet of debris was us walking miles at a time and removing everything from the trail. Then walking back, running a GPS to calculate the footage of debris removed," Sitton said.
All 2025 trail crew operations are being fully funded by the Trails Preservation Alliance, according to Executive Director Chad Hixon. The nonprofit relies on personal and corporate donations for its work. However, a recent grant from Colorado Parks and Wildlife will allow the alliance to expand its footprint and work in 2026.
Much of the alliance's work centers on supporting local motorcycle and ATV clubs by helping members navigate relationships with land managers, access grant funding, engage their communities and preserve trails through cleanup efforts and volunteer days.
"At our core, we believe in collaboration, education, and keeping trails open for everyone who values them," the alliance's website states.
For more information about the Trails Preservation Alliance or to support their work, visit ColoradoTPA.org.
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