Committee Reports

From trail work and corridor monitoring to trip leadership and training – here's what our committees were up to last month.

A.T. Management

Most recent meeting: 2024-Mar-04 ✧ Next meeting: 2024-May-06 ✧ Recent projects and activities: wildlife transects and corridor monitoring are ongoing; trail projects will start up asap - season schedule has been set and is posted on the website ✧ The committee voted to invest in funds to repair gravel in high-impact sections of the Upper Goose Pond Caretakers Rd ✧ Met with NPS and APPA staff for pre-approval of funding and trail location for the Hop Brook project ✧ Future plans: 3 Greenagers projects are planned ✧ Volunteer recruitment needs: natural heritage monitors, trail maintainers, corridor monitors, shelter coordinator, and 2025 committee vice chair

Bicycling

Committee Chair attended the February ExCom Meeting ✧ Completed draft calendar for 2024 biking season ✧ Listed April and May bike rides on ActDB ✧ Updated committee webpage for 2024 season ✧ Investigating participation in MassBike May monthly riding activities ✧ Distributing information to local bike shops about Intro classes to pass onto their bike customers

Communications

The Communications Team continued to make progress towards the annual goal. The eblast open rate improved 11% in March. The Chair participated in Canva training to learn how to make flyers. The webmaster continues to add pages and update existing pages. One Facebook post reached over 7000 accounts. ✧ Facebook: 15 posts (top post: Nice and Easy Canal Walk) ✧ Instagram: 15 posts (top post: Eclipse Hike and Social) ✧ Newsletters: 1394 messages sent ✧ Website: 1) Updated Noble View map and participant comments page, 2) Wrote new page for leader resources, 3) Started on a new initiative with the Conservation Committee tentatively titled "Westfield River Waterfront Cleanup"

Hiking

Active hiking leaders: 36; new leader: Alison Terjek ✧ Trips led in March 2024: Mt Greylock (2024-Mar-05); Fitzgerald Lake (2024-Mar-12); Mt Greylock (2024-Mar-15); Hoosac Range (2024-Mar-17); Bearsden Conservation Area (2024-Mar-19); N&S Sugarloaf (2024-Mar-26); and Mt Toby (2024-Mar-30) ✧ Walking Series by Nancy Condon - 9 outings (Nice and Easy Canal Walks and Holyoke Revitalization Tours) ✧ Created a list-serv for hiking leaders

Membership

Welcomed new Membership Chair: Lynn Garrity

Paddling

Previous meeting: 2024-02-06; next meeting: 2024-04-17 ✧ Leader training role-playing scenarios for T&E have been completed ✧ Planning is currently underway for this season's paddling events, demos, leader training, workshops, and invasive pulls ✧ Six whitewater events have been posted on ActDB ✧ We are in need of more paddle leaders and committee members

Training and Education

Chapter Leadership Skills Training was run on 24-Mar-2024 in Greenfield, MA ✧ Online adult MHFA Training has been postponed until June, with self-paced learning; youth and in-person training undergoing scheduling now ✧ Upcoming AMC SOLO WFA/WFR courses are on ActDB