Advancing Trails Awards

The Advancing Trails Awards Program recognizes the tremendous contributions of volunteers, professionals, and other leaders who are working to create an effective system of trails across the globe.

2019 Advancing Trails Awards

The Advancing Trails Awards were announced at the 24th International Trails Symposium and Training Institute in Syracuse, New York April 28 - May 1, 2019


Award Categories

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2019 winner, Rory Robinson

2019 winner, Rory Robinson

Hulet Hornbeck Lifetime Service

This award recognizes and honors an individual demonstrating longstanding, significant, and exemplary service to the trails movement. Their contribution should be national in scope and submissions should describe accomplishments which have achieved lasting impact for trails. Supporting documentation and affirmations are encouraged.

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2019 winner, Gary Vernon (The Walton Family Foundation)

Chairman’s Award

This special award is conferred at the will of the Chair of the board, in concurrence with fellow board members, to recognize notable achievements by an individual that changes the landscape of the trails industry.


2019 winner, Willie Wildlife Marsh

Trail Accessibility

This award recognizes a trail or trail system that demonstrates excellent integration of accessibility characteristics into its design and construction. Trails must comply with the new Federal guidelines for recreation trails and provide universal design for people of all backgrounds, ages, and abilities.

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Trail Planning/Design (Two Levels)

This award recognizes an extraordinary trail project which demonstrates innovative planning and design techniques while making a positive contribution to the community it serves. Submissions should describe special features of the trail(s), greenway(s), or blueway(s), with an emphasis on unique solutions to design challenges as well as explain the trail’s positive impact.

2019 level one winner, Western Piedmont Trail

2019 level one winner, Western Piedmont Trail

2019 level two winner, Three Creeks Trail

2019 level two winner, Three Creeks Trail


2019 winner, Tahoe East Shore Trail Alliance

Trail Partnership

The partnership must consist of two or more entities and must have benefited agencies or services within the field of trail planning, design, or implementation. The partnership must have contributed toward positive public exposure for trails. The partnership can be between organizations, agencies, corporations, or public and private interests.

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2019 winner, The Georgia Mountains Children’s Forest Network

Trail Promotion and Education

This award recognizes innovative and successful strategies for promoting and increasing trail use and understanding. Unique signage, fun trail events, outreach to schools/elders/veterans/etc., creative use of media, modal training, storyboards, specialized apps, etc. are but a few of the imaginative ways being used to engage and broaden the community of trail users.

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2019 winner, Major Taylor Trail Mural

Trails and the Arts

This award recognizes the integration of art with the trail experience including outstanding public art works, interpretive signs, or other creative structures, sounds or even smells associated with trail related enhancement.

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2019 winner, City of Baton Rouge

2019 winner, City of Baton Rouge

Trails for Health

This award recognizes a community’s commitment to incorporating trails into their overall public-health-improvement plans by facilitating access, promoting use, and broadly communicating the importance of physical activity to good health. The award highlights the effectiveness of including trails in community design as a strategy for increasing citizen activity level and consequent good health.

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2019 winner, Hidden Lakes Trail Network, Perito Moreno National Park, Argentina

International Partnership

This award recognizes unique and outstanding collaboration between trail partners spanning international borders. It can be focused on a specific trail project or can reflect a broader joint approach that contributed to or catalyzed a positive outcome in trail planning, design, implementation, or promotion. The partnership can be between or among private organizations, regional and local agencies, national governments, or any mixture of participating parties.

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State Awards: Outstanding Trail Leaders

These awards will recognize individuals who have made compelling and significant contributions to the trails movement in their home states. Any area of trail excellence or achievement – advocating, designing, building, using, maintaining, promoting, decorating, adapting technologies for trail use, etc. – could be grounds for receiving this honor. Open to US nominations only. Only one award per State will be made.

See all winners of this award.


Awards by Year

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2019 Advancing Trails Awards

The Advancing Awards Program is one way American Trails recognizes the tremendous contributions and successes of exemplary people across the globe who are working to advance trails. These awards are presented every two years during the International Trails Symposium and Training Institute.

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2017 Advancing Trails Awards

Awards were presented at the 23rd International Trails Symposium - May 7-10, 2017, Dayton, Ohio.

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Greater Yellowstone Trail Concept Plan

2015 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards celebration was held in Portland at the Oregon Convention, April 16, 2015.

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2013 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards celebration was held at Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, Arizona, April 16, 2013.

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2010 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards celebration was held in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Nov. 16, 2010.

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2008 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards were presented on Nov.17, 2008 at the 19th National Trails Symposium in Little Rock, AR.

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2006 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards were presented on October 21, 2006, at the 18th National Trails Symposium in the Quad Cities of Iowa and Illinois.

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2004 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards were presented on October 23, 2004, at the 17th National Trails Symposium in Austin, Texas.

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2002 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards were announced at the 16th National Trails Symposium in Orlando, Florida, November 10-13, 2002.

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2000 Advancing Trails Awards

The awards celebration was held in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Nov. 16, 2010.

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Sundial Bridge at night - MB