filed under: maintenance best practices


Colorado Trail Foundation Crew Leader Handbook

As a crew leader you represent the CTF. One of your main jobs is to convey the CTF’s thanks to the volunteers for their commitment to making and preserving The Colorado Trail as a national treasure.

by The Colorado Trail Foundation


Colorado Trail Foundation 2022 Crew Leader Manual


This manual is intended only as a crew and camp organization guide, not a trail construction manual. Construction techniques and specific equipment use guides are provided in the United States Forest Service’s (USFS, Forest Service) “Trail Construction and Maintenance Notebook.

The CTF offers a variety of trail crew types, including both basecamp and backpack crews. To make it easier for crew leaders of the two different types of crews to find relevant information in this Handbook, sections specific to basecamp crews are shown in text boxes with a blue background while sections specific to backpack crews are shown in text boxes with a green background. All other sections are applicable to both types of crews.

Published January 2022

About the Author


The Colorado Trail Foundation is a nonprofit organization that oversees the care and improvement of the Colorado Trail.

More Articles in this Category

Celebrating Women Who Care for Trails

Cathy Corlett, American Trails Director of Strategic Communications, joined Trailkeepers of Oregon's women-only trail work party to find out more about the work being done and the women who opt to spend their Sunday working on the trail, even when the weather conditions are less than ideal.

Volunteers for Outdoor Arizona Crew Leader Manual

This manual has been written to aid crew leaders working with trail work volunteers. It assumes the following priorities, in order of importance, for every volunteer trail work event: 1) Safety, 2) Enjoyment, 3) Quality product, 4) Productivity.

Appalachian Mountain Club 2022 Outdoor Leader Handbook

Outdoor leadership skills can be developed and improved over time through a combination of self-study, formal training and experience. Leadership trainings are offered frequently by volunteers and staff of the AMC. The trainings range from a single day to a weekend. If you are looking for additional training, the AMC offers several courses each season through the Guided Outdoors program.