The Great Western Trail Association, in partnership with the Custer Gallatin National Forest, celebrated this past summer the dedication of a new segment of the Great Western Trail (GWT) that connects the existing Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho sections with Montana.
Attendance at the event included representatives of the Great Western Trail Association including Mike Browning and Mike Titus, the USDA Forest Service, Idaho OHV Association, Wyoming OHV Association, Montana Trail Vehicle Riders Association, Montana Snowmobile Association and the Parks Division of Fish, Wildlife & Parks.
When recognized as a National Millennium Trail by the Department of Transportation and the White House Millennium Council, Former Secretary of Transportation Rodney E. Slater stated that, “Transportation is about more than concrete, asphalt, and steel, it’s about people. Millennium Trails will connect our nation’s landscape, heritage and culture and symbolize America’s legacy for the new millennium.”
The Great Western Trail provides a fantastic long distance recreation experience, promotes opportunities for economic growth, provides multi-use access to our public lands and acquaints the user with the culture, history, and traditions of the West.
The Great Western Trail is under study by Congress to become part of the National Trail System. The GWT is a 3,000-mile plus corridor of already existing trails, routes and roads, mostly on public lands. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and other land management agencies have identified points where these routes naturally link together, forming a corridor of trails that runs from the Mexican border ultimately to the Canadian border.
The trail is a predominately multi-use system, allowing both motorized and non-motorized recreation on both shared and separated paralleling routes.
This dedication celebrated the partnerships between the users and developers of the trail, the numerous land management agencies and the surrounding communities. This grass roots effort will insure continued development and maintenance of the Great Western Trail
For more information, visit www.gwt.org.
