Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club Receives Grant from the Appalachian Trail Conservancy

CVATC member Mike Bowman tries out the Club's new DR Mower

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) has awarded The Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club (CVATC) a $650 matching grant for the purchase of a new DR-brand string trimmer mower for use on the Trail.  HERE is a link to a short video showing the mower in action.

This self-propelled, walk behind mower will replace CVATC’s aging mower so we can continue to maintain the open grassy sections of our trail. CVATC volunteers work hard throughout the growing season to keep the path mowed and clear of any encroachment from the field grasses and invasive plants.

This year, the ATC awarded $24,890 to 13 Appalachian Trail (AT) clubs through this program. These grants, provided by the ATC with generous support from L.L. Bean Inc., help fund necessary projects along the AT, such as trail, bridge and shelter construction, recruiting and training new volunteers, purchasing tools and safety gear, developing educational materials and community outreach. Grants from this program may make the difference in a club’s ability to perform the vital work that makes the AT such a great recreational resource. Grant recipients are expected to match grants with labor, money or in-kind contributions.

The ATC was founded in 1925 by volunteers and federal officials working to build a continuous foot path along the Appalachian Mountains. The AT is a unit of the National Park System, stretching from Maine to Georgia. At approximately 2,190 miles in the length, the AT is the longest hiking-only footpath in the world. Last year, nearly 6,000 volunteers donated more than 240,000 hours of their time doing trail-related work. More than 3 million visitors walk a portion of the AT each year. The ATC has awarded more than half a million dollars in grants to the ATC’s affiliated Trail clubs and their volunteers through the L.L. Bean grants to AT Clubs program since 1982.

The ATC works with 31 Trail maintaining clubs by providing resources, training and volunteers to help maintain the Trail. The clubs are responsible for trail maintenance, monitoring protected land around the Trail, providing information to the Trail users and the public, and participating in regional partnership committee meetings.

About Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club:

The Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club is one of 31 Trail maintaining clubs that help to maintain the AT from Maine to Georgia. Our section is responsible for 17 miles through the Cumberland Valley from the top of Blue Mountain to Center Point Knob.
  
Contact
CVATC
Attn: Kevin Shannon – President
P.O. Box 395
Boiling Springs, PA 17007
cvatclub@gmail.com
www.cvatclub.org
www.facebook.com/cvatclub

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