Trail Mix, Inc.

Fall in Juneau 🧡🤎💛. We don’t have many deciduous trees but we do have fireweed.

📍Kax̱digoowu Héen Dei

Fall in Juneau 🧡🤎💛. We don’t have many deciduous trees but we do have fireweed.

📍Kax̱digoowu Héen Dei

Last week, we took advantage of the sunny weather window to fly in 45 gravel bags to Treadwell Ditch for tread improvements, and through the power and depth of our Trail Maintenance Volunteer Team, about 25 of those bags have already been emptied. That’s enough gravel to fill one and a half dump trucks!

Each bag weighs about 1700lbs so that’s no small task. The gravel is transferred one shovelful at a time to wheelbarrows where it’s carried to the appropriate spot on the trail. It’s then spread with rakes and packed down with tampers.

Over the course of the season, this volunteer team has improved over 1.5 miles of trail on Treadwell Ditch, and once they empty out the remaining gravel bags, that total will be around 2 miles.

A big thank you to our volunteers for all your hard work!

📍Sayéik

Last week we had our eyes on the sky! ☀️🚁During the couple days of clear weather, we sent up gravel bags and bridge parts to the Treadwell Ditch. The gravel is being used on the approaches for the four new bridges we installed earlier this season.

Now that the bridge parts have been flown up, crew members are able to begin assembling our largest bridge yet. Their work on the Nielson Creek bridge began today.

📍Lingít Aaní

After last weekend’s storm we’ve been hearing quite a few reports of downed trees over trails and landslides. To help us take care of Juneau’s trails we need some help from you! Next time you’re out hiking and see damage to the trail, snap a picture and make note of how far you are. When you get home, fill out the Juneau Trail’s Damage Report. These reports enable us to quickly address damage to our trail system. You can find the link on our website under “Contact Us” or go to bit.ly/juneautrailsreport.

📍Lingìt Aaní

After last weekend’s storm we’ve been hearing quite a few reports of downed trees over trails and landslides. To help us take care of Juneau’s trails we need some help from you! Next time you’re out hiking and see damage to the trail, snap a picture and make note of how far you are. When you get home, fill out the Juneau Trail’s Damage Report. These reports enable us to quickly address damage to our trail system. You can find the link on our website under “Contact Us” or go to bit.ly/juneautrailsreport.

📍Lingìt Aaní

Clear skies and calm waters offer two amazing views at Skater’s Cabin.

📍Sit’.áa

Clear skies and calm waters offer two amazing views at Skater’s Cabin.

📍Sit’.áa

Wow! Can you believe we’re 20 weeks into our trail season? 🤩Time sure flies when you’re working hard. Last week, crew members took a break from work and had some fun in the sun. ☀️Thanks to The ORCA Pod crew we were able to spend the afternoon doing low-ropes and high-ropes teambuilding activities.

During the rest of the week, crew members finished the decking on the elevated walkway at the Eagle Valley Center. Now, all that’s left to do is build the approaches and add the handrails. Our Treadwell crew worked hard on building approaches to the new bridges they’ve installed and prepared materials for the next fly day. 🚁Work has also begun on the Christopher trail! Crew members began staging materials at the worksite for use this week.

📍Lingít Aaní

We know it’s pouring out there 🌧, but there’s sun in the forecast ☀️ for early next week 🗓, so start planning now 🤔!

📍Sayéik

We know it’s pouring out there 🌧, but there’s sun in the forecast ☀️ for early next week 🗓, so start planning now 🤔!

📍Sayéik

Our trail crews have been working hard all season, including replacing the elevated walkway at the Eagle Valley Center (EVC). As a thank you, SAIL’s Outdoor Recreation and Community Access (ORCA) team were kind enough to facilitate an afternoon on the EVC ropes course for us. Check out our stories for more!

Our trail crews have been working hard all season, including replacing the elevated walkway at the Eagle Valley Center (EVC). As a thank you, SAIL’s Outdoor Recreation and Community Access (ORCA) team were kind enough to facilitate an afternoon on the EVC ropes course for us. Check out our stories for more!

As fall deepens, the bears will be bedding down for their winter hibernation. Until next spring! 🐻

📍Til’héeni

As fall deepens, the bears will be bedding down for their winter hibernation. Until next spring! 🐻

📍Til’héeni

It was all hands on deck out at Point Bridget the past few weeks! To improve the trail, we first removed a ton of old, slippery boardwalk. Much of this boardwalk was rotting away or falling into puddles on the trail. Once the boardwalk was out, crews began to add gravel to the trail.

We worked to improve the trail by adding gravel and increasing drainage. Over the past few weeks, crew members emptied over 70 bags of gravel to create a much sturdier trail. We also installed some new culverts to direct the flow of water.

Shoutout to Liam, Sarah, Owen, Meghan, Jesse, Jean, Julio, Sage, and Dane for their work on this project!

📍Lingít Aaní

Our crews continued their work at the Eagle Valley Center, Point Bridget, and Treadwell Ditch last week. The walkway is moving along and looking great at the Eagle Valley Center. The crew at Point Bridget finished up their trail improvements for the season. Our Treadwell crew prepared bags of gravel that will be flown out when there’s a weather window.

📍Lingít Aaní

Today is National Public Lands Day, which is a time to celebrate the connection between people and the land in their community.

While many of us feel close ties to our home, Indigenous people have inhabited, maintained, and respected this land for over 10,000 years. Long before this land was colonized, it was known as Lingít Aaní (‘Tlingit Land’), and as the original stewards, the Tlingit have continued to care for it. The theft, violence, and forced removal that occurred where our trails now exist is the dirty little "secret" of public lands.

It’s important that we know and understand this history and also recognize the continued resilience of Indigenous peoples here and all over the world. That is why we are excited to announce a new partnership with Sealaska Heritage Institute to bring the stories of the Tlingit to one of Juneau’s most prominent trails — Treadwell Ditch.

Before it was known as Douglas Island, the Tlingit called it Sayéik, which may mean ‘Spirit Helper.’ Working with SHI, new interpretive signage will be created to help visitors better understand the Indigenous presence on the island from pre-colonization, to the mining days of Treadwell, and beyond.

Acknowledgement is a small step. But it can begin a wider conversation on Indigenous sovereignty and cultural rights, moving us closer towards repairing relationships and healing past harms.

📍Lingít Aaní

Today is National Public Lands Day, which is a time to celebrate the connection between people and the land in their community.

While many of us feel close ties to our home, Indigenous people have inhabited, maintained, and respected this land for over 10,000 years. Long before this land was colonized, it was known as Lingít Aaní (‘Tlingit Land’), and as the original stewards, the Tlingit have continued to care for it. The theft, violence, and forced removal that occurred where our trails now exist is the dirty little "secret" of public lands.

It’s important that we know and understand this history and also recognize the continued resilience of Indigenous peoples here and all over the world. That is why we are excited to announce a new partnership with Sealaska Heritage Institute to bring the stories of the Tlingit to one of Juneau’s most prominent trails — Treadwell Ditch.

Before it was known as Douglas Island, the Tlingit called it Sayéik, which may mean ‘Spirit Helper.’ Working with SHI, new interpretive signage will be created to help visitors better understand the Indigenous presence on the island from pre-colonization, to the mining days of Treadwell, and beyond.

Acknowledgement is a small step. But it can begin a wider conversation on Indigenous sovereignty and cultural rights, moving us closer towards repairing relationships and healing past harms.

📍Lingít Aaní

Exciting news! With the help of the JDHS Alpine Club, we have begun the long-awaited restoration of the connection between Cope Park and the Flume.

The Christopher Trail project will be supported by both trail crews and volunteer groups. If you are part of a group that would like to volunteer, go to www.trailmixinc.org/give/volunteer/ to let us know.

Big thanks to the JDHS Alpine Club for kicking things off!

📍Dzantik’i Héeni

Exciting news! With the help of the JDHS Alpine Club, we have begun the long-awaited restoration of the connection between Cope Park and the Flume.

The Christopher Trail project will be supported by both trail crews and volunteer groups. If you are part of a group that would like to volunteer, go to www.trailmixinc.org/give/volunteer/ to let us know.

Big thanks to the JDHS Alpine Club for kicking things off!

📍Dzantik’i Héeni

The Vitamin D last weekend was 👌.

📍It’ji Shaanáx̱

The Vitamin D last weekend was 👌.

📍It’ji Shaanáx̱

The days are getting shorter but our crews are working harder than ever. Last week the crew out at Point Bridget emptied just over 40 gravel bags. Each bag is filled with about 500 pounds of gravel! The trail at Point Bridget is looking much less muddy and is close to finished.

Meanwhile, our crew at the Eagle Valley Center finished adding in the support piers with the helical pile driver. They’ve begun construction on the new walkway and are at the halfway point. We can’t wait to see the finished product!

📍Lingít Aaní

Today we’re on trail with Sealaska Heritage Institute!

One of Sealaska Heritage Institute’s Core Values is Haa Aaní:

𝘏𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 & 𝘜𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘓𝘢𝘯𝘥

𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘈𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘢
𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 10,000 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴. 𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘶𝘴
𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵. 𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥
𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥
𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴.

Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian people view themselves as part of the land. Our ancestors are part of the land. Even though ownership and control of ancestral lands in Southeast Alaska are held by others, the relationship between Native people and the land has not changed. The obligations to respect and honor the land remain as part of our values today. When we use resources from the land, we have an obligation to the community and to our future grandchildren to ensure we don’t overharvest those resources, we share those resources with others. We are mindful of our footsteps and impacts when we travel across the land.

SHI is grateful for the work and care that Trail Mix has taken with the trail systems in the Juneau area. Their values of caring for the land and doing work that benefits others and future generations have many parallels with our values. Gunalchéesh! Háw’aa! Nt’oyaxsn!

📍Lingít Aaní

We must acknowledge and understand the full history of the conservation movement rather than selectively filter out its dark past.

Darners are the largest dragonflies in Alaska (>55mm long) and are strong fliers. With their long, slender abdomens, darners were probably named for their resemblance to darning needles 🪡.

📍Lingít Aaní

Darners are the largest dragonflies in Alaska (>55mm long) and are strong fliers. With their long, slender abdomens, darners were probably named for their resemblance to darning needles 🪡.

📍Lingít Aaní

It’s been a bridge-building extravaganza on Treadwell Ditch!

In just a few short weeks, four new bridges have been installed by our Ditch crew. Some of these replaced old, basic wood structures while others created safe passage across gulleys that were cumbersome to cross.

The bridges range in size from 16 to 23 feet long and are all located within a mile of each other just south of the Bonnie Brae access trail.

Big thanks to our team of bridge-building experts, Dane, Jean, Jesse, Julio, and Garrett, who even camped out for a week in order to maximize their time out on trail. And a preemptive shoutout to our Trail Maintenance Volunteer Team, who is in charge of building the approaches, so there is a seamless transition from the trail surface to the start of each bridge.

📍Sayéik

Last week was amazing! Our Treadwell crew finished up the four smaller-scale bridges they’ve been working on and they look great. Another crew continued work out at the Eagle Valley Center. There, they began construction on the new elevated walkway. Out a Point Bridget, a crew continued filling in the old trail with gravel and removing boardwalk.

📍Lingít Aaní

🔥🔥🔥

📍Sayéik

🔥🔥🔥

📍Sayéik

Do you love being a part of a team AND being outdoors? We’re hiring crew members for the fall!

Join one of our trail crews where you work hard ⛏, crack jokes 😆, and make a big impact 💪 on Juneau’s trail system all in a 4-day work week. The best part? No prior experience is necessary, and positions are available immediately.

Applications are being reviewed on a rolling basis so don’t wait! ✨We strongly encourage applications from BIPOC, LGBTQ2S+, women, and others with underrepresented identities in trail building and maintenance.✨

For full job description and how to apply, go to bit.ly/trailmixfall21. Help us spread the word and tag a friend who you think might be interested!

📍Chichnáx̱

Do you love being a part of a team AND being outdoors? We’re hiring crew members for the fall!

Join one of our trail crews where you work hard ⛏, crack jokes 😆, and make a big impact 💪 on Juneau’s trail system all in a 4-day work week. The best part? No prior experience is necessary, and positions are available immediately.

Applications are being reviewed on a rolling basis so don’t wait! ✨We strongly encourage applications from BIPOC, LGBTQ2S+, women, and others with underrepresented identities in trail building and maintenance.✨

For full job description and how to apply, go to bit.ly/trailmixfall21. Help us spread the word and tag a friend who you think might be interested!

📍Chichnáx̱

Black bear or brown bear?

On the Amalga Trail, these paw prints were spotted on the banks of a salmon stream that a trail bridge crosses.

According to Yellowstone National Park, there’s a few features that help distinguish the prints. Check out their side-by-side comparison and tell us what you think!

📍Lingít Aaní

This #transformationtuesday we’ve been as busy as the beavers at Outer Point! 🦫After the heavy rains, a section of the trail washed out and became clogged with debris. Water was starting to accumulate on the trail and the drains were overwhelmed.

Luckily, we were able to quickly fix those issues to get one of Juneau’s favorite trails back in tip-top shape. ✨One of our crews worked to remove all the branches and mud that covered the trail. Then, they added in two new culverts to assist in funneling water under and away from the trail. Once the culverts were in place, crew members added fresh gravel to the areas of the trail that had eroded away.

💥 Thank you to Owen, Liam, and Meghan for your hard work on this trail! 💥

📍Deishú Áak'w