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Alice Weinert's avatar

I used to do mostly solo hikes and backpacking trips, not because I preferred them but because it was difficult to coordinate schedules with the few hikers I knew. But a few summers ago, I started volunteering on the Ice Age National Scenic Trail and it completely changed my outlook on community in the outdoors.

Not only do I build friendships with other volunteers as we work, eat, and camp alongside each other for a long weekend, but I also have interactions with hikers who are passing through the project areas and neighbors who come out to see why fifty cars have suddenly descended on a small trailhead parking lot. It's amazing to see that the trail building and maintenance work that I help with is building community beyond what I personally experience at a project--it creates a place for others to go and build their own community.

Though I enjoy hikes where it feels like I am the only one in the woods, knowing that the trail I walk on was built through a great act of community makes me feel even more connected to the area.

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