06Dec 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Embrace the Brrr — film fest and annual meeting Dec. 11

Events

Tsalteshi Trails Association will hold its annual membership meeting and screening of the 2021-2022 Backcountry Film Festival, "Embrace the Brrr," from 6 to 9 p.m. Dec. 11 in the conference rooms at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex. Doors open at 6 p.m., with the membership meeting at 6:30 p.m. and films starting at 7 p.m. Admission is free for Tsalteshi members and $20 for nonmembers. Renew or start a membership now and get in free! Admission includes one free beer or root beer from Kenai River Brewing, with additional beverages available for purchase. Find out what's new at the trails, heard from Board of Directors candidates and celebrate winter with the BFF! Check out the trailers here: https://winterwildlands.org/backcountry-film-festival Contact info@tsalteshi.org for more questions or more information.

06Dec 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Application period open for TTA Board seats

TTA Board of Directors

Tsalteshi Trails Association is accepting applications for four seats on the TTA Board of Directors. Ideal board candidates are passionate about the trails and want to work toward improving the management, sustainability and function of the TTA organization and the trails and build a strong community within our user groups. Here’s an opportunity to do just that! Use your energy and expertise to improve the trails Work within our mission, vision and values Work toward accomplishing our strategic plan objectives Participate in events and programs on the trails Do you have experience in finance/accounting, leadership, trail design/maintenance or recreational management? Are you a skier, biker, runner and/or walker who is passionate about the trails system? Consider applying! Must be a member in good standing of the Tsalteshi Trails Association for…

23Nov 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Tsalteshi Tree Ski

Events

Help Tsalteshi brighten up winter with the Tsalteshi Tree Ski! We're looking for volunteers to sponsor and decorate trees on the Moose Loop by Skyview Middle School. Provide your own decorations, decorate your tree by Dec. 17 and take them down after Jan. 8. Tsalteshi members will vote for their favorite tree and the winner will get a Viewer's Choice Award. All TTA members who vote for their favorite tree will be put in a raffle for prizes, as well. Businesses, organizations, families, friends, groups of complete strangers who happen to like holiday decorating — come one, come all! We've got small, medium and large trees available, with the tallest requiring something to climb on or a pole to place decorations — but don't worry, we're not assigning any 30-footers.…

22Nov 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Bylaws update

TTA Board of Directors

The Tsalteshi Trails Association Board of Directors has been working on updating the TTA Bylaws, to better reflect growth in the organization and current operating procedures. Proposed changes are available for review below, as well as existing bylaws, revised in 2019. Most changes are inconsequential — formatting and grammatical cleanup. Proposed changes of any substance are highlighted in yellow. Submit comments to info@tsalteshi.org by Dec. 5 for our Board to review before voting on changes. TTA Bylaws Nov. 2021 TTA Bylaws March 2019

16Oct 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Tsalteshi receives Outstanding Organization Award

General

[caption id="attachment_4230" align="alignnone" width="300"] ARPA members take a tour of Tsalteshi Trails on Oct. 7 during the conference in Soldotna[/caption] Tsalteshi Trails Association is thrilled to have received the 2020 Outstanding Organization Award from the Alaska Recreation and Park Association. ARPA held a conference in Soldotna Oct. 6-7, including taking a bike tour of area trails. The award recognizes entities that make great contributions to their community and to the improvement of recreation in Alaska. Tsalteshi was recognized for its efforts to meet the increase in users when COVID hit, stepping up maintenance, grooming and programming to make sure we had a safe, fun and welcoming place for people to get out and enjoy. [caption id="attachment_4231" align="alignnone" width="300"] Sen. Peter Micciche presents Jordan Chilson, secretary of the Tsalteshi Trails Association Board of…

16Oct 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

New signage

General

New trail signs are going up throughout Tsalteshi this fall. We started with the Slikok main trails and are working on the Wolverine-Porcupine-Vole section off K-Beach now. We'll tackle as much of the other trails as we can before the ground freezes too hard. Keep an eye out for the green kiosks for our newly updated maps. We're getting loop names on all our newest trails. And we've heard from enough of you, who have mistakenly taken longer-than-intended routes back to your vehicles, that you sometimes just want to be done when you want to be done. We get it! You'll find lots more signs showing the shortest way back to the K-Beach and Slikok parking lots, Isaak Road and the school. Thank you to the 100 Women Who Care…

14Oct 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Vandalism

Safety

Tsalteshi has seen a rash of vandalism recently. Several signs between the Skyline neighborhood and Skyview Middle School have been ruined — scraping off letters to leave profanity and racial slurs. Signs are expensive to replace, and every cost we incur to repair vandalism is money taken away from grooming, lights, parking lot plowing and all the other things we do to keep the trails safe and fun. If anyone sees or hears of anyone tampering with signage, please let us know. Please also remember to keep your vehicles locked and valuables secured. A trail user had a pair of skis stolen from their vehicle in the Wolverine lot recently. We like to think theft doesn’t happen at our happy place, but you never know. Let’s not give thieves easy targets.

13Aug 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Board meeting venue change

TTA Board of Directors

The Tsalteshi Trails Association Board of Directors meeting for Aug. 18 will be held in the community room at the Soldotna Library. The meeting starts at 6:15 p.m. Meetings are open to the public. Please email info@tsalteshi.org if you'd like to address the board as part of the agenda.

10Jul 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Orange hawkweed treatment July 17

General

The Kenai Watershed Forum, as part of the Kenai Peninsula Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area, will treat infestations of orange hawkweed on Tsalteshi Trails on July 19. Populations of this invasive weed have been found along the Goat, Lynx, Raven, Wolf and Sprint Hill loops. Areas being treated will be signed and closed to traffic for 24 hours. Weeds will be treated with the herbicide Milestone (active ingredient, aminopyralid). Milestone received a “Practically Nontoxic” rating from the EPA, which is the EPA’s least toxic category. The rates at which the herbicide will be applied are very low. It affects herbaceous plants, not grass. Still, we don’t want the treated area to be disturbed for 24 hours to prevent the herbicide from being transferred to other areas of the trails. Please…

10Jul 2021 by Neyman, Jenny

Tree cutting — permit required

Safety

Tree cutting is not allowed on Tsalteshi Trails without a permit from the Tsalteshi Trails Association. We've got a lot of beetle-kill spruce to remove but we also have a lot of trail users and need to prioritize safety. If you're interested in harvesting firewood, please be aware: There is no fee for firewood permits but harvesters must be current members of TTA. Woodcutters must contact TTA and obtain a permit before tree cutting/wood removal. A limited number of permits are available at a time. Let us know when and where you'd like to operate. Woodcutting is not allowed when races/programs/activities are underway in the area. Woodcutters must be over 18, have their own equipment and sign a liability waiver with TTA. Woodcutters must display trail work signage (provided by…