Corvallis to the Coast Trail

Gary ChapmanTrail Proponent

Corvallis to the Sea – 40 miles “as the crow flies”

Two routes are envisioned – one more forbicycles, one more for hiking.

Find supporters in the community, in government, among land owners, get a critical mass

Seeking perfection can lead to failure; but you can improve upon a less than perfect success, given time and an eye for opportunity. (Voltaire et moi)

Our general approach (nothing original):

Pick the low hanging fruit while working to build relationship ladders to get the hard to reach fruit

Be cooperative and not confrontational

Remain as flexible as possible Be patient.

City of Corvallis – bike path (2.7 mi)Benton County – bike paths (2.5 mi)City of Philomath – bike paths, streets, sidewalks (3.5 mi)ODOT – highway shoulders (0.5 mi.)Benton County – rural road (4.1 mi)Landowner no. 1 – gated road (0.6 mi)City of Corvallis Watershed – gated road (0.5 mi)Landowner no. 2 – gated road (0.5 mi)OSU College of Forestry – gated road (0.5 mi)Siuslaw National Forest – gated road, existing trail (3.8 mi)Benton County – forest road (3.6 mi)Lincoln County – rural road, abandoned road (2.3 mi)Siuslaw National Forest – new trail (0.2 mi)Landowner no. 3 – gated road (0.2 mi)Lincoln County – gated road (1.6 mi)Lincoln County – rural road (6.6 mi)Siuslaw National Forest – roads, decommissioned roads, new trails (22.7 mi)Landowner no. 4 – gated road (0.6 mi)Lincoln County – rural roads, main road (6.0 mi)

A Long-distance Trail is a Chain of Agreements

And a Chain is no stronger than its weakest link

The 65-Mile C2C Trail Route Accepted by the Forest Service in 2009:“They will do the EA and complete it by FY2012.”

USFS decision Reversed by 2013 – We are no longer volunteers, must use a special use permit, must pay for EA, and be liable for damages

Over 13-years our biggest concerns turn out to be:

Forest Service Staff turnover: retirement and transfers.

Elected Official’s retirement or defeat at the polls.

Poor health or death of key volunteers and cooperators.

Retirement or career moves of local government staff.

Loss of continuity and relationships!

What are we doing to avoid rust in old links andforging the final links? Probably not enough!

Newsletters Occasional presentations to County Commissions

Annual Show-and-Tell day-hike series

Annual trail maintenance workshop

Adopt-a-Trail Segment Program

Holiday greeting cards

Monthly public meetings Downtown window displays

Presentations before user-group organizations and various service clubs

Flyers at hiking and biking stores Meetings with congressional staffers

Rare newspaper articles Occasional presentations before ORTAC

Perform trail maintenance on Forest Service trails

501 c 3 status for fund raising

“You can get there from here!”

Our Motto: