The 13^th East Coast Trail Tely Hike

Goals & Objectives

Our 2012 ECT Tely Hike fundraising objective is $120,000.
All of the funds raised will be invested directly into the Trail.

The East Coast Trail has become a world-renowned tourism and recreational asset. The Trail is providing hikers with access to experience the raw natural beauty of our coastline, as well as the hospitality, culture and history of 30 genuine Newfoundland communities.

The Association is making positive strides in achieving the dream of the East Coast Trail. National Geographic has identified the Trail as one of the top ten adventure destinations in the world, and selected the Avalon Peninsula as the No. 1 coastal destination in world.

Our challenge is to keep building on this achievement by raising the funds required to sustain and grow the value of the Trail, while we retain the quality and integrity of the East Coast Trail experience. This outcome can only be achieved if we work together to acquire the resources needed to execute and complete the objectives of our annual trail work plan.

The Board of Directors has approved the following trail work objectives, conditional on obtaining the funds needed to complete this work. These objectives, together with our fundraising results, will determine the scope of work included in our 2012 Trail Work Plan.

• Trail Enhancement 1: The need to enhance the original 220 km of Trail as a high priority, strategic initiative. This will include the enhancement of the treadway and trail structures.
• Trail Enhancement 2: The need to revitalize on-trail hiker navigation by improving way-marking, directional signage, and trailhead information, as well as better utilization of our web site to inform and prepare hikers for the Trail.
• Trail Maintenance: The need to continue and improve our trail maintenance program for the 265 km of developed trail.
• Trail Development: The need to move forward with trail development to secure and upgrade the Trail between Cape St. Francis and Topsail Beach.
• Trail Preservation: The need to perform the land investigation and analysis required to obtain the community and landownership (crown, private) information needed to support trail development, enhancement and maintenance.

These objectives were selected based on the Associations detailed assessment of the Trail, through our work site surveys, together with the feedback received from the members of the Association, the hiking public, and our stakeholders.

The Association's Annual Trail Work Plan includes four major components:

• Trail Enhancement Program
• Trail Maintenance Program
• Trail Development Program
• Trail Preservation Program

The Trail Enhancement Program is new and was introduced in 2011 to address the following trail conditions.

The original 220 km of Trail between St. John's and Cappahayden has served us well over the past 15 years; it has been hiked by many from here and from all over the world. It is the foundation piece that started our journey to being designated "One of the Top Ten Adventure Destinations in the World" (National Geographic February 2012). However, the impact of high usage and extreme weather, including heavy rains, high wind, and especially hurricane Igor, have taken their toll on this section of the East Coast Trail. And when you combine the impact of these two elements with the age of the trail structures, the need to enhance and revitalize this section of Trail has been recognized as high priority.

The Trail has become an invaluable tourism and recreational asset for 30 communities, the Avalon Region and the Province. The introduction of the Trail Enhancement Program allows us to define and deliver a balanced asset management work plan that addresses the full life cycle needs of the Trail: develop, maintain, enhance and preserve. The Trail Enhancement Program adds the following dimension to our work plan: it recognizes that over the life of any given section of trail reinvestment will be required depending on the impact of age, usage & weather.

The four-program work plan provides us with the foundation and opportunity needed to sustain and grow the value of the Trail, while we retain the quality and integrity of the East Coast Trail experience. Our challenge now is to raise the funds and acquire the resources needed to execute and complete the work plan.

The monies raised by the Tely Hike provide the Association with the base funding needed to leverage the additional funds required to support our annual Trail Work Plan. The additional monies are obtained from funding programs offered by our municipal, provincial and federal governments, as well as other funding agencies and corporations. The combined funding, together with our volunteers, provide us with the resources we need to develop, maintain, enhance and preserve the East Coast Trail.

Please join us for our annual fundraising event, and help us raise the funds needed to take care of the East Coast Trail.

***The East Coast Trail Association is a registered charity BN#899356364 RR0001. Charitable Donation receipts will be issued as per the Canada Revenue Agency rules.