Kelly Hewes

When we immerse ourselves in things, we often do so in anticipation of a significant end result. We hope for transformation. Immersive language study. Cold water immersion. Immersion therapy. You go into it one way – you come out of it changed. Back in 2021, ITA dreamed up a ... Read More

These businesses and partners have offered some great discounts for ITA members! Not yet an ITA supporter? Join here! If you are a member, keep an eye out for email instructions for how to get these discounts: Felco- 10% off entire order GAIA GPS- Free 30-day trial Resurgo Coffee- ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights day trips to multi-day hikes across Idaho. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow can come earlier than expected. Please take these recommendations as a jumping off place and do additional research to understand current ... Read More

Our 2023 North Idaho Crew Leader of the year is Julie Kallemeyn! Besides leading crews, she is also a member of ITA's Advisory Board. One of the volunteers on a trip that she led described her leadership this way: "She made the trip so much fun that you didn't ... Read More

Unlike many kids, when I first heard the tale of the tortoise and the hare, I didn’t identify with the flashy, speedy rabbit. “Slow and steady wins the race” resonated with me. The stodgy tortoise’s persistent trudge was inspiring to me, which proved prophetic. Growing up and into my ... Read More

We are excited to be offering a 2024 12-month ITA Wall calendar just in time for the new year! Get this trail-tactic calendar when you give $100 or more to ITA's Annual Membership Drive. Featuring the best photos taken across Idaho on 2023 trail projects, enjoy serene mountain views ... Read More

Idaho Trails Association's 2023 Membership Drive is kicks off on Giving Tuesday and goes through the end of the year. Check out our campaign page here. As a member, you play a part in preserving trails and keeping public lands accessible for years to come. Your gift goes towards ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights day trips to multi-day hikes across Idaho. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow can come earlier than expected. Please take these recommendations as a jumping off place and do additional research to understand current ... Read More

Our 2023 Volunteer of the Year for the South Idaho region is Brenda Magnuson! As a fairly new ITA volunteer, she came on five projects this year for a total of 12 days on the trail, helped out at several events during the season, and helped move tools and ... Read More

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO VOTED FOR IDAHO TRAILS ASSOCIATION IN THE LAND ROVER DEFENDER SERVICE AWARDS! Your support and words of encouragement meant everything to us throughout this contest. We did not receive enough votes to make it to the top two spots but we are grateful for ... Read More

As a crew leader and photographer, Dave not only works hard on the trail leading trips but also captures some amazing images as well. Dave chronicles his adventures and post his photos on his blog, Davefaitlemonde.com. This summer just a few hours into the three-week Wilderness Immersion project in ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights day trips to multi-day hikes across Idaho. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow can come earlier than expected. Please take these recommendations as a jumping off place and do additional research to understand current ... Read More

SCAVENGER HUNT! Want to win coffee from Café Mulé and a sweet ITA cup?! Be the first to find our trail crews this Saturday (September 23) on National Public Lands Day on our Snowshoe Hare Loop project near Boise or our Owyhee Trails project! WHERE WILL THE CREWS BE? ... Read More

Dan and Marja are Backcountry Horseman volunteers who pack gear and supplies for ITA projects as well as other groups doing trail work in the Wilderness. We applaud their enthusiasm for protecting and maintaining Idaho's trails and volunteering for seven pack trips across Idaho in 2023 alone! For our backcountry ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights day trips to multi-day hikes across Idaho. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow can come earlier than expected. Please take these recommendations as a jumping off place and do additional research to understand current ... Read More

As one of ITA's Youth Trail Crew volunteers, Daunika just completed her third week-long project with ITA. Last year, she introduced her younger sister to ITA and they have worked on the last two projects together. She has brought joy to each project she's been on as well as ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights day trips to multi-day hikes across Idaho. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow can come earlier than expected. Please take these recommendations as a jumping off place and do additional research to understand current ... Read More

What does Liz not do for ITA?! She serves as a crew leader, Advisory board member, youth program advocate, backcountry cook, event volunteer, writer, and host of ITA functions in her amazing backyard among many roles! Liz is so much fun to be around and brightens up any trail project ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights day trips to multi-day hikes across Idaho. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow can come earlier than expected. Please take these recommendations as a jumping off place and do additional research to understand current ... Read More

By Josh Davis, a 17-year-old ITA volunteer, photographer, and recent high school graduate. You can see more of his photos by following him on Instagram.  The South Fork Blackmare Creek trail project was my third and biggest project volunteering with ITA. Although I have worked on a multi-day ... Read More

New to backpacking? Looking for a great spring warm-up? These backpacking trips were hand-picked by our staff and backpacking 101 instructors for being not only beautiful places to visit but also on the easier side of the scale for overnight backpacking trips. Not a beginner? These are all awesome ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights day trips to multi-day hikes across Idaho. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow can come earlier than expected. Please take these recommendations as a jumping off place and do additional research to understand current ... Read More

Bidding is now open for ITA’s Second Annual Pack Your Summer Online Auction! We have over twenty unique items and experiences hand-picked just for our outdoor-loving, adventure-seeking members and supporters. Bid on these awesome items: Seven Devils Weekend Pack Trip featuring a gourmet dinner by chef Steve Weston Backpacking ... Read More

Glenn and Michelle are one of ITA’s power couples! They began volunteering in 2019 and since then, they’ve risen to crew leader status, helped ITA begin to offer projects in East Idaho near their home in Pocatello, and volunteered at local events. Glenn also joined ITA’s Advisory Board last ... Read More

Our Trail Spotlight highlights trails across Idaho we think are worth hiking! Ranging from one-day to multi-day trips, these recommendations are for trails recently cleared or hiked by ITA volunteers. Trail conditions can change quickly- swollen rivers can become impassable, windstorms can knock trees down across trails, and snow ... Read More

 ITA volunteer Jim Manning first began leading crews last season and was awarded ITA’s coveted 2022 Crew Leader of the Year award (and given a special ITA mug to prove it!) We’re grateful to Jim for leading crews and making a difference for Idaho’s trails!  Tell me a little ... Read More

ITA's 2023 volunteer schedule is out for signups for the public! We have one-day, weekend, and weeklong projects of varying degrees of difficulty scheduled across the state. We also have six projects scheduled for our Youth Trail Crew Program and six for our Women in the Wild Program. If ... Read More

Alisa Rettschlag is an ITA super volunteer! She and her husband Gregg have been volunteering with ITA for a number of years and last year she took the plunge into crew leading AND teaching our Backpacking 101 class. It's easy to see she has a passion for teaching volunteers new ... Read More

On March 1, our 2023 volunteer trail project schedule of 60+ projects will be released! Members (anyone who has donated to ITA in the past year) will be able to sign up to volunteer for projects on a first come, first served basis for most projects. Maybe you’re asking ... Read More

Idaho high school seniors must complete a “senior project” as part of their graduation requirements. While the criterion for completion varies from school to school, the basic requirement is that a senior take on a project, learn about it in-depth, then complete it by a certain date. Levi Armichardy, ... Read More

There a good reason why ITA crew leader Barry Miller was given the award of Crew Leader of the Year in 2022- he led three projects, one of them being a backpacking trip as part of our Youth Trail Crew program. It’s a lot to take a group of ... Read More

Happy (almost) New Year to you and yours! We want to take this time at the end of the year to reflect on what an awesome year 2022 was for trails because of your support. We put together this video to celebrate the year: Our New Years ... Read More

By Pam Bond, ITA Vice President of the Board and Crew Leader Pam Bond and other volunteers flying into the Cabin Creek airstrip to begin a week of trail maintenance. I didn’t realize, until I sat down and gave it a good think, that education is ingrained in ... Read More

Photo Credit: Dave Beck By Melanie Vining, Executive Director The Sheep Creek Trail, from Windy Saddle in the Seven Devils Mountains to the Snake River in Hells Canyon, was cleared for the first time in years this past fall and spring. Three friends and I planned a ... Read More

Join us on #GivingTuesday, a day to come together around the causes you care about and communities you want to lift up. Idaho Trails Association is raising support to fund trail projects across Idaho in 2023. We want to inspire more communities and volunteers to come together to make ... Read More

ITA's mission is "keeping Idaho's hiking trails open for all". We believe there is a trail for everyone, somewhere, be it deep in the Gospel Hump Wilderness or a mile outside of Sandpoint. I recently learned there is even an ADA-accessible wilderness trail outside Ketchum! I believe our work ... Read More

ITA's Annual Membership Drive starts November 15 and runs through the end of the year. We need your help to reach our goal of $50,000 to support ITA's trail stewardship work in 2023. You can join or renew for $25, $50, $100 or more! Why do trails need our ... Read More

We need your help to make the 2023 trail season the best one yet! Please fill out the questions below to help us know how best to plan for next year.