Now more than ever we need our trails, natural areas and public outdoor spaces. Together we can build and improve accessibility and put the national scenic and historic trails on the map and into your home!
Are you curious about the area where you live or when you visit a new place? You can learn about the geography, history and culture of the people that settled an area by exploring local trails — and some of these trails may be part of the National Trails System!
Views from the Anza Trail in San Juan Bautista CA. Photo Credit: National Park Service/Bhoj Rai
Trails enrich your community. Help the Partnership for the National Trails System continue its collaborative work with a gift of $50 today. Or if you prefer, spread it out with monthly payments of $5 on your credit card.
Stop for a picnic and discover a piece of the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail. At the beautiful Santa Teresa County Park, just south of San Jose, recreational users can bike, hike and ride the countryside with the opportunity to learn about life in the region during a time of ranchos and exploration. Picnic tables and benches, some with spectacular views, provide places to relax and unwind.
To experience the Anza Trail at home, you can hear the story of a section of the trail told by a ranger from the nearby Henry W. Coe State Park, also on the Anza Trail. For a pictorial experience, look at the Native American Art Project sponsored by the California Indian Heritage Center Foundation. The Foundation commissioned a series of four paintings by Native American artists.
And if you want to learn about history while enjoying the time-honored Mexican song style, the corrido, check out this music video about the Anza Trail performed by members of Los Cenzontles, a California-based Mexican roots band and non-profit cultural arts academy.
The Partnership for the National Trails System encourages the scenic and historic trail stewards to work together with communities to put the trails on local maps and find creative ways to tell the trails’ stories. Your gift today of $50 can help the Partnership continue to forge these creative collaborations.
With gratitude,
Karen Crossly
Partnership for the National Trails System
