National Public Lands Day

Join volunteers across the nation on Saturday, September 22, 2018, taking part in the 25^th annual National Public Lands Day - the largest single-day volunteer effort for public lands in the United States.

This year the effort is being made to recognize NPLD events that highlight restoration and resilience. At Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park, we will focus on a section of the walking path located at the Brown’s Ferry Federal Road Trail in the Moccasin Bend National Archeological District.  This trail has a long and storied history serving as an original route of the Trail of Tears and later as the Union supply line, nicknamed the “Cracker Line,” during the Siege of Chattanooga in 1863.

Sign-up begins at 9 am at the Brown’s Ferry Federal Road Trailhead, located at 707 Moccasin Bend Road, Chattanooga, TN 37405. Come dressed for outdoor work and wear clothes you do not mind getting dirty. For safety reasons and due to the nature of the work, clothing should include long-sleeved shirts, long pants, work gloves, and tennis shoes or work boots.  Come prepared for the sun with a cap, sunscreen, bug spray, and plenty of water to drink.

NPLD began in 1994 with three sites and 700 volunteers, and proved to be such a huge success that it became a yearly tradition. Volunteers in every state visit parks, public and community gardens, beaches, wildlife preserves or forests and chip in to help these treasured places that belong to all Americans. They work to improve and restore the lands and facilities the public uses for recreation, education, exercise, and connecting with nature. NPLD educates Americans about the environment and natural resources, and the need for shared stewardship of these valued, irreplaceable lands, builds partnerships between the public sector and the local community based upon mutual interests in the enhancement and restoration of America's public lands, and improves public lands for outdoor recreation through hands-on work. In 2017, over 200,000 participants contributed time at 2,600 sites across the country making some$18 million in public land improvements.

For more information about National Public Lands Day at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, please contact Will Wilson, Volunteer Coordinator, at 706-866-9241 ext. 137 or at will_wilson@nps.gov. 

For more information about Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, please contact the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center at 706-866-9241, the Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center at 423-821-7786, or visit the park’s website at www.nps.gov/chch