Volunteers, contractors, and the BETA trail crew have been checking trail projects off the list left and right. Here are some highlights:​

Jackrabbit Ski Trail | Paul Smiths, Lake Placid, Keene

• Replacement of the Bird Song Bridge in Lake Placid (below).
• Side cutting from Paul Smith’s VIC to Haul Road, Bird Song Lane to Craig Wood, Craig Wood to Route 86.
• Additional signage from Paul Smith’s VIC to Haul Road for easier wayfinding.
• New ramp and railing extensions at Bob’s Bridge near the Keene trailhead to make a safer entrance for skiers (below).
• Upcoming Jackrabbit Trail Work Projects
  • Railing replacement on Theresa's Bridge in Lake Placid.
  • Seasonal mowing with Tony Goodwin and Woods McCahill.
  • Volunteer day to clean drainage on McKenzie Pass from Whiteface Inn Lane, Lake Placid on October 25th.
• Upcoming Trail Work Projects on Other Ski Trails
  • Side cutting at the Hays Brook trail in Paul Smiths. 
  • Blowdown removal and clearing in the High Peaks Wilderness 

​Last SYRR of the season!

Great crew for the Slow Your Roll Ride at Fowler's Crossing, Saranac Lake last night. Thanks for an awesome season of group rides, everyone!

Trail crew has wrapped up some major tread improvements on the trail "Sorry" at Dewey Mtn, Saranac Lake 🙌

​While work continues on our bike trails, the BETA team is already thinking ahead and working with the new Ski Trail Committee to plan ski trail work that needs to happen before the snow flies. You'll be hearing more from us about what we're doing to prepare for the 2026 ski season; we won't be able to do it without your help!

BETA's trail crew, volunteers, and contractors have already tackled many trail projects this season and some of that is highlighted below.

Lake Placid

• Trail Crew has been working hard to build a climbing trail at Craig Wood to make lapping Green or Gold Jacket that much easier.  This is a trail that we've been planning on building for years and we hope to have it open this season.  Major kudos to Trail Crew for their excellent work here.
• Previously, the landing zone of the 50/50 drop at Craig Wood was squarely on a section of the Back Nine trail.  We have rerouted that section of Back Nine away from the landing zone to improve safety.
• Drainage cleared, additional drainage added, and vegetation cut back on Loop 2 at Lussi & Loggers. Drainage cleared/built in order to halt the soil erosion that has washed away so much of the tread, especially on climbing sections, and made the trail more challenging than it was ever intended.

Elizabethtown

• Joel's Trail in Blueberry Hill, Elizabethtown is a classic, beautiful mountain biking trail that honors Joel Harwood, an Elizabethtown local who put a lot of time and effort into building and maintaining trails at Blueberry Hill.  Over time, erosion has left its mark on some sections of Joel's trail -- this season, we worked there to undo the damage and restore Joel’s to its original experience.
• Deer Leg, a new trail completed in the 2025 season, has gotten some work done to strengthen and expand berms, improve drainage, and mitigate erosion.  One volunteer work party -- sponsored by Solace Cycles and spearheaded by their shop manager Tyler -- built up the berms on Deer Leg in order to accommodate faster descent traffic.  Another volunteer work party – sponsored by Deer’s Head Inn – removed the duff layer at the entrance to Deer Leg and improved soil erosion mitigation on Pine-winder.

Wilmington

• BETA’s Trail Crew is working at the Flume to restore trail bridges by replacing decking and, where needed, stringers and sills.  We’d like to thank the DEC for providing all building materials for the bridge restoration.  
• Meanwhile at the Flume, BETA hired an ADK trail crew to do tread work on Marble Mountain and other trails.
• Volunteers have filled and capped three severely eroded sections of trail on the Good Luck side of Hardy Road: one on Make Believe and two on Safe Bet; drainage cleared and added where needed on these trails. 
• Berms on Lost Farm at Hardy Road have been rebuilt.

Saranac Lake

• Problem wet spots at Dewey were excavated and capped with new stone and mineral soil to improve drainage, which helps to protect the trail in the long term.
• We've received multiple contractor bids for constructing the Connector Trail from Park Ave into Natski II at Pisgah, Saranac Lake and the RFQ is now closed.  We're lucky to have many qualified, highly skilled trail builders to turn to for work like this.

Keene

• Construction is underway on the latest trail at East Branch Community Trails.  This new trail, currently called Trail 8, is located farther up the mountain from Trail 7.  Psst -- soon we're going to ask for community input on what to name Trail 7 and Trail 8, so start thinking up some good ones and keep your eyes peeled for the call for submissions.
• Executive Director Glenn and Keene Town Supervisor Joe Pete have met to discuss restoration of the trailhead pavilion and expansion of the parking lot, projects we expect to break ground on in 2027.

Where does your mind go when you hear the phrase “trail town”?  

Places like Bentonville, Asheville, Park City and Jackson are often cited as big trail towns across the country.  We think great trail towns are much closer.  They’re the towns we call home, right here in the Adirondacks.

As we enter our 40th year of advocating for, building, and stewarding trails that connect us, we encourage you to consider making a year-end donation to support this work.  

Join the 135+ people who have already given this season.  Help us build trails and create community in 2026.

You may have seen the incredible news: together, our community met our goal of raising $20,000 in community donations to unlock the full $20,000 matching donation from a generous anonymous donor.  That’s a powerful reminder of what this community can do together!

Thank you to everyone who has already contributed.  If you were hoping to make a donation this year, you can still be a part of this moment.  Every donation supports our work to build and care for trails and strengthen the community. 

THANK YOU, VOLUNTEERS!
In addition to the baseline satisfaction of volunteer work days, this year we’ve had the special pleasure of welcoming a lot of new faces into the volunteer ranks.  We’ve seen a big increase in logged volunteer hours over previous years, too.  Thank you so much to each and every one of you for donating your time and energy to the trails; your hard work is much appreciated by us at BETA and surely by every rider, skier, hiker, or runner who enjoys the trails. 

​If you’ve supported BETA’s work by volunteering in any way this season, please log your hours here: bit.yl/LogHours4BETA.  Doing so helps us track volunteer efforts and apply for more grant funding for trails (DYK: volunteer labor is valued at $38+ per hour!)

THANK YOU, SPONSORS!
In addition to volunteers, we’d like to thank the businesses who sponsored work parties this season: Silver Birch Cycles, Bike ADK, The Reynolds Group, Placid Planet Bicycles, and Origin Coffee.  If you’re business is interested in sponsoring a work party next year, please contact [email protected]

THANK YOU, CHRIS!
Finally, we’d like to thank Chris Gosling for his service as our Volunteer Stewardship Coordinator over the summer.  Your efforts to connect volunteers with trail work opportunities and provide fun and rewarding experiences for everyone was greatly appreciated.  We’re sure to see you on the trail sometime soon!

Our last trail work update was in late July.  Major developments since then include:

• Elizabethtown: new trail (Deerleg) completed and open at Blueberry Hill.
• Keene: Two new upper mountain trails (Trail 7 Climb & Trail 7 Descent) completed and open at East Branch Community Trails.  Funding sought for the final phase of construction.
• Jay: Planning underway for potential new trails in the Four Peaks Wilderness.
• Saranac Lake: Construction of connector trail from Park Ave to Mount Pisgah delayed until 2026. Funding sought for implementing Mount Pisgah Summer Trails Enhancement Plan.
• Wilmington: Talks with landowners and Adirondack Land Trust underway to secure agreement for connector trail from Three Sisters to Hardy Road.
• Jackrabbit Trail: Mountain Lane reroute finished and open. Eastern terminus trailhead, bridges, parking lot, and trail section under construction; expected completion by December 2025.

Read on for more information about the above updates as well as an overview of all the work done in the 2025 trail work season.

THREE SISTERS PRESERVE

• Flobus – Rebuild of some sections of lower Flobus to improve the riding experience was completed in early summer.
  
• Town Connector – New route flagged and approved from Outlook Lane to Three Sisters with construction planned for 2026.  This reroute will preserve access between the Wilmington Town Recreation Park, Three Sisters, and by extension Hardy Road even as the Outlook Lane neighborhood continues development.  Thank you to the landowner for his support of our effort to maintain access!
  

HARDY ROAD

• Procrew and volunteers worked together to make significant improvements to the lower section of All In, including restoration that addressed some of the more extensive wear due to use and erosion. 
  
• We are working with land owners and the Adirondack Land Trust to find potential new connections between Three Sisters and Hardy Road.  Our long term goal is to create a trail that will keep you in the woods and off the road when biking between Hardy Road and Three Sisters.  We’re excited to work with the landowners involved in this agreement and are grateful for their early support.
  

BETA’s work is multi-facetted, ever-evolving, and always dedicated to maintaining and building trails and creating community.  The end of the 2025 trail work season is rapidly approaching, but we're still busy planning for next year's projects.

If the 2025 trail projects have benefitted you or your community, please consider supporting our work by becoming a member or renewing your membership at a higher giving level.  We are so deeply grateful to the hundreds of people who build, fund, champion, and enjoy these trails -- you're both the reason and the way that we do what we do: build trails and create community.  Thank you!

There is always something cooking at BETA.  Right now, some of the projects on our horizon include the following.

​ELIZABETHTOWN

• Blueberry Hill: The machine built section of the new climbing trail is complete.  Dusty and Scott are continuing with the handwork to finish the trail in the next couple of weeks. This volunteer- and pro-crew-built trail offers an easier alternative to Hemlock for climbing and returning to the trailhead off of Bronson Way. 
• Cobble Hill: We’ll have new signage installed here soon.  Great timing since we’ll be riding there on August 12th for our next Slow Your Roll Ride!

 
KEENE

• East Branch Community Trails, on top of the two new trails already opened this season, we have:
  • Peduzzi Trail Building has begun construction of a climbing trail and descent trail above the power lines.  That’s right, we’re starting on a whole new section of ground for these trails and adding more elevation!  If all goes according to plan, the new trail will be open before October, just in time for the UCI World Cup.
  • The Skills Loop is currently rideable and we are working with Peduzzi and local volunteers to plan and build technical trail features to help riders advance their skills in a controlled environment. 
• Jackrabbit Trail: The Rock and River trailhead to access the JRT is moving forward.  Construction is done on the parking lot and work on the trail and bridges will be happening over the next few months.  Stay tuned for volunteer work parties there this fall. 

 
LAKE PLACID

• Craig Wood/Scott’s Cobble: 
  • As we mentioned in our last update, Dusty, Scott, and an amazing brigade of volunteers finished the climbing reroutes on Back Nine.  It has really improved the riding experience in that section and simultaneously made the trail much more sustainable against heavy rains and erosion.
  • On August 17th, the Lake Placid Outing Club (LPOC) and BETA are teaming up to bring kids in LPOC and their families out for a volunteer trail work party at Craig Wood, Lake Placid.  Not only is it fun, volunteering is also a great way to cultivate a sense of stewardship, respect, and gratitude for the amazing trails we have at our fingertips.  This work party is only open to members of LPOC and their families.  Register here.
• Jackrabbit Trail: 
  • If time permits, we’ll replace the stringers on the bridge at the bottom of the JRT near River Road this fall.  We have temporarily patched the one at risk of failure to get us through the upcoming winter if we don’t get to the replacement this season.
  • ​A reroute of the JRT to that will take us off of part of Mountain Lane is approved and will be constructed in late fall during the chainsaw window.  This is a sizable undertaking and we hope to host a few volunteer trail work parties to tackle some aspects of this project.  Stay tuned for more details as summer draws to a close.

SARANAC LAKE

• Mt. Pisgah: 
  • We’re working with the folks at Cure Cottage Development LLC in order to create a new access trail route from Park Ave to Mt. Pisgah that accommodates their plans for development of Trudeau Village, a major project to renovate the former Adirondack Cottage Sanitarium and create affordable housing in Saranac Lake.
  • On Monday, July 28th, the Saranac Lake Village Board voted unanimously to approve and sponsor BETA’s Mt. Pisgah Summer Trails Enhancements and Master Plan.  We will keep you posted on what that means for Mt. Pisgah – look forward to more information in our next newsletter and as we try to secure funding for the work.
  • A volunteer trail work party with the Saranac Lake Innovative Cycles Kids (SLICK) will be held at Mt. Pisgah on Sunday, August 17th.  Kids and their families, regardless of their involvement with SLICK, are encouraged to join in on this fun and gratifying activity.  Register here.
• Dewey: We hosted a volunteer trail work party at Dewey on July 24th sponsored by Silver Birch Cycles and have another one on the calendar for August 25th sponsored by Bike Adirondacks.  These evening work parties focus on brushing, root removal, clearing drainages, and treadwork in a few sections.  Register for the next work day here.

WILMINGTON

• Three Sisters: A new route for the Town Connector has been flagged and approved from Outlook Lane to Three Sisters with construction planned for 2026.  This reroute will help preserve recreational access between the Wilmington Recreation Town Park and Hardy Road even as development proceeds on private property in the area. We are thankful to the landowner for his support of our effort to maintain access!
• Hardy Road: Right now Dusty and Scott are putting the finishing touches on a bit more work on All In for the season.  Meanwhile, we are finalizing the trail conditions assessment in order to produce a recommendation of Hardy Rd trail work for DEC review and approval for 2026.  That’s right, we’re already looking ahead to 2026 so we can hit the ground running next trail season.