National Trails Day events June 6

Local trail groups across North Carolina and Montana are using National Trails Day on Saturday, June 6, to draw volunteers, hikers and runners onto public paths and trail systems. The events include a volunteer workday in the Pisgah Ranger District in North Carolina, a community trail build in Whitefish, Montana, and the Pronghorn Pursuit trail race in Dillon, Montana. National Trails Day has been held each June since 1993 and is centered on trail use, stewardship and conservation, according to Whitefish Legacy Partners. The June 6 programs give local groups a way to combine recreation with maintenance and trail construction. ### Which groups have announced June 6 events? The Pisgah Conservancy said it will host a volunteer workday in the Pisgah Ranger District on June 6, according to a notice reported by the Transylvania Times. Beaverhead Trails Coalition said its National Trails Day programming in Dillon will include the annual Pronghorn Pursuit, a trail event aimed at both competitive runners and families, according to Southwestern Montana News. Whitefish Legacy Partners said on June 3 that it will hold a family-friendly volunteer trail building day at the Whitefish Legacy Center on June 6. The event will let community members help build a new section of the Whitefish Trail, the Daily Inter Lake reported. ### What is happening in Whitefish? Whitefish Legacy Partners said the new trail section at the Whitefish Legacy Center will be less than one-third of a mile long and will extend from the Whitefish Legacy Center Trailhead. Program Director Jedd Sankar-Gorton told the Daily Inter Lake that most of the Whitefish Trail is built by machine and maintained by volunteers, making the June 6 build an uncommon chance for residents to help construct a segment themselves. Jedd Sankar-Gorton said the project is meant to echo the early years of the Whitefish Trail, when volunteers built the first miles by hand. “People were so stoked,” he told the Daily Inter Lake. “We’re trying to recapture that.” The Whitefish Legacy Center site is a 35-acre parcel in the Beaver Lakes area that Whitefish Legacy Partners bought last fall, the Daily Inter Lake reported. The June 6 workday will also give participants an early look at the property before its planned July 1 opening. ### What is the Pronghorn Pursuit? Beaverhead Trails Coalition said the Pronghorn Pursuit is part of its National Trails Day celebration on June 6 and is designed for both serious runners and families. The event is held on the coalition’s High Trails outside Dillon, according to Southwestern Montana News coverage of prior races. The Beaverhead Trails Coalition and Beaverhead County High School cross-country team hosted the 2025 Pronghorn Pursuit on June 7, 2025, with 28 racers in the 15-kilometer race and 38 racers in the 5-kilometer race, according to Southwestern Montana News. Organizers have used the event as both a community race and a way to bring people onto the trail system. ### What is planned in Pisgah? The Pisgah Conservancy said the June 6 event in the Pisgah Ranger District will be a volunteer workday, according to the Transylvania Times. The notice identified the event as part of National Trails Day programming open to the public. Pisgah-area trail workdays typically focus on maintenance and stewardship tasks in heavily used recreation areas. The Conservancy’s June 6 event places that work inside the national observance tied to trail conservation. ### Why are these events being held on the same day? National Trails Day falls on Saturday, June 6, this year, and local groups often use the date to organize public outings, volunteer projects and races. Whitefish Legacy Partners said thousands of people across the country take part in local trail-focused events each June. West Virginia parks are also planning guided hikes and trail cleanups for June 6, according to the Parkersburg News and Sentinel, showing that the day is being used for both recreation and maintenance in multiple states. July 1 is the next dated milestone in Whitefish, when the Whitefish Legacy Center is scheduled to open, according to the Daily Inter Lake. June 6 participants in Whitefish, Dillon and Pisgah can find event details through Whitefish Legacy Partners, Beaverhead Trails Coalition and the Pisgah Conservancy announcements.