Celebrating Buckeye TrailFest 2025 at Maumee Bay State Park

Thank You, Buckeye TrailFest 2025 Attendees!

A big thanks to those who joined us at Maumee Bay State Park for Buckeye TrailFest 2025. From wetlands hikes to evening campfires, your energy and enthusiasm made the weekend unforgettable for the Buckeye Trail family.

• 150 attendees
• 80 attendees at the Friday Fun activities
• 16 state and federal volunteers helped make Friday Fun possible
• 1st time ever an internationally funded agency presented at a BTF (Great Lakes Fishery Commission—represents US/Canada/Tribal nations)
• 27 volunteer speakers
• $2,300 raised in the silent auction
• 47 silent auction lots provided by Chapters
• 4 controlled live animal encounters (sea lamprey, owls, tortoise, snake)
• 17 BT completionists in the Class of 2025 (TrailFest 2024–2025)
• 11 women—the most females to complete the trail in a year
• 2 women finished the trail for the third time
• 2nd female from Michigan to finish the BT
• 28 Volunteer Awards given
• 1,400 bathrooms ODNR has to service (learned from ODNR’s Mary Mertz)

We are incredibly grateful for the many hours of work from Lake Plains Chapter and Buckeye TrailFest volunteers, including but not limited to Lena Dockery, Valerie Gardner, Dane Miles, and James “Sunny” Sunyak.