The National Park Service is conducting meetings around Ohio the week of January 13‐17 as part of the feasability study to determine National Scenic Trail status for the Buckeye Trail. Help the Buckeye Trail by attending one of six meetings for community members and stakeholders to share their support for the Buckeye Trail to become a National Scenic Trail. Please take time to attend one of these meeting to share your personal experience. There are five in-person meetings scheduled for the week of January 13‐17 and an additional virtual meeting is scheduled for January 23.
Meeting Information:
You can never hike the same Buckeye Trail twice. One foot in front of the other, both the Buckeye Trail Association and our 1,400+ mile Buckeye Trail are constantly evolving, adapting to changing seasons and weather. Our resilience is rooted in our expansive volunteer efforts and partnerships continually stewarding and sharing the enjoyment of Ohio’s great outdoors on Ohio’s Buckeye Trail.
As you hike along the BT, you may pass by a hand-painted blue blaze on an oak tree that could have been an acorn in 1959. That tree is part of the canopy now, providing shade and direction to hikers on the BT that has weathered and thrived alongside for 65 years.
Please consider supporting the BTA, the driving force behind the ever-evolving BT experience. Your gift today will help us adapt, progress, and achieve our mission to build, maintain, preserve the BT for all to enjoy in the year ahead. Our volunteer led BTA is funded primarily through small individual donations and memberships, we are grateful to you for all the ways you support the BTA throughout the year.
Please join us in sharing gratitude for Ohio’s Buckeye Trail by planting the seeds of future blue blazed trees and life affirming experiences all around the Trail with agift to the BTA today!
Thank you for supporting the Buckeye Trail Association! We’re excited to include this holiday ornament as a token of our appreciation.
If you join or renew online during our December Member Drive, this gift celebrates your support. For those renewing by mail, you’ll receive the ornament as a heartfelt thank you, even if you weren’t aware of the promotion.
Your membership makes a difference, helping us protect and maintain the trail. We hope this ornament brings joy to your holidays and inspires future adventures on the Buckeye Trail! Join or Renew Today!
For a look ahead for TrailFest 2025 and to lean about sponsorship opportunities visit our TrailFest 2025 website.
The recent Omnibus Bill that was passed by the 117th U.S. Congress in December included the Buckeye National Scenic Trail Feasibility Study Acts of 2021 and 2022. Passage of this bill will begin the process of conducting a feasibility study of the Buckeye Trail for possible designation as a National Scenic Trail. The federal agency that will be conducting this study will likely be under the U.S. Department of the Interior.
For additional information, contact Steve Walker at
Several years ago the BTA provided a pamphlet to assist avid birders with finding good locations along the BT to view a variety of birds. Ohio is part of a large migratory route with many species pausing here on their trek. The pamphlet is updated and once again available as a download. Winter birds are here and Spring is coming so this is a great time to plan your hikes.
Downlaod the updated BTA eBirding pamphlet.
The 50+5 Challenge was created in celebration of the Ohio Legislature’s Year of the Trails and the 50th Anniversary of the National Trails System Act in 2018. In 2024, the 65th Anniversary of the Buckeye Trail and Buckeye Trail Association, we again invite Ohioans to challenge themselves to hike 50 miles on Ohio's 1,400+ mile BT and give back 5 volunteer hours to the trail we love. .
50+5 Hiker-Volunteers that complete the challenge and register their volunteer hours will receive a congratulatory packet including a certificate of completion, a 50 mile hiking patch, and a Buckeye Trail Association 5 hour volunteer patch to commemorate their accomplishment.
All the details are on our 50+5 Challenge page.
There is a lot of great news coming for the BT just around the bend, but we need your support today to help us continue our important work, for you, and for all Buckeyes. If you can, please take that next step and donate today to support the Buckeye Trail Association. Above All, Thank You for Hiking!
Visit the Events page for hiking information.
Visit the Membership page for membership benefits information.
Click on this Join link to join the BTA by credit card online.
Visit the Get Involved page for information on volunteer opportunities.
Visit our Donate page for additional information.
Download the latest donation appeal letter .
Click on this Donate link to make a donation by credit card online.
The BT 101 Video is now available as a YouTube video. You may see the video at this link: https://youtu.be/1z_6bSX2Hdw
BTA's Strategic Plan has been in the development stages since 2017 and the now completed plan called BTA 2025 will provide guidance to take the BTA forward for the next 5 years. The Executive Summary of this plan is now available BTA 2025 for download. Note: It is a large file.
Some of our past Trailblazer issues are available online, including the very first issue published in 1968! We've come along ways in 60 years! Check them out on our Trailblazer page
Are you looking for ways to help? Our goal is to find you a volunteer position worthy of your unique talents, and one that excites and inspires you. For more information on available opportunities, contact our Volunteer Coordinator at
or register in the Volunteer Portal and you will be notified of opportunities. Remember that signing up in the software does not sign you up for any job, it just allows you to see opportunities. Register as a volunteer now!
We thank you all of our remarkable volunteers. Some of this work is perhaps not as glamorous as making a trail from a path in the woods, but it is rewarding and vital to the success of the Buckeye Trail. THANKS.