OVER THE NEXT few years, the Appalachian Mountain Club will be tackling an ambitious $1.3 million trail restoration project on sections of the iconic Franconia Ridge Loop.

The current work is focused on stabilizing and realigning the Falling Waters, Upper Greenleaf and Old Bridle Path trails through 2026, when congressional funding ends. Future maintenance is also planned for sections of the Franconia Ridge Trail in the delicate Alpine zone.

Portions of the trail, like many others in the White Mountains, have deteriorated from factors such as erosion — especially from increasingly frequent rain events — and overuse, requiring technical trade work on trails that will ensure sustainability for years to come.

“One of our main goals is to build the tread back up to the level where the sides of the trail are and create built-in drainage,” shared AMC Professional Trail Crew Lead Lou Kimball from a work site on the Old Bridle Path in early August. “We’re building to be more sustainable.”

Since an estimated 40,000 visitors recreate on this loop each year, Kimball and crew must take into consideration what people want to hike, making hiker psychology an important aspect to consider when redesigning trails.

“What we see is that some people go around structures that were built in the past,” Kimball shared. “And there’s no point in building something that’s going to be subverted. So if we can build something that people want to walk on and then provide them with no other option, that is the pinnacle of what we’re trying to achieve.”

When trails erode, they expose roots and rocks. In turn, people tend to walk off trail to avoid these obstacles, which causes the trails to braid and further widen. A major tenet of Leave No Trace, a framework of minimum impact practices for anyone visiting the outdoors, is for travelers to remain on the trail to prevent unnecessary damage to natural areas.

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