From NorthStar Trail Travelers
NorthStar Trail Travelers (NSTT) is a unique Folkssports club that holds walking and snowshoeing events primarily in Minnesota State Parks, trails, forests and recreation areas. Folkssports, which originated in Germany, are leisure-time activities for people of all ages, alone or in groups, with no competitive requirements but plenty of rewards, in a location near you or somewhere you want to visit. Folkssports or “Sports for People” include walking, swimming, biking, cross-country skiing, skating and snowshoeing, geared to the novice sports enthusiast.
NSTT sponsors 3-10 walking and snowshoe events a year in various state parks across Minnesota. We hold a snowshoe event in February, usually in a park close to the metro area because of weather/travel distance. In October, we sponsor a guided group walk in conjunction with our annual meeting, board elections and potluck lunch, followed by drawings for door prizes. In the warmer months we sponsor one-day walk events in various parks farther away from the metro area. Frequently we pair two nearby parks for a one-day event at each park on the same weekend.
All event trails have been previously scouted and measured as well as marked with our trail arrows and ribbons to assure that walkers don’t get lost. We work closely with park staff in setting up our events and also coordinate with the DNR State Parks & Trails through our formal partnership with them.
Besides bringing participants into the various parks for our events, our participants support the parks through purchasing vehicle permits, campsites, and souvenirs. They often make donations to each park too, which are then matched by NSTT. Since 2005, these donations total almost $12,000, averaging about $100/park/event.
See our full schedule by visiting our website.