Long Trail presentation by Jon Stewart

Jon Stewart, local author of Pilgrimage to the Edge, the Pacific Crest Trail and the US Forest Service, will talk and share photos of his latest hike this past fall of the Long Trail. He claims that it is "not only the oldest, but the toughest long distance trail in the United States." At a mere 270 miles in length, it runs from the Canadian border to Massachusetts, the length of the state of Vermont. Over the past decade Jon has hiked the length of the Pacific Crest Trail, the Continental Divide Trail and Great Divide Trail. This followed over three decades working as a backcountry guard, trail manager, smokejumper, fire management officer, volunteer coordinator, national fire plan coordinator and public affairs officer for the U.S. Forest Service in the Pacific Northwest. He also served six years as the executive director of the Northwest Service Academy, an AmeriCorps program focused on hands-on conservation. This followed a degree in history and journalism from the University of Oregon, work as a journalist for the Tuscola Journal and two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal.