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For the last three decades, we have been involved in all of the planning and construction of the trail, and 100% of donations and funding has been used for engineering and construction of the Huckleberry Trail and the amenities along the trail.

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2021-2022 PROJECTS

TRAIL MASTER PLAN

In October 2021, we kicked off an effort with the New River Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization and NRV Regional Commission to develop the first ever Huckleberry Trail Plan.  After a year-long process of meeting with key stakeholders, Part 1 of the Plan was finalized in August 2022. The Plan will help create a unified vision for the trail in the way of design, construction, signage, amenities, public art, events and so on. Friends of the Huckleberry will be working with public and private partners to help with plan implementation. Click here to download the Plan.

HUCKLEBERRIES

Most people know the story of how the Huckleberry Trail got its name. In the early twentieth century, a passenger train ran between Christiansburg and Blacksburg. The steam engine was notorious for stalling, or running so slow, that passengers had time to hop off the train and pick huckleberries. The train became known as the Huckleberry Train, and the Blacksburg Train Station was nicknamed “Huckleberry Station.”

You can’t find many huckleberries in the corridor these days, but we plan to change that. We’re working with the localities and master naturalists to select species and to identify locations within the trail corridor to re-establish huckleberry plantings. We will also use this as an opportunity to remove invasive species in the corridor, too. 

FIELD EXPLORER PACKS​

Group of children with teacher at Huckleberry Trail mural

Friends of the Huckleberry is partnering with the
Wonder Universe: A Children’s Museum to develop and provide Field Explorer Packs for children to explore the Huckleberry Trail. The geographic nexus of the trail and the museum offers visitors an opportunity to extend their experience from the indoors to the outdoors.  Families will be able to check out the explorer packs at the museum and head out to the trail to explore the natural landscapes with activity guides and tools for field observations. 

INTERACTIVE MAPS

ESRI Logo
In 2021, we partnered with Pisgah Map Co. to produce brand new paper and digital maps of the Huckleberry Trail and the extended network of paved and natural surface trails in the area. The map is available through a dozen small businesses in Blacksburg and Christiansburg and through Avenza Maps.  The maps have been wildly popular. Our goal is to continue to provide trail users with better resources for exploring the trail, and to do that, we need access to better tools. We want to take advantage of the suite of ESRI products, including StoryMaps to provide richer detail of the natural, historical and cultural assets adjacent to the Huckleberry Trail. We’re seeking funding for a two-year subscription to ESRI.

MILEAGE MARKERS

Mileage markers on a pallet

To provide more resources to trail users for exploring the trail, we added brand new mileage markers in 2021 to the newest segments of the trail and introduced new logos for the north and south segments.

If you are interested in having your logo or name displayed on one of the markers, sponsorships are still available. Send us an email to learn about this and other sponsorship opportunities.

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