Blazing Trail Ep. 6 – Trail Helpers
Donna Siska, SHT Volunteer and Trail “Angel.”
Hiker logbook at the Northern Terminus. Courtesy of Chaz Gallet, who helps manage the logbook program.
In Episode Six of Blazing Trail, we meet Chaz Gallet, medical advisor for the Superior Hiking Trail who also helps manage the hiker logbook program. We also talk to Donna Siska, a trail helper who assists hikers with unexpected situations on the trail, such as broken water filters, supply drops and even aggressive grouse on the trail.
Pete Smerud, former director of Wolf Ridge, in the field.
Wolf Ridge hikers on the SHT as part of the “Superior View” hike, leading to a bluff over Lake Superior.
Wolf Ridge students hiking on the SHT
The final portion of the episode is a discussion with Peter Smerud, retired director of the Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center, which has a land-sharing agreement with the Superior Hiking Trail. He tells us about how the trail is used to teach children and adults about North Shore and Lake Superior ecology and how the two organizations’ missions overlap.
