Greetings on behalf of Pathfinders For Greenways!
Looking over my shoulder at 2025, it has been a year of change and progress in the work of Pathfinders! Former Greenway Coordinator, Frank Maguire, moved on to pursue other opportunities at the end of February and we are grateful for his service in advancing the mission of the Greenway Commission and providing guidance to Pathfinders. Pathfinders board member and past-president, Brian McCahill, represents us on the Greenway Commission and has been working diligently with others on the Commission to affirm the importance of the Greenway Coordinator role to the Roanoke Valley and fill the position as soon as possible.
In terms of progress, I invite you to peruse the information and photos in this newsletter highlighting the extensive work in the field by our Mid-Week Crew (MWC), Rock-n-Roll (RnR) Crew and litter pickup volunteers, as well as Pathfinders monetary donations made in support of projects across the area. Officials with VDOT have been pleased and grateful for the dedication and efficiency of our MWC work clearing the Craig Botetourt Scenic Trail corridor and Pathfinders assistance in acquiring property for a proposed trailhead. The MWC continues to chisel the new Laurel Canyon Trail into the clay and rock at the western end of the Carvins Cove Natural Reserve to provide additional trail connectivity sometime in 2026!
The transformational work of our RnR crew to improve grading and drainage along the Happy Valley Fire Road at Carvins Cove was made possible by the use of Pathfinders funding to rent heavy equipment to get the job done! This work was praised by the City of Roanoke for helping improve this corridor that served as part of the marathon course in the 2025 USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championship races in July.
We also celebrate projects underway and completed by localities and other groups in the region as the network of greenways and trails continues to expand and amenities are added. One new amenity, a bench, was dedicated by Pathfinders at a brief ceremony in July to recognize long-time board member, Guy Byrd. It was also a reunion of former Greenway Commission and Pathfinders board members and elected officials. We are grateful for their vision over 30 years ago to develop a network of greenways and trails throughout the Roanoke Valley and for the value these paths provide to our communities!
Thank you all for your continued support of Pathfinders For Greenways.
Craig Favor
President
Pathfinders For Greenways, Inc.
Volunteer Accomplishments
3,866 Total Volunteer Hours
135 Total Project Days
Main Projects:
- Laurel Canyon Trail, 21 days, 1,633 hours
- Craig Botetourt Scenic Trail, 14 days, 619 hours
- Happy Valley Fire Road, 39 days, 567 hours
- Rock-N-Roll Trail, 24 days, 402 hours
- Clear Invasives & Downed Trees, 7 days, 256 hours
- Creston Connector Trail, 2 days, 160 hours
- Greenway Litter pickup, 10 days, 67 hours
- Equipment Maintenance, 15 days, 63 hours
- Craig County Greenway, 2 days, 50 hours
- Blue Ridge Springs Trail, 1 day, 49 hours
Interested In Volunteering? No Experience Necessary!
- Please see the Pathfinders Meetup Group for our next trail workday in Carvins Cove
- Help us clean up the Greenways the first Thursday of every month
- Support staff at local events
Volunteer Of The Year 2025: Barry Trent
The 2025 Volunteer of the Year Award was enthusiastically presented at the annual volunteer picnic to current Greenway Commission (GC) Chairman and dedicated Mid-Week Crew member, Barry Trent! Former GC Chairman Greg Walter describes Barry’s trail work as “a real ‘energizer bunny’ when working on building trail. Working next to him can make me look like I’m goofing off.” Barry has also tirelessly led the GC Transition Committee tasked with evaluating and updating the job description for the vacant Greenway Coordinator position. Attending dozens of meetings and corresponding with the five member localities of the GC, Barry has devoted countless hours to the process of finding a new Greenway Coordinator. We are grateful for his service to the community and proudly add his name to the Volunteer of the Year plaque for 2025.
2025 Project Highlights
For 28 years, Pathfinders has focused on building trails with volunteers and supporting greenway development in the Valley. In 2025, we had the opportunity to support three trail projects managed by other organizations. These were opportunities to use donations, provided by supporters like you, to help move projects forward.
First was Craig Botetourt Scenic Trail (CBST), a 26-mile rail trail owned and being developed by VDOT. During the planning process VDOT realized that they needed a parking area near the middle of the trail. Pathfinders applied for and received a $200,000 grant from the Virginia Outdoors Foundation to buy a parcel from a willing landowner. To match the grant, Pathfinders paid other expenses and contributed over 1800 hours of volunteer labor and equipment for trail clearing, thus providing an additional $89,000 to the project. This support allowed VDOT to finalize design and initiate maintenance of the railbed.
In 2019-20, Pathfinders was actively involved in the City of Roanoke’s update to the Mill Mountain Trail Plan. When Roanoke Parks Foundation began raising money to assist with implementation of the Plan, Pathfinders provided $37,500 to help with contracted construction of four miles of trail. These trails were completed fall 2025.
The third project was Craig County Greenway, an existing one-mile trail. Pathfinders applied for and received a $4,500 grant from Project Outside to repair the surface, so that this mile could become part of CBST in the future.
It is through your donations and support that Pathfinders is able to assist with trail development in the region, in addition to its building trails on a weekly basis. We thank you for the resources we need to help make the region a great trail community.
Mid-Week Crew Updates
The Crew worked on two major projects in 2025:
Construction of Laurel Canyon Trail at Carvins Cove and clearing and brushing on Craig Botetourt Scenic Trail. Laurel Canyon, a 3-½ mile new trail, will be finished next spring. Our work on CBST allowed VDOT to do significant maintenance of the railbed, making much of it now usable. In addition, we did some small projects, like cleaning the tunnel on Wolf Creek, clearing trees and grasses on Blue Ridge Springs Trail, building a trail from Creston Ave. to Fishburn Park, and clearing invasives on Mill Mountain. These projects are great in the winter when weather and short days limit travel.
Rock-N-Roll Crew Updates
We started this year with a focus on improving the Happy Valley Fire Road at Carvins Cove. We first used Pathfinder’s smaller machines, but then Pathfinders rented larger equipment, and we made much faster progress on the road. We did major regrading on the worst sections of road we use to get to Rock-N-Roll trail access points. We also repaired a double culvert that was totally blocked and causing sinkholes in the road. In another section of the road, we improved 3 hidden and stopped-up culverts that were causing water to flow into the road. We established a new access trail for Rock-N-Roll extension and roughed in a new section of trail. We decided we had to armor two drainage crossings on a section of trail we had just completed. We are almost done with those and should make it to the next crossing soon.
Support Your Local Greenways and Trails Today!
Pathfinders for Greenways is a 501(c)(3) organization, and your donations are tax-deductible. In addition to donating online via the button above, you can mail a check to the return address listed below. We welcome donations of stock shares, too! Please email us to facilitate the transaction.