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New Wild and Scenic Rivers, Scenic and Historic Trails Added to NPOTA Sites List

12/28/2015

Santa was good to participants in the ARRL National Parks on the Air (NPOTA) program, which gets under way on January 1. On December 23, the National Park Service (NPS) updated its official list of NPS Administrative Units. As a result, 18 new Scenic and Historic Trails and 29 new Wild and Scenic Rivers and have been added to the list of eligible NPOTA Units, increasing the number of NPOTA units from 434 to 481.

“More NPOTA units ultimately mean more fun, and we hope these additions make more activations possible for you or your club,” said ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X.

Among the new Historic Trails on the NPOTA list are the five major trails associated with the westward expansion of the US in the 19th century: The Santa Fe, California, Mormon Pioneer, Lewis and Clark, and Pony Express National Historic Trails. The list also includes the North Country and Ice Age National Scenic Trails. These new trails represent thousands of miles of additional area from which NPOTA Activators may operate in 2016.

Not all of the trails and rivers added to the NPS Affiliated Areas list have been included on the NPOTA list, however, because many are administered by other federal agencies, such as the US Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. Because NPOTA celebrates the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, units not administered by the NPS have not been added to the NPOTA list of eligible units.

While the unexpected addition of new NPOTA units is ultimately welcome, it has delayed the release of a TQSL update for Logbook Of the World (LoTW). ARRL staff worked over the holiday weekend to add the new units — and combinations of units — to the update, and this has required additional testing. The TQSL update will undergo final testing this week and be released as soon as possible.

The 11th hour addition of large trails and rivers also has made it necessary to revise some of the ground rules for certain types of NPOTA units. For example, large portions of some new trails are on existing stretches of highway or other roads, raising safety issues for pedestrian Activators.

“We will be reviewing these and other situations Activators may encounter, and update the rules accordingly,” Kutzko said. “Activators will need to be careful only to operate from the portions of rivers and trails that are administered by NPS. It is not uncommon for several agencies to administer different parts of the same unit. In addition, many portions of rivers and trails are on private property, which should not be accessed unless you have permission from the landowner.”

The National Trails System Map & Guide and the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System website provide information on the boundaries of these units. Due diligence on the part of Activators is critical, however, to ensure that they are operating from an NPS-administered portion of these units.

Further updates and additional information will be posted on the ARRL NPOTA page as soon as they are available. 

New Trail Unit

Designator

State

North Country National Scenic Trail

 

TR04

MI, MN, NY, ND, PA, OH, WI

 

Ice Age National Scenic Trail

 

TR05

WI

New England National Scenic Trail

 

TR06

CT, MA

Oregon National Historic Trail

 

TR07

ID, KS, MO, NE, OR, WA, WY

Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail

 

TR08

IL, IA, NE, UT, WY

Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail

 

TR09

ID, IL, IA, KS, MO, MT, NE, ND, OR, SD, WA

Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail

 

TR10

NC, SC, TN, VA

Santa Fe National Historic Trail

 

TR11

CO, KS, MO, NM, OK, TX

Trail of Tears National Historic Trail

 

TR12

AL, AR, GA, IL, KY, MO, NC, OK, TN

Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail

 

TR13

AZ, CA

California National Historic Trail

 

TR14

CA, CO, ID, KS, MO, NE, NV, OR, UT, WY

Pony Express National Historic Trail

 

TR15

CA, CO, KS, MO, NE, NV, UT, WY

Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail

 

TR16

AL

El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail

 

TR17

TX, NM

Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail

 

TR18

HI

Old Spanish National Historic Trail

 

TR19

AZ, CA, CO, NV, NM, UT

El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail

 

TR20

LA, TX

Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail

 

TR21

VA, MD, DE, DC, PA, NY

Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail

 

TR22

DC, MD, VA

Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route Nat’l Historic Trl

 

TR23

MA, RI, CT, NY, NJ, PA, DE, MD, VA, DC

  

New River Unit

Designator

State

Alatna Wild River

 

WR11

AK

Aniachak Wild River

 

WR12

AK

Charley Wild River (Affiliated Area)

 

WR13

AK

Chilikadrotna Wild River

 

WR14

AK

Eightmile National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR15

CT

Farmington National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR16

CT

Flathead Wild and Scenic River

 

WR17

MT

John Wild River

 

WR18

AK

Kern River

 

WR19

CA

Kings River

 

WR20

CA

Kobuk Wild River

 

WR21

AK

Koyukuk Wild River (North Fork)

 

WR22

AK

Lamprey Wild and Scenic River

 

WR23

NH

Maurice Scenic and Recreational River

 

WR24

NJ

Merced River

 

WR25

CA

Missisquoi and Trout Wild and Scenic River

 

WR26

VT

Mulchatna Wild River

 

WR27

AK

Musconetcong National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR28

NJ

Noatak Wild River

 

WR29

AK

Salmon Wild River

 

WR30

AK

Sudbury, Assabet and Concord National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR31

MA

Taunton National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR32

MA

Tinayguk Wild River

 

WR33

AK

Tlikakila Wild River

 

WR34

AK

Toulumne River

 

WR35

CA

Virgin Wild and Scenic River

 

WR36

UT

Wekiva National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR37

FL

Westfield National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR38

MA

White Clay Creek National Wild and Scenic River

 

WR39

 

PA

    



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