Description
Thomas J. Elpel Elpel once walked 500 miles east across Montana, including 100 miles on the abandoned Chicago Milwaukee Railroad bed. Thirty-one years later, he paddled a parallel route 2,300 miles down the Missouri River, all the way to St. Louis.
In nonprofit work, Elpel has helped acquire multiple paddler campsites for the public along the Jefferson River Canoe Trail. He is now coordinating a statewide effort through Bike Walk Montana to convert inactive and abandoned rail corridors into public trails.
Elpel speaks about past adventures, the need for public trails, and what we can do to enhance trail opportunities for future generations.
About the Speaker
Thomas J. Elpel is the founder and director of Green University LLC and Outdoor Wilderness Living School LLC (OWLS), where he mentors adults and youth in outdoor skills. He is the author of nine books about botany, foraging, wilderness survival skills, and sustainable living. In 2020, he won the Writer's Digest First Place Award for nonfiction for his book, Five Months on the Missouri River: Paddling a Dugout Canoe.
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