Hello from the Trail.
Spring is bringing renewed energy across the Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, and I am pleased to share several updates on ongoing work and collaborations that continue to strengthen how we tell the floods story with our partners.
Trail Brochures Heading Out Across the Region
The National Park Service recently placed an order with the Government Publishing Office for a new printing of Trail brochures. A total of 21,600 brochures will be distributed to twenty-eight partner organizations across the four-state region. These partners play an essential role in delivering high-quality flood information into the hands of visitors, educators, and residents who want to explore this remarkable landscape.
Supporting Long-Range Planning for the Trail
Work is underway with planning staff from the Pacific West Regional Office and the Denver Service Center on a Preliminary Planning Project. This early planning effort will allow the National Park Service to begin shaping a more comprehensive management approach for the Trail and ensure that long-term needs and partner expectations are built into future planning conversations.
Teacher Workshops and Educational Partnerships
The National Park Service is proud to continue partnering with the Education Committee of the Ice Age Floods Institute. The Institute has taken the lead in organizing teacher-training workshops, developing a new fourth-grade curriculum, and launching a grants program to help school districts adopt it. The Institute’s leadership on these efforts is making a measurable difference in how young learners across the region are introduced to the Ice Age floods.
New Interpretive Animation
The NPS Ice Age floods animation released in January brought a new tool to communities, educators, and interpreters, and we are already hearing excellent feedback. Many partners have found creative ways to use the animation in public programs, museum settings, classrooms, and community presentations. I want to extend sincere thanks to the members of the Ice Age Floods Institute for their support throughout the development of this tool. Its value is clearly demonstrated by how widely and enthusiastically it is being used.
Exploring New Technology for Interpretation and Data Sharing
The Trail is in the early planning stages of two technology-focused efforts with the National Park Service: Natural Resource Stewardship and Science, Inventory and Monitoring Program. The first is a potential condition assessment to help the Trail better understand the state of key flood features. The second is an exploratory effort to determine whether AI-generated three-dimensional mapping could improve how geologic information is organized and shared.
At the Institute’s most recent board meeting, I presented work from Terrain 360 to help illustrate what innovative visualization tools can offer. We will continue to coordinate discussions among subject matter experts and content developers to explore new ways to organize and present data, information, and interpretation related to the Trail.
Thank you to the Institute’s members, volunteers, and partners for your continued dedication to the story of the Ice Age floods. I look forward to seeing many of you out on the Trail in the months ahead.
Justin Radford
National Park Service
Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail