About Us
Tahawus Trails is a partnership of seven dedicated individuals who supervise crews of two to 14 seasonal staff. The partners have over 70 years of combined professional trail building and planning experience. In all our work, we are committed to being safety-focused professional craftspeople, innovators, artists, educators, and passionate land stewards.
Tahawus Trails offers a full range of trail-related services. We work directly with land and stewardship organizations, parks, municipalities, schools, resorts, developers, land trusts, and private landowners to develop, design and improve appropriate access to natural areas. We regularly work on multi-use trail a purpose-built trails including equestrian,Universal Access, ski, mountain bike, and utility vehicle trails.
Our consulting services include trail design, master plan development, trail and trail system assessments, and construction management services. We also offer education services to develop trail design, assessment, and construction skills and knowledge for volunteers, land-owners, and park and facility operations staff.
Tahawus Trails has been a member of the Professional TrailBuilders Association since 2007 and was awarded their 2010 Trail Project of the Year Award for the Bear Mountain Trails Project on the Appalachian Trail in Bear Mountain State Park, NY and the 2013 Trail Project of the Year for the Whirlpool Steps in Niagara Falls, NY.
Our Partners
Edward “Eddie” Walsh
Eddie has professionally worked in the trail world for nearly 30 years both as a manager and builder for non-profits and as an independent contractor. Originally from near Bear Mtn in the lower Hudson Valley, Eddie began trail building in the mid 1980’s as a volunteer trail maintainer for the NY-NJ Trail Conference in Harriman State Park. His professional career began in 1994 with the Adirondack Mountain Club’s (ADK) Professional Trail Crew where he worked until 2001. Before founding Tahawus Trails in 2006, he also worked as a crew member with AMC, the GMC, with the Randolph Mountain Club, helped found the Waterman Alpine Stewardship Fund, and worked as a trail project manager with the NY-NJ Trail Conference. Eddie was awarded the Trail Worker of Year Award in 2011 by American Trails. Finally, Eddie has been the qualifying individual for Tahawus Trails of the Professional Trail builders Association since 2006.
Eddie currently manages the day to day operations of Tahawus Trails as he builds, designs, and plans great trails with great people.
Eddie lives in the Shawangunk Mountains with his wife, two daughters, and son.
Tom Kindling
Originally from Erie Pennsylvania, Tom has a bachelor’s degree in geology from the University of Rochester, and a master’s degree in Sustainable Systems (Park and Resource Management) from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. His deep appreciation for the outdoors stems from a childhood spent playing in the woods behind his subdivision and family trips to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Tom was introduced to the world of professional trail work through an internship for the SCA (Student Conservation Association) in 2001 which lead to many years of being a trail crew leader and instructor for SCA. Tom is also an experienced shipwright having worked extensively on restorations of the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater. Tom has been a partner with Tahawus since 2009.
Adam Gilbert
Adam grew up in Schenectady New York, and worked on the Adirondack Mountain Club’s Professional Trail Crew for eight seasons first as a worker, then crew leader, and finally a manager. After a hiatus during which he worked as a timber framer and carpenter, he returned to his trail work roots. Adam has worked with Tahawus since 2009, with particular focus on kiosks and bridges. Adam lives with his family in Southern Vermont, where he works in his orchard, field, and forest.
Aaron Chute
Aaron was introduced to trail building as a volunteer with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy in 2008 and 2009. In 2010 he completed an internship with the Student Conservation Association which led to employment with Tahawus Trails. He has been a partner since 2012.
Joseph Knight
Joe was born in the big city of Manhattan and currently resides in the country setting of Kerhonkson, NY. He has been involved with building trails full-time since 2012 starting with the NY-NJ Trail Conference and eventually joining Tahawus in 2014. Joe has been a partner with Tahawus since 2018. When he is not building trails, Joe enjoys mountain biking and cooking breakfast for his family.
Teal Linardakis Greenberg
Teal is originally from Newtown, Connecticut, and has lived in the Hudson Valley for 26 years. Coming from a background in art and business, she started working with Tahawus in 2015. When she is not working in the office, Teal enoys making pottery, spending time with family and friends, and getting out in nature. Teal is proud to work for Tahawus, and of all the talented staff that create beautiful pathways for so many to enjoy nature.
Zach Campbell
Zach began volunteering on the trails with the Adirondack Mountain Club in 2007. He continued to build trails professionally with them from 2010 until 2016. He lived in Missoula, MT for two and a half years where he worked at a Conservation Seedling Nursery before moving back East and joining Tahawus in 2019. In his off time, he enjoys Nordic skiing, fat-biking, and hiking. He’s an ADK 46er, a Saranac Lake 6er, and an alumnus of SUNY’s School of Environmental Science and Forestry.
Wes Lampman
Wes has been building and designing trails in the Adirondack and Catskill Regions as a professional since 1993. He has worked for the Adirondack Mountain Club, Appalachian Mountain Club, and as a Student Conservation Association skills instructor. In 2020, Wes joined the Tahawus team and became a partner in 2022. Wes enjoys spending his free time recreating in wild places mountain biking, skiing, nordic skating, and hunting whitetail deer. Wes currently lives with his wife in the Adirondack mountain town of Wilmington, NY.
Patrick “hank” Alcott
Hank has been with working with Tahawus for since 2016, having previously worked as a Wildland Firefighter in Alaska, and a MTB trail builder in the Catskills. As an Alumni of SUNY ESF, it has been a goal of Hank’s to provide the people of New York and beyond with world-class recreation opportunities. Working with Tahawus has allowed his creative inspirations to develop into rock solid construction of trails for future generations.
Our Crew
Erik Mickelson: Since 2008, when he first began doing trail work with the San Diego Mountain Bike Association, Erik has managed to work on well over 180 trails in four states with over thirty different local, state, and federal agencies. In 2019 at the International Trails Symposium, Erik received the “Advancing Trails Award” from New York State Parks and American Trails for “his significant contribution to the enhancement, promotion, and protection of trails in New York.” Erik grew up in Virginia Beach, VA, received a BS in Plant Science from the University of Arizona, and an MA in Education from Pepperdine. He is seeking his doctorate in flow trails...to be continued. Outside of work he still volunteers with trail groups like the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference and Palisades MTB. When he escapes trails for a minute he finds time to surf, snowboard, skateboard, grow things, and do math, music, and art.
Adeline Clayton: Addie started her work in the outdoors through environmental education and began working for the Adirondack Mountain Club in 2015, where she developed a strong connection to the place and a deep passion for protecting its integrity. In 2017, after graduating from the University of Vermont, she switched gears from education to more hands on work, on the club’s professional trail crew. She worked for three seasons before joining Tahawus. When not out on the trail she enjoys working in her garden, ripping it up on local bike and ski trails, and is an avid bread baker.
Atticus Hoyt-Friedman: Atticus grew up in Esopus, New York spending much of his early years outside hiking and exploring the woods. His vocational background is in ornamental gardens and stonework. He loves being in nature and building trails that help others connect with the natural world. Atticus has been working with Tahawus Trails since 2017.
Jay Kepes: Jay grew up north of the Adirondack Mountains in New York State and has been doing trail work since 2003, at age 8. Every summer, his parents and brother traveled to the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness of Idaho to work as trail contractors, clearing fallen trees and maintaining drainage ditches for many miles of trail. Jay first tagged along armed with a trowel, graduating to a small shovel and later an axe and crosscut saw as he got older. After high school, Jay joined the Adirondack Mountain Club's Professional Trail Crew, working for six seasons as worker, then crew leader, and eventually crew boss. Jay began work with Tahawus Trails in 2019. He is incredibly grateful for his life outdoors.
Adam Mackiewicz: Adam has been with Tahawus Trails since 2018. He grew up in Rosendale NY, and has always loved exploring the wild outdoor spaces of the Hudson Valley. Adam got his start in trail work volunteering at Mohonk Preserve, and with the Jolly Rovers Trail Crew. When not building trails Adam enjoys, biking, paddling, juggling, and traveling on his sailboat.
Rob Steinebach: Rob grew up in the Hudson Valley, mostly in the woods with his bicycle. His passion for building with Stone and Wood led him to join the crew in 2020. He just loves being in the woods every day, working with other talented and happy people.
Andrew "bones" Hamlin: Andrew discovered trail construction after his service in the United States Army from 2001-2004. He worked with the Adirondack Mountain Club's Trails Program for 15 years; from 2007-2010 on their field crews, and then as the Trails Coordinator from 2011-2021. Andrew consulted with a variety of public and private organizations on best practices in trail design. Some of his fondest experiences during this time was working and connecting with volunteers from all over the Northeast. Returning to the field after so many years as an administrator has rejuvenated his passion for trail construction.
Kyra White: Kyra first started doing trail work in 2019, working for the Barkeater Trails Alliance in the greater High Peaks Region of the Adirondacks. She joined Tahawus in 2021, and is incredibly grateful to have a hands-on career in the natural world.
Pete Hiser: Pete grew up in the Green Mountains of Vermont spending most of his time outdoors and working as a stonemason, sawyer, and machinery operator. He received his bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and Sustainability from the University of New Hampshire and began trail work shortly after in 2016. Pete joined Tahawus in 2022 after seven years building trails in Vermont and throughout New England. In his free time Pete enjoys fly fishing, hiking, and skiing with his wife Colleen and dog Ripley.