Vancouver, Wash. – Clark County, in partnership with the city of Vancouver, is seeking volunteers to help collect data that will be used to improve our regional park systems.

The trails, parks and natural areas that members of the public enjoy year-round are part of the Portland-Vancouver region’s trail system that is studied and monitored by an Oregon Metro initiative. Each year, regional municipalities seek volunteers to help count users of the systems including bicyclists and pedestrians. Those numbers are used to help direct funding towards high-use areas, and other areas that may need improvements in safety, inclusivity and more.

Volunteers are needed to help with weekday trail counts from 5 to 7 p.m., Sept. 10-12, and weekend counts from 9 to 11 a.m., Sept. 14-15. Volunteers will be trained.

Trail count locations in Clark County include:        

• Chelatchie Prairie Road Trail at Northeast Palmer
• Frenchman’s Bar and Vancouver Lake Trail at the Blurock Landing trailhead
• Salmon Creek Greenway Trail at the Vancouver Girls Softball Association trailhead
• Columbia River Renaissance Trail
• Whipple Creek Regional Park at NW 179th and NW 21st Ave
• Burnt Bridge Creek Trail at the Northeast Devine Road trailhead and near Northwest 78th Street-Lakeshore Avenue
• Captain William Clark Park at Cottonwood Beach
• Padden Parkway Trail at Northeast 94th Avenue
• Lacamas Trail at the Northeast Goodwin Road trailhead.

Interested in volunteering? Please RSVP to see the full list of counting locations, including sites with the city of Vancouver. You can also sign up for one of two training sessions and register for your preferred training date and location.

The training sessions are:

• 5 to 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 27, at Vancouver City Hall, 415 W. Sixth St.
• 6 to 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 29, at Clark County Public Works Operations Center, 4700 N.E. 78th St., Conference Room B-1.

More information on trail counts and other volunteer opportunities is available at www.clark.wa.gov/public-works/annual-trail-user-counts.

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