What is a Trail Amnassabor?
The Pikes Peak Outdoors Trail Ambassadors are the friendly faces of the region’s parks, open spaces and trails. We are a resource for both every outdoor user in the Pikes Peak Region and the various partners that care for and manage its public lands. We’re outdoors because we love it—and we hope you will too!
Ambassador Responsibilities
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Education and Support- Through both active hiking patrols and educational tables at trailheads, Ambassadors aim to provide every user they encounter with the tools and knowledge to have a safe and sustainable experience outdoors. Whether it’s answering questions, refilling an empty water bottle, making trail recommendations or providing fun facts about local ecology, the Ambassador team are your on-site experts for outdoor recreation.
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Data Capture- Ambassadors work closely with numerous parks departments and land management agencies to collect information on trails, user numbers and visitor experiences that help promote evidence-based practices in caring for the region’s public lands.
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Stewardship- Active care for the natural world is both an important part of the Ambassador role and how we set a positive example for other recreational users. By packing out trash, picking up pet waste, cleaning up unsafe fire sites and assisting with minor trail maintenance, we model ways to be part of the solution in protecting outdoor spaces.
A Full-Time Job
The Pikes Peak Outdoors Trail Ambassador Program is one of only a handful of ambassador programs in the entire country that consists predominantly of paid staff. Because much of Southern Colorado has a moderate climate with great accessibility year-round, Trail Ambassadors are full-time employees that work throughout every season. Our team consists of dedicated and enthusiastic individuals who love connecting with people just as much as they love spending time outside. Ambassadors receive thorough training in effective communication and outdoor ethics through a Leave No Trace Level 1 Instructor certification course, as well as additional training opportunities through partnered institutions.
“This is a wonderful program. There is such a need to educate people about the natural environment to help keep our outdoor parklands in a healthy condition.”
Program Purpose and Goals
As populations and visitor numbers for the Pikes Peak Region have grown, so has the demand for continued access to the area’s world-class outdoor experiences. However, the increase in popularity has also resulted in an increased potential for cumulative impacts on the very landscapes that we love. Damaged trails, trashed natural areas, overcrowded parking lots, and user group conflicts have been just a few of the challenges that our outdoor spaces and communities have collectively faced.
The Trail Ambassador Program was launched as a solution to these issues through a collaborative partnership between Rocky Mountain Field Institute (RMFI) and Pikes Peak Outdoors (PPO), with funding from Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO). RMFI and PPO recognized that when people are informed about how their actions affect the outdoors, they become part of the solution for responsible recreation.
Program Goals
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Foster an increased understanding, respect, and ethic of care for public lands in the Pikes Peak Region by providing outdoor users with education, resources, and inspiration.
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Provide added resource oversight, support, and capacity for the federal, state, and local land managers who oversee the care of public lands in the Pikes Peak Region.
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Enhance outdoor user experiences and accessibility by developing a more in-depth understanding of the needs of our community as they pertain to public lands.
The Trail Ambassador Program engages users on public land across El Paso, Teller, and Fremont counties—an area 10 times larger than Rocky Mountain National Park! The Trail Ambassador Program serves all three counties below and multiple management jurisdictions within each county, like the City of Colorado Springs Parks, El Paso County Parks, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, and more.
A few of our most regular patrol areas include the following.
El Paso County
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Bear Creek Regional Park, Blodgett Open Space, Fox Run Regional Park, The Manitou Incline & Barr Trail, North Cheyenne Cañon Park, Paint Mines Interpretive Park, and Red Rock Canyon Open Space
Fremont County
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Hogback Open Space/Skyline Drive, Phantom Canyon Road, Red Canyon Park, Royal Gorge Park, Shelf Road, and Temple Canyon Park
Teller County
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The Crags & Devils Playground, Horsethief Park, North Slope Recreation Area, Lovell Gulch, and Rita the Rock Planter (the Victor troll)
Check out the Ambassador Patrol Map below. Select the icons on the map below to see when and where you may find Trail Ambassadors at work.
Carrie Supino
Lead trail Ambassador
Carrie has been passionate about connecting people to the outdoors ever since she first moved to Colorado Springs from Chicago in 2017. She has a wealth of experience engaging outdoor users from all backgrounds in both classrooms and on trails, having served as a Peak Steward with Colorado Fourteeners Initiative and the Leave No Trace State Advocate for Eastern Colorado. She is a firm believer that every person has the capacity to have a positive impact on shared outdoor spaces when given the tools and knowledge to do so, and strives to bring this ethic to the management of the Ambassador Program.
Mikayla Moors
Trail Ambassador
Mikayla was born and raised in Colorado Springs, where she grew up spending time outdoors hiking, camping, and fishing. Her career started on the Pikes Peak Highway in 2020 which then took her to the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, New Mexico State Parks, and now RMFI. Connecting people to nature and the outdoors is what drives Mikayla's passion for education and stewardship. After a couple of years as a park ranger, she returned to higher education to work on her Bachelor of Science in Conservation Biology and Ecology at Arizona State University.
Jen Yoon
Trail Ambassador
Jen has lived in Colorado Springs her whole life and has an ever-growing passion for the outdoors and for the city of Colorado Springs. Her first experiences outdoors happened on the trails and open spaces near home, and she continues to enjoy the outdoors through hiking, biking, camping, and more. Currently, she is pursuing her interests through a Master’s in Natural Resources and is excited to be a trail ambassador for RMFI. For many years, her dream has been to connect different groups to nature through positive experiences.
Have a question about our Trail Ambassador Program?
FAQ's
If you have any other questions not answered below, please contact Carrie at carrie@rmfi.org.
All of our current Trail Ambassadors are full-time paid employees! This ensures that we are able to provide consistent engagement and resources for both the outdoor recreation community and our land management partners.
We hope to eventually grow the Trail Ambassador program to include volunteer engagement. If you’re interested in ambassadorship volunteer opportunities, contact our Lead Trail Ambassador Carrie at carrie@rmfi.org.
While our Trail Ambassadors are similar to park rangers in that we provide informative education about outdoor ethics and natural resources, we do not help enforce park rules or regulations (aka we don’t write tickets or impose fines).
Sometimes, yes! Depending on where Trail Ambassadors are scheduled to work for the day, we may end up hiking the most popular trail in a park repeatedly to connect with as many people as possible. Some of our Trail Ambassadors cover between 20-30 miles of trail per week!
The Trail Ambassador Program is currently being funded by a generous grant from Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO). As the program expands, we hope to seek additional sources of funding to ensure that it remains sustainable for many years to come.