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Professional Trail Crews
In addition to Alaska Trail Stewards volunteer events each summer, Alaska Trails hires professional trail crews to decrease the backlog of necessary trail construction and maintenance projects in Southcentral Alaska. Trail crews work in coordination with municipalities, the US Forest Service, Chugach State Park, the BLM, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Hatcher Pass State Park, and Denali State Park to complete projects that improve our trail systems.
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In 2026, three trail crews will spend the summer out on our trails, working hard to ensure that we can enjoy the trails that make Alaska so special.
Chugach State Park Trail Crew
This crew will work primarily on the Lost Cabin Valley and Wolverine Ski Loop Trails in Chugach State Park. The crew will focus on drainage solutions, building and improving trail structures, and trail reroutes to avoid perpetually wet and muddy sections. They will also spend a few weeks on Chugach State Park priority projects that require maintenance.
Meet the Crew
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Shaun Gitlin, Crew Leader
Born and raised in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, Shaun is passionate about long distance hiking and eventually picked up trail building along the way. This will be Shaun's second season with Alaska Trails. He is looking forward to experiencing the midnight sun, the Northern Lights, and other natural marvels of the last frontier.
Wils Evans, Crew Member
Wils Evans grew up on a small family farm in southern Illinois, and now studies environmental science at Juniata College in Pennsylvania. He fell in love with the mountains while working and backpacking in New Zealand during a gap year, and has been tirelessly chasing new mountains since. Some of his favorite hobbies include mountain biking, rock climbing, fishing, backpacking, and especially exploring new places. Wils was introduced to trail work when he joined the Nevada Conservation Corps in the summer of 2025, and after thoroughly enjoying his time spent building trail in the scenic backcountry of Nevada and California, he decided 2026 was the year to pursue his lifelong dream of working in Alaska. He is very excited for his first season with Alaska Trails, and his first time ever in Alaska!
Jacquelyn Opalach, Crew Member
Jacquelyn is happiest in the backcountry and can’t imagine life without trails. With a bit of volunteering experience doing landscaping, forest restoration, and construction work, she is an eager newcomer to Alaska and trail work. Jacquelyn grew up on the north coast of California and loves to embroider, alter clothes, make jewelry, carve stamps, eat good food, and, of course, hike.
Nathan Duprey, Crew Member
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​Nathan Duprey was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan and previously worked for the California Conservation Corps, maintaining trails in California's Trinity Alps. He joins Alaska Trails for the first time this year and is excited to be along for the ride. In his free time Nathan enjoys playing chess, painting, and reading.
Michelle Crowl, Crew Member
​Michelle Crowl has called Alaska home for the last 13 years. In 2012, she joined a trail crew in Southeast Alaska and loved building and hiking multiple trails around Alaska. Since 2018, Michelle has volunteered as a crew member, assistant crew leader, and crew leader with Alaska Trails, gaining status as a super volunteer. In her free time, she loves participating in the many adventures that Alaska has to offer.
Chugach National Forest Trail Crew
The Chugach National Forest Trail Crew will be working on the Meridian Lakes Trail, Upper Winner Creek Trail, and Iditarod National Historic Trail. This crew will work on trail maintenance projects such as brushing, drainage, tread hardening, as well as wooden structure work.
Meet the Crew
Olga Iwaniuk, Crew Member
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Spending the past several summers on the banks of the Copper River and in the Wrangell Mountains, Olga loves spending time outside backpacking, paddling rivers, and skiing. She is excited to join the AK trails crew and continue stewarding trails in Anchorage's backyard.
Ellen Eller, Crew Member
Ellen is currently living in Portland but was born and raised in the woods on the Kenia Peninsula where she helped in the garden or with building projects on her homestead. She loved growing up in Alaska, going on week long camping trips in the Chugach National Forest mountains, jumping off a raft somewhere down the Kenai river and picking seaweed and berries across the Kachemak Bay. She fell in love with trail maintenance last season working with Alaska Trails. You can usually find her building houses with natural materials or adventuring outdoors with friends.
Ethan Copp, Crew Member
Ethan was raised in Butte, Alaska, under the shadow of Matanuska Peak. He enjoys trail running, mountains, a sauna, a multitude of movement practices, and fresh air. Ethan has done trail work in the Kenai Wildlife Refuge, Katmai National Park, and around Southcentral Alaska, volunteering with Alaska Trails. He looks forward to contributing his time and labor to build trails for Alaska's people and communities.
Jillian Gehman, Crew Member
This will be Jillian's second season as a trail crew member with Alaska Trails. She's originally from Pennsylvania, but found how much she loves hands on, physically demanding work on an environmental restoration crew in California. From there, Jillian moved to Colorado to work for the Rocky Mountain Conservancy for two seasons on their backcountry trail crew. She then spent two years exploring Colorado and other job fields, but is at her peak happiness on trail alongside other crew members! She's stoked to be returning to Alaska this summer!
Jillian Gehman, Crew Member
This will be Jillian's second season as a trail crew member with Alaska Trails. She's originally from Pennsylvania, but found how much she loves hands on, physically demanding work on an environmental restoration crew in California. From there, Jillian moved to Colorado to work for the Rocky Mountain Conservancy for two seasons on their backcountry trail crew. She then spent two years exploring Colorado and other job fields, but is at her peak happiness on trail alongside other crew members! She's stoked to be returning to Alaska this summer!
Mat-Su Trail Crew
This crew will spend most of their season on trails in Nancy Lake State Recreation Area, Denali State Park, Gull Rock Trail, and Horsetail Falls Trail. They will complete log outs, reroutes, tread hardening, minor structure work, brushing, and drainage.
Meet the Crew
Sarris Harris, Crew Leader
Sarris grew up in Anchorage, AK and is happy to be returning to Alaska Trails for their fourth full season of work, and their third year leading a crew. Previous work with Alaska Trails includes building step-and-run structure on Heney Ridge Trail and McKinley Lake Trail in Cordova, extensive reroutes on the Williwaw Lakes Trail in Chugach State Park, and copious amounts of brushing to clear the Childs Glacier Airstrip. They have a BS in environmental science from WWU, but after serving a term with WCC after graduating, they decided they like to dig and run saws more than they like to do science. Sarris loves listening to music, writing, skiing, climbing, fatbiking, knitting, running, chocolate, dogs and probably some other stuff too.
Taylor Gephart, Crew Member
Taylor Gephart joined the Alaska Trails pro crew team in 2026. She is a born and raised Alaskan. Taylor has previously done two seasons as a wildland firefighter with the Alaska Division of Forestry and one season with NOLS Alaska as an operations assistant. She enjoys backpacking, snowboarding, ice skating, and long slow walks with a chainsaw. Taylor is passionate about all things outdoors and is super excited to be joining the crew this summer and exploring Alaska's vast backcountry and wildlife.
Henry Staunton, Crew Member
Henry was raised in a small woodsy town in Connecticut where he developed a passion for hiking and the natural world. He attended the University of Vermont where he spent much time exploring the mountains of northern New England, and after graduating went on to perform two seasons of trail work for conservation corps in Utah and Idaho, as well as a season fighting fire with the Forest Service in Arizona. In addition to hiking and enjoying nature Henry loves music, climbing, and skiing.
Kelvin Rivas, Crew Member
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Corvin is thrilled to be starting his first season working on and experiencing the wonderful trails in his home state of Alaska. He was born and raised in the city of Kenai until moving up to Anchorage in 2022. His time growing up in Kenai was spent fishing for salmon on the Kenai river, exploring the lakes and ATV trails in the neighboring towns, Nikiski and Sterling, and camping with friends and family. Some of his hobbies include competing in local running events, playing basketball at the YMCA, and riding his bicycle around Anchorage’s trail system. ​
Jeremy Felton, Crew Member
Isaac grew up in New England and headed west as soon as he was out of high school. He shortly found his love for trails working a season with Montana Conservation Corps and hasn't looked back since. He has spent the last 3 summers working trails and cabins with the US Forest Service in Moose Pass, AK and the winters skiing his heart out in Girdwood, AK or traveling. He is looking forward to putting some good work in on the trails in Girdwood and Seward.
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