When Kevin Sylvester, Executive Director of Family Promise of Gallatin Valley, a transitional shelter program for homeless families, approached the Gallatin Valley Land Trust (GVLT) about the lack of outdoor and trail experience among his program’s families, a partnership formed to help more people feel comfortable exploring our area’s trails.

The Family Promise Day Center is located across the street from Bozeman’s most iconic trail and park, Burke Park (also known as Peets Hill).  Despite the proximity to the park, Family Promise clients were never getting outside.  Unfortunately, this isn’t surprising. Research has found that low income families are less likely to use and access public parks and trails.  Simply helping people understand where to park, where to walk, and what to expect on a trail experience can greatly increase their comfort and confidence while exploring outdoors. In such an outdoorsy place like Bozeman, we can forget that some people didn’t grow up climbing mountain peaks and may need Trails 101 to feel safe navigating trails with their family. “Our main goal at Family Promise is to create sustainable solutions for homeless families in our Valley, and a large part of that is supporting families in building a community,” says Sylvester. “Many of the families we serve have never been exposed to outdoor recreation. Bozeman’s trail system helps build a sense of responsibility and promotes healthy family interaction. We wanted a way to encourage families to take advantage of Bozeman’s outdoors while living on a limited income.”

GVLT and Family Promise worked together on a unique project to help remove barriers that keep families from getting outside. The project is the Young Explorers Passport to Adventure, a self-guided tour of activities and an introduction to the Main Street to the Mountains trail system. The 12-page booklet mimics a real passport and includes both a trail map of the Main Street to the Mountains system and a Streamline bus system for transportation to trailheads. The passport includes pages featuring 5 different parks and trails in town. Each trail page has a number of activities that the young adventurer must complete in order to accomplish “Peets Hill Pioneer” or “Gallagator Crusader” status.  Nothing motivates kids more than a prize so they’re eligible for rewards when they complete various numbers of pages in their passport.

The activities in the book are fun, first and foremost. But they also encourage kids to look around and engage with their surroundings. Trails are not simply gravel paths, they can be educational, inspiring, relaxing, and active places for kids to develop and grow. The passport is a great tool for parents who are seeking structured ways to start exploring the trails with their kids.

Family Promise and GVLT have distributed passports to local nonprofits who serve families.  Groups such as Thrive, Big Brothers and Big Sisters, YMCA, and HAVEN will be giving passports to children in their programs. “We’re really lucky in Bozeman to have such a breadth of accessible trails right in our backyard. Most of the Main Street to the Mountains trail system is easy and great for beginner explorers. This passport will give children a window into a world they can explore, regardless of income” says EJ Porth, GVLT Communications and Outreach Manager.

The passport is currently being distributed through local nonprofits but will be available for download and print on the GVLT and Family Promise websites. Family Promise will be handing out passports and helping kids complete pages during a GVLT Discovery Walk on Sunday July 10th at 2:00pm at the Gallatin Regional Park. This event is free and open to the public.