October 3–4, 2026 | L.L. Stub Stewart State Park
Building trails takes many skills, and some of those skills extend beyond moving dirt. On October 3–4, seven NW Trail Sisters crew leaders gathered at L.L. Stub Stewart State Park for a two-day Wood Features Workshop designed to develop carpentry skills, build confidence, and create new mountain bike features.
The workshop brought together professional expertise, hands-on instruction, and real-world trail construction. More importantly, it created a supportive environment where women could learn new skills and put them to work on the trails.
Day One: Learning the Tools of the Trade
The workshop kicked off Saturday at Mountain Dale Meeting Hall at Stub Stewart with a hands-on classroom session focused on the fundamentals of carpentry.
Participants learned from professional Consultant and Trail Planner, Chris Bernhardt of C2 Recreation, architect Jannel Waldron with Simple Form Architecture, Aria Joughin from MakeWith, and contractor Mark Rainha of True To Form NW.
The morning’s Carpentry 101 instruction introduced foundational concepts and skills needed to work with wood materials and construct trail features.
In the afternoon, participants traded classroom instruction for hands-on experience. With guidance from Chris Bernhardt, Mark Rainha and Aria Joughin, the Trail Sisters practiced working with wood materials and standard carpentry tools, to construct basic box forms.
The goal was to build familiarity and confidence with tools and techniques that participants could apply to future trail projects and everyday life.
Day Two: Putting New Skills to Work
On Sunday, the group headed into the new skills area at Stub Stewart to turn their newly developed knowledge into something tangible.
The Trail Sisters spent the day constructing two wooden mountain bike features within a future skills area where the group is creating entirely women-built trails.
The projects included two drops designed for different riding abilities:
- Beginner drop: Approximately 12 inches high.
- Intermediate drop: Approximately two feet high, leading onto a sloped dirt landing.
By the end of the day, the volunteers had completed approximately 80% of the work on both features.
The progress demonstrated what a small, dedicated crew could accomplish after receiving focused instruction and working together on a shared project.
Creating Opportunities for Women in Trail Building
Carpentry and wooden feature construction have traditionally been areas of trail building where many women have not always felt welcome or comfortable participating.
NW Trail Sisters designed this workshop to help change that experience.
By creating an approachable, beginner-friendly learning environment, the workshop encouraged participants to ask questions, practice unfamiliar techniques, and develop skills without the pressure of already knowing how to do everything.
The training also equipped NW Trail Sisters crew leaders with foundational carpentry skills they can bring to future trail-building projects.
As these skills spread throughout the volunteer community, they create additional opportunities for women to take leadership roles in designing, building, and maintaining mountain bike trails.
Thank You to Our Supporters
This two-day training was funded in part by a generous grant from Explore Tualatin Valley.
Special thanks to Chris Bernhardt of C2 Recreation, Jannel Waldron of Simple Form Architecture, Mark Rainha of True To Form NW, and Aria Joughin from MakeWith for sharing their knowledge and providing hands-on instruction.
And thank you to the seven NW Trail Sisters volunteers who dedicated their weekend to learning new skills and helping build the next chapter of the Stub Stewart trail system.