WilCo Offers Preserves Training To Enjoy The Great Outdoors

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TEXAS — The Williamson County Conservation Foundation is offering another “Leave No Trace for Williamson County Preserves” training for people who want to access county preserve areas, officials said on Wednesday.

The next class will take place on Thursday, April 25, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., with sign-in starting at 6 p.m., at the Williamson County Georgetown Annex, 100 Wilco Way in Georgetown.

The training session will take place in the Human Resources Training Room. Organizers ask those attending to drive around to the northwest corner of the building to access through the Training Room door.

“Leave No Trace for Williamson County Preserves” is a program presented by the Williamson County Conservation and is based on the international "Leave No Trace" program for outdoor ethics. The training allows participants to hike, bird watch, and enjoy Williamson County preserves. Everyone older than 12 needs their own pass; children under 12 must be accompanied by a pass-holding adult.

To reserve a spot in the class, send an email to wccf@wilco.org and include "LNT" in the subject line. Include your name and the number of persons accompanying you. Because of classroom size, the class is limited to the first 40 people who register.

The Center for Outdoor Ethics describes the Leave No Trace program “Leave No Trace is a national and international program designed to assist outdoor enthusiasts with their decisions about how to reduce their impacts when they hike, camp, picnic, snowshoe, run, bike, hunt, paddle, ride horses, fish, ski or climb. The program strives to educate all those who enjoy the outdoors about the nature of their recreational impacts as well as techniques to prevent and minimize such impacts. Leave No Trace is best understood as an educational and ethical program, not as a set of rules and regulations.”

Adds Gary Boyd, Williamson County Conservation Foundation environmental program coordinator: “Learning about LNT and LNT techniques helps people become more accomplished hikers, campers, and outdoor recreationists,”

Williamson County has two preserve areas that will be open immediately to individuals who have received the training. Twin Springs Preserve is a located on the north side of Lake Georgetown and is accessed from the Good Water Trail from the trailhead at Russell Park or from a small, all-weather parking area just off County Road 262.

There are approximately 3.3 miles of trails available at Twin Springs, officials noted. Beck Preserve is located off of RM 620 at Great Oaks Drive in Round Rock and offers just under 2 miles of trails. Parking for the Beck Preserve is available at the Brushy Creek MUD Community Center, 16318 S Great Oaks Drive, Round Rock, Texas. Other county preserve areas will be opened in the future as access pathways can be developed.

More information on Leave No Trace is available at http://www.lnt.org/. Information on the Williamson County Conservation Foundation is available atwww.wilco.org/wccf.