Still Time to Sign Up for the ND Conference

from the North Country Trail Association

Early registration for the NCTA Annual Conference closes July 1, but there is still time to attend. People can call the NCTA office, 1-866-hikeNCT, tomorrow, June 30 and register at the reduced rate. After tomorrow the registration fee increases, but only by $5.

There are workshops, hikes and tours every day. This year there will be programs and events designed just for kids and families. The conference is co-hosted by the NCTA and the Sheyenne River Valley Chapter.

Evening programs feature outstanding speakers:

Across two years. Across 7,800 miles. Deia Schlosberg, 28, and Gregg Treinish, 26, two Montana-based wilderness educators, became the first two people to backpack the Andes Mountain Range, the first two to walk it through the mountains without relying on roads, and the first woman to have walked South America. Named National Geographic Adventurers of the Year in 2008, these dedicated hikers persevered through high peaks, deep valleys, knee-deep peat bogs, rainy seasons, trackless deserts, bamboo forests and incredible views. Deia and Gregg will be featured during Friday night's community benefit night-you won't want to miss their account of this unforgettable trek "Across the Andes" or the live and silent auctions that come before them!

The E Company of Custer's Memorial 7th Cavalry was first formed in 1967 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the old Fort Ransom post. On Thursday night at the picnic, they will allow you to share camp life with them and their families. Thrill to their re-enactment of drills on horseback and demonstrations of marksmanship with black powder pistols! Afterwards, Brother Jukebox will have you rocking to the best of Country and Rock and Roll music.

For more than ten years Nature/Wildlife Tourism has demonstrated one of the strongest growth patterns in the travel and outdoor recreation market, contributing over $47.7 billion to the US economy. After dinner on Saturday night Jim Mallman, President and founding Board member of Watchable Wildlife, Inc., will provide an overview of what is happening in nature tourism worldwide and explain the reasons for promoting it in your community.

Would you call spending several nights sleeping in a van in sub-zero temperatures to capture scenes just before dawn, obsessed? Daron Krueger and Clint Saunders, better known as the Obsessed Photographers Group, gives you slide show glimpse into their latest book, aptly entitled "Obsessed with North Dakota." A book signing will follow, all on Saturday night after Jim Mallman.

For full details, visit the Sheyenne River Valley Chapter web site.