FBT Forest Corps Is Back—and Clearing the Way

MEET THE 2026 CREW

The 2026 corps is once again led by Monica Elliott, who was born in Japan, grew up in Southern California, and got her start in trail work through seasonal positions with American Conservation Experience.

After her first three months with ACE, Elliott says she had fallen in love with the work. “I never looked back,” she says. “I found myself growing into a person that I wanted to be—someone I didn’t know I wanted to become.”

The rest of the 2026 crew includes Era Coriz, who grew up in Santo Domingo Pueblo, one of New Mexico’s 19 Pueblos, in a culture dating back to before 1000 B.C.; Grand Junction, Colorado, native Mickey Atkins; recent University of Oregon environmental studies graduate Abby Franklin; and crew lead Elly McFarland.

McFarland has worked in the trails world since 2020, including seasonal positions with the U.S. Forest Service on the BTNF’s Pinedale District and in the Sawtooth, Caribou-Targhee, and Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forests. She was also a member of the 2025 FBT Forest Corps.

GEAR FOR THE LONG HAUL

Jackson Hole-based clothing sponsor Stio is back for another season. The brand considers the Bridger-Teton National Forest part of its backyard and makes clothing “for the epic and everyday.”

The FBT Forest Corps has been putting Stio’s Trax Power Grid Half Zip Hoodie and Lucent Longsleeve Tee through their paces—and proving they can handle more than just looking good. The pieces have held up through long, arduous field days, miles of trail work, and the occasional encounter with an aggressive tree.

“We’re thrilled to once again partner with the FBT Forest Corps, an organization doing the quiet, essential work of keeping trails open and accessible for everyone,” says Stio. “At Stio, we believe the outdoors should be available to all, and the FBT Forest Corps makes that possible one maintained mile at a time.”

The REI store in Jackson, located next to the Forest’s Jackson District, also donated three REI Co-op Flash Air 1 tents to the crew. The tents will make their debut during an eight-day August hitch in the backcountry of the Blackrock District.

NEARLY 700 TREES—AND COUNTING

As of early August, FBT Forest Corps has worked on the Big Piney, Greys River, Jackson, and Pinedale Districts, clearing nearly 700 trees from 80 miles of trail.

During an eight-day hitch on the Pinedale District from July 28 to August 4, the crew set a season record by clearing trees from 37.5 miles of trail in and around the Continental Divide Trail of the Wind River Mountains.

The crew’s single-hitch tree-clearing record is 247 trees, set June 16–21 in the Cottonwood Creek area of the BTNF’s Jackson District.

“I work closely with each district to identify trail needs and how our crew can best support each area of the forest,” says Monica Elliott, about how this year’s Forest Corps projects were decided. “All six districts have varying needs—from trail clearing to fence installation and bridge rebuilds.”

FBT Forest Corps 2026 is funded through the end of September. Remaining hitches are planned for the Blackrock, Kemmerer, and Pinedale Districts, including the rebuilding of a 50-foot foot-and-stock bridge in the Teton Wilderness.

“It is so pleasing to see the work the Forest Corp does in all six districts of the Bridger-Teton National Forest,” says FBT Board Member Tim Gardiner. “I am thankful for the generosity of the FBT community in making this a reality and sincerely hope the Forest Corp grows and prospers in future years.”