Building Trails, Building Community: Volunteers Carve Out New Trail at Andrew Leitch

MORE volunteers Jason Williams and Rich Wilson (pictured L-R) building out the trail at Andrew Leitch Park

After a serendipitous meeting in person while both were out mountain biking, Jason Williams and Rich Wilson became fast friends realizing they had a love of biking in common, along with the same vision of building out more trail at Andrew Leitch Park. They had first connected and followed each other on Strava, a fitness app many athletes use; the two even battling back and forth breaking each other's personal records. Both had ridden at Andrew Leitch for years and had already separately been thinking of ways to expand the trail. Jason had even started sketching out where new trail could be carved out.

“When we first met and started talking about Andrew Leitch Park, we had the same ideas about where we could build more trails,” says Jason, who serves as a MORE trail liaison. “We were both thinking ‘hey, we can definitely improve this park.’”

“Jason and I always wanted to see if we could expand the trail system at Andrew Leitch,” adds Rich, who also serves as a MORE trail liaison. They both also serve as trail advisors for the Neabsco District for the Prince William Trails and Blueways Council (PWTBC).

MORE, which stands for Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts, is a 501c (3) nonprofit organization representing thousands of Washington DC, Maryland and Northern Virginia mountain bikers.

Founded in 1992, MORE maintains 906 miles of natural-surface trails in 63 state and county parks throughout the Washington DC Metropolitan region. MORE members contribute more than 16,000 volunteer hours annually and have constructed hundreds of miles of new, sustainable trail.

The club also leads multiple rides each year at local parks, ranging from beginner to advanced levels.

The organization’s mission is to build an inclusive grass roots mountain biking community and organization with the express purpose of expanding riding opportunities and increasing trail access throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.

One of the ways they work to achieve this is through promoting volunteerism to maintain multi-use trails. Both Williams and Wilson were also part of the group of volunteers from MORE who helped clean up and build out the popular trail at Locust Shade Park that opened in November 2021.

While it took a few years for the Andrew Leitch project to officially get started, it was after a clean-up event with Keep Prince William Beautiful that the trail project really saw movement. 

“While we were walking through the woods (behind Photo Drive) we discovered so much trash (mattresses and box springs, old decks, etc.) that we were shocked,” said Rich. “Apparently, residents had just been dumping back there instead of taking things to the dump.”

The clean-up event brought amazing participation from various groups (Hylton JRROTC, Boy Scouts, etc.) The group of volunteers hauled out over a ton of trash. 

They got the official process started by contacting Martin Fernandez with MORE about the possibility of expanding the trail, and Fernandez then got permission from Prince William County Parks to flag a possible future route at Andrew Leitch Park. 

“It was a very rewarding experience,” said Jason. “Rich and I created an access trail for people to haul the trash out and that became the start of the new ‘Saving Grace’ loop.”

When asked if the trail work was done, Rich replied, “it’s never done,” with a smile.

Since the trail was expanded it has only grown in use by not just bikers but many dog walkers/hikers, as it should be, they both echo.  Both mention how many in the neighborhood weren't even aware there was trail "back there" so close right in the neighborhood.

Jason “Johnny Appleseed” Williams, as he’s known to many and even dubbed himself adds, “Prince William has some really great trails…they just all haven’t been built—yet.”

“We’ve got to always continue to keep advocating, figuring out better ways to publicize and share the opportunities that are right here in our backyard,” he adds.

To learn more about the about the trails at Andrew Leitch Park or MORE, click here to visit their website. You can also visit the Andrew Leitch Park Trails Project group page on Facebook to view photos and learn more about the project.