When Jane and Walt Daniels began volunteering with the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference in 1979, they had no idea that a simple day spent picking up litter would mark the beginning of a nearly half-century commitment to trails, parks, and the people who use them.
They wanted to give back to the trails they loved, and Litter Day seemed like a good opportunity to do it.
Nearly 50 years later, the Yorktown couple has helped build and maintain trails, mentor generations of volunteers and publish Walkable Westchester, a comprehensive guide documenting hundreds of miles of publicly accessible trails in Westchester County.
On Oct. 8, the Trail Conference will recognize Jane and Walt as honorees at its 2026 Annual Gala. The theme, “Connecting Communities, Landscapes, and Each Other,” reflects much of what the couple has spent decades doing.
For the Daniels, however, the story has never really been about recognition.
“We just tend to not let people know,” Jane said. “That’s our culture. It’s anonymous to the general public.”
Jane and Walt met at IBM in 1968. Their friendship grew through a Tuesday night hiking club, and eventually the pair got married and had two daughters.
Walt, a former Boy Scout, brought an interest in the outdoors and a technical mind that would eventually make him a trail builder, crew leader, and certified sawyer. Jane, a former Girl Scout, developed a talent for organizing people and projects.
Over the years, the Daniels have mentored approximately 40 Eagle Scout projects and 15 high school civic internships, helping young people develop leadership and project-management skills. Jane believes the experience is valuable even if a young volunteer does not remain involved with the Trail Conference.
The Daniels’ work in Yorktown also demonstrates how trail projects can connect parks with the surrounding community.
In 2010, while the town was purchasing the property that became Granite Knolls Park, Walt, who was serving on the Conservation Board, saw an opportunity to connect it with Woodlands Legacy Fields Park across the Taconic State Parkway. The Daniels and other groups then worked on trails connecting Granite Knolls, Woodlands, and Sylvan Glen Park Preserve.
Normally, Jane said, building a mile and a half to two miles of trail might take approximately three years. Working together, the groups built nearly 10 miles in about a year and a half. “That was fantastic,” Jane recalled.
The Daniels later helped create another connection, linking FDR State Park with Yorktown’s business district through the Mohansic Trailway. The project involved grants, donations, and volunteer labor and included construction of a 564-foot boardwalk and bridges.
The result was a trail that residents near Baldwin Road could use to walk into town, pick something up, and walk home.
Building trails, however, is only half the challenge.
“Maintenance is the key,” Walt said.
Although the Daniels stepped down as volunteer trail supervisors in January 2024, they remain involved with the Trail Conference. They continue to answer questions, offer advice, and work on publications. Jane has also taken on a new role as a volunteer archivist, helping preserve the organization’s history.
Perhaps the best example of the Daniels’ persistence is Walkable Westchester, the guide they co-authored.
When they began working on the first edition in the early 2000s, they expected to find perhaps 75 or 80 places to walk, totaling 250 to 300 miles of trails. They were “way off.”
The couple ultimately documented roughly 600 miles of publicly accessible trails in 160 parks and preserves. The 430-page guide has now gone through three editions, with a fourth in the works.
The book was never intended to enrich its authors. The Daniels donated their time, and proceeds went to the Trail Conference. During the pandemic, the guide became particularly useful as people searched for places to walk close to home.
For the Daniels, success is measured by whether people use the trails.
“Knowing people enjoy walking on the trails that we’ve built is really nice,” Jane said. “We don’t know who they are, but that’s okay.”
Ask Jane what she has gained from nearly five decades of volunteering, and she does not begin with accomplishments. She talks about people.
Volunteering, she said, brings together people from backgrounds who otherwise might never meet. A shared interest in hiking and the outdoors creates a starting point for relationships while providing opportunities to develop new skills.
That philosophy extends to the Daniels’ family. Their daughters grew up hiking, and their grandchildren have continued the tradition.
As Jane and Walt look toward the future, Jane’s greatest hope is that younger generations will continue the work.
Although the physical work may have changed — Walt is no longer building in the woods, and Jane is no longer managing Yorktown’s trail volunteers — the instinct that began with a simple Litter Day in 1979 remains. There is always something interesting to do.
The trails may be the most visible evidence of their work. But the deeper legacy of Jane and Walt Daniels is the community of people they have helped bring onto those trails and the generations they hope will keep walking them long after they are gone.
Reserve your tickets for the 2026 NYNJTC Annual Gala, where the Daniels will be honored, here.
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