Retired USFS signs raise $9,600 for Sedona’s trails

– Artisan trail markers just keep on giving –

The Sedona Westerners Hiking Club has a long history of giving back to Sedona’s red rock trails, providing volunteer labor, donations and user knowledge to the USFS.

In May, Jim Kemper, a long-standing Westerner, had an idea that the scrapped metal trail markers that had been replaced in recent years might have sentimental value to members. These metal signs were originally handcrafted and installed by the Westerners for the USFS in 1985, each featuring unique, artisan characteristics.

As the USFS replaced the metal signs with the new US Forest Service (USFS) standard, they were relegated to a growing scrapheap at the Ranger Station. Kemper, along with Westerners’ Trail Boss Ray Laporte and Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund Vice President Sandi Heysinger, approached the USFS to see if the signs could be repatriated to the hiking club to raise funds for trail maintenance.

Months later, a process for decommissioning the signs from the USFS back to the Westerners was completed. The Westerners then deeded the signs to the Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund (SRRTF), and on April 13th bidding kicked off for 43 signs via an online auction site to members of the hiking club.

Bidding started at $100 with a goal of bringing in $3,000 to $5,000. Many bidders were hovered over their computers, upping their bids in the final seconds.

There were cheers and tears at 4pm on April 28th when the auction closed. Many participants got the trail signs they hoped for, some were outmaneuvered at the end, and a few participants took home a veritable load of signs. Dan Wiencek was one of the luckiest, successfully scoring four of the signs that he coveted.

“Owning a part of the history of Sedona – that just happens to look so cool – was the primary reason I participated”, beams Wiencek. “I was particularly drawn to the Marg’s Draw and Mystic signs because of the cursive style of the lettering. That I live just off of Mystic and regularly hike Marg’s Draw was icing on the cake! I also wanted a sign for one of the iconic hikes, and you can’t get more so than Devil’s Bridge. Our yard is designed to look like enhanced nature, using all native or regional appropriate plants, and incorporates three trails that meander through the property. So we have a sign for each trail entrance. I also bought Munds for my son-in-law who regularly runs on that trail when he and my daughter visit”.

As both a Westerner and an officer of the SRRTF, Heysinger was instrumental in the conceiving and executing the auction. “We initially thought there would be 30 signs to sell. At a minimum bid of $100, that would bring in $3,000 – so we stretched the goal to $5,000. We actually ended up with 43 signs, but even so, it was beyond thrilling to see all the signs sell for a total of $9,600!”

In addition to the signs sold to Westerners, one sign was donated to the Sedona Heritage Museum so the public would have the opportunity to enjoy the history of the signs as well.

What began in 1985 as a donation of 32 metal trail markers costing $40.00 apiece ($1,280) has found a new way to give to the trails in retirement. By the power of community collaboration, 39 years later that gesture has been transformed into a sizeable infusion of cash for trail maintenance and yard décor for devoted trail lovers.”

Caption: Dan Wiencek shows off the Mystic Trail marker in his wilderness inspired yard. He was the winning bidder for four of the artisan signs that were auctioned off in April by the Westerners Hiking Club as a fundraiser for the Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund.