Cars were parked illegally up and down Adirondack Loj Road. Waste of all kinds piled up on the trails. Labor Day weekend brought more people to the Adirondack High Peaks than ever before. The situation was dangerous for drivers, hikers and wildlife. Were it not for the hard work of the Summit Stewards, it could have proved fatal for alpine plants on the summits.

Summit Stewards are funded by grants and your donations to the Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK). The program is a collaboration with the Adirondack Chapter of the Nature Conservancy and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to protect rare and fragile plants on seven of New York’s busiest peaks. Of the 27 threatened alpine species that grow in the High Peaks, a few are so rare that their loss would mean the species would no longer exist in New York state – or possibly the world. What kills these otherwise hardy plants? Hiker trampling. Alpine plants have no defense against repeated footfalls except the presence of Summit Stewards who educate hikers to stay off of them. Unfortunately, this successful educational effort is as threatened as the plants. Recently the Summit Steward program lost one of its major funders, and there is a critical funding gap in next year’s budget.

The “Do the rock walk” message is most effective when presented up on the summits. Summit Stewards use gentle messages, signs and trail work to help hikers make a lifelong commitment to walking on durable surfaces. They inspire people to care for the natural world in a way that tickets and warnings could never do. Last year they spoke with over 31,000 hikers. We know the 2016 numbers will be even higher.

Their impact is impressive. Research comparing current plant coverage on peaks served by Summit Stewards to coverage in the years before the collaborative program began shows fewer bare rock patches and exposed soil. The evidence of the importance of their work is strengthened by comparing the seven peaks they do cover with other peaks in the area, which have not been able to recover as well from decades of trampling.

Each year brings record numbers of hiker contacts for the stewards. Over Labor Day weekend, individual stewards spoke to more than 650 hikers a day on Cascade Mountain, the busiest trail in the Eastern High Peaks Wilderness. Although hoarse and tired, Summit Stewards can be proud of their work, even if we know that thousands of other people hiking in the High Peaks didn’t get their messages. As we near the Columbus Day, Canadian Thanksgiving Day weekend next month, we are asking for your donations to help ADK provide coverage on the peaks, both this year and into the future. Those extra hours could mean the difference between a carpet of beautiful, healthy plants and what could eventually become barren rocks. Visit adk.org.

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Julia Goren is ADK’s head Summit Steward, based at the Adirondak Loj near Lake Placid. Stephanie Coppola handles marketing and communications for ADK. Neil Woodworth is the club’s executive director, working largely out of its Albany office. ADK’s main office is in Lake George.