The Ridge Trail is supported by trail lovers like you.

A gift of $40 or more renews your household membership to the Ridge Trail. To join or renew your membership, visit our secure donation page.

When you making the commitment of membership to the Ridge Trail, you not only bring nature a little closer to the Bay Area’s eight million residents, but you also receive the following benefits:

• Members-only invites for events and outings, like our Winter Hike & Cheer
• Priority registration to sell-out events Ridge to Bridge, East Bay Hills Hike & Ride, and Ridge Trail Service Day
• Special access to ‘Very Important Trail’ outings on limited access properties
• Timely updates with our 3x yearly Ridge Lines newsletter and monthly enews 
• Discounts from local businesses, such as Bay Nature, Columbia Sportswear, and Cottage Grove Inn

Member contributions can also be made by check, payable to the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council, to the attention of:

Bay Area Ridge Trail Council
PO Box 3367
Berkeley, CA 94703

Gifts of stock, crypto, qualified charitable distributions, or from a donor advised fund are another great way to support our mission; learn more in the sections below.

Questions? Contact Lisa at membership@ridgetrail.org.

The Ridge Trail accepts gifts of appreciated stock or mutual funds. This is a tax-wise way to fund your gift to the Ridge Trail which avoids capital gains tax and entitles you to a full fair market value charitable tax deduction at the time of transfer.

To avoid exposure to capital gain tax, the stock must be transferred to the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council. We then sell the stock from our account. Stock donations may offer significant tax benefits to the donor. We recommend that you consult a tax professional for specific advice about your situation.

Broker details:

Wells Fargo Advisors
PO Box 77046
MAC N9160-01P
Minneapolis, MN 55480-9902
Account number: 87010041
Account name: Bay Area Ridge Trail Council
Well Fargo Advisors' DTC number is 0141

Sample language and Transfer Information for Stock Gifts

This letter will serve as my authorization to make a charitable donation of stock to the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, located at ​PO Box 3367, Berkeley, CA 94703. Their Tax ID number is 94-3148503.

Please transfer (number of shares) of (name of stock) from (account name and account number). The shares should be transferred directly to the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council as follows:

Wells Fargo Advisors
PO Box 77046
MAC N9160-01P
Minneapolis, MN 55480-9902
Account number: 87010041
Account name: Bay Area Ridge Trail Council

Need more info?

Contact our broker at (800) 872-3377. Wells Fargo’s DTC number is 0141.

Please let us know you plan to make a stock gift so that we can be sure your gift has been received by our broker:

Donate directly from your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) for tax benefits and higher charitable impact, quickly and easily.

Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs), also known as IRA Charitable Rollovers, are the savviest way for individuals age 70½ or older to use their IRAs to maximize their charitable impact.

Here is the typical step-by-step process for making a QCD:

1. Communicate with your IRA’s custodian (where your IRA is held) that you are interested in making a QCD(s).
2. Make the request for a QCD(s) in writing.
3. Specify the dollar amount that you wish to contribute to each individual charity.
4. Request the check be made payable to the charity(ies) but be mailed to you.
   • Bay Area Ridge Trail Council
   • EIN 94-3148503
   • PO Box 3367, Berkeley, CA 94703
5. Forward the check to the charity(ies) and request a receipt for your records.
6. Maintain the receipt(s) and records in your tax file.
7. Report the QCD amount on your 1040 federal tax return.
8. Enter the total amount(s) on line 4a of your 1040 federal tax return.

To make a legacy gift of retirement plan assets, ask your plan administrator for a beneficiary designation form and name the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council (Tax ID 94-3148503) as a full, partial or contingent beneficiary. Distributions can be sent to our office at ​PO Box 3367, Berkeley, CA 94703. 

Read about how Dave Calkins, former Director of US EPA Air Programs uses his IRA to support the Ridge Trail here.

I’ve already made a QCD gift to the Ridge Trail and I need a tax acknowledgment letter

Thank you for your support! If you’ve already given a QCD gift to the Ridge Trail and haven’t yet received your acknowledgment letter, please email info@ridgetrail.org to report your gift details so that we can verify your gift and provide you with your letter.

Align your charitable giving with smart tax strategies and simplify your recordkeeping by supporting us through your DAF. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and our EIN is 94-3148503. Our mailing address is ​PO Box 3367, Berkeley, CA 94703.

When you donate your vehicle to the Ridge Trail, you help us realize our shared vision for a continuous world-class regional trail in the Bay Area. Get started here or call 855-500-RIDE (7433). Pickup is easy and free, and you'll get a receipt for your tax deduction!

Find out if your employer offers matched gifts here!

Why should I consider a legacy gift to the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council?

Making a legacy gift to the Ridge Trail Council helps ensure the trail’s completion and the Council’s future. In joining the Ridge Trail Legacy Circle, you set an example that can influence others to make this important commitment. Day in and day out, the Ridge Trail Council works to complete the Ridge Trail – a unique and visionary natural resource of benefit to the entire Bay Area.

A gift in your will or living trust

Making a gift in your will or living trust to support the Ridge Trail is easy to arrange and costs you nothing to make now. Check with your attorney on how to designate the Ridge Trail or go online to create a free will or living trust here.

If you would prefer to work with an attorney, ask them to add wording like this to your will or trust document:

I give to the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council (Tax I.D. # 94-3148503), located in Berkeley, California, [ __ % of my estate, or description of specific asset, or $__ dollars] for its general use [or the following specific purpose: ____].

Contact our Development Director at giving@ridgetrail.org for more, or read more about legacy giving here.

Donate crypto today and you may save money on two types of taxes:

• Avoid paying capital gains tax on your crypto gains.
• Receive a federal income tax deduction for the full value of your crypto (state & local income tax deductions may also be available).

Make your gift to the Ridge Trail in honor or memory of a loved one. If you choose to dedicate your gift, you will have the option to provide an email address for the honoree to be notified.

As a way to accelerate trail progress, we designed the RT Action Fund, a quick action fund to provide timely and flexible funding when and where it's needed most. In 2021, the first allocations went to trail projects in Sonoma and Alameda counties. Thanks to those of you who gave to this campaign over the last few years, we’ve allocated over $250,000 in project funds, leveraging $2 million to expand and enhance the Ridge Trail.

Learn how you can keep our current projects in the North and South Bay moving forward, and help us reach our $200,000 annual goal for the fund here.

We’ve built over 413 hard-earned miles and are working furiously to open the next 150.  Creating, protecting and promoting this wonderful trail is a monumental task. Adopt the trail in your name or honor a friend, family member, colleague, corporation, or organization to help complete the Ridge Trail.

All Adopt-a-Trail donations of $1000 receive:

• Certificate with the honoree’s name and trail section
• Honoree listing on our downloadable, printable maps

Adopt-a-Trail donations of $2500 or more also receive:

• A guided hike for up to 15 people on the honoree’s section of the trail OR
• Volunteer project or presentation to group by one of our Trail Directors

Email giving@ridgetrail.org to start the process of adopting a trail. See the maps section of our website for a complete listing of trails.

The Ridge Trail partners with companies in a variety of easy ways—through event sponsorship, volunteer days, or workplace giving and more. Learn how your company can support the trail here.

Federal employees may give to the Bay Area Ridge Trail through the annual Combined Federal Campaign by entering CFC code #56035.

As a nature enthusiast and ultra-runner, Lucas Horan (February 1981 - December 2020) was deeply passionate about the trails around the Bay. In 2017, Lucas circumnavigated the Ridge Trail on a counter-clockwise loop, and then he did it again in 2019 on a clockwise loop. Lucas hoped to one day see the Bay Area Ridge Trail seamlessly connected into one continuous loop.

To help carry out his vision of connecting the trail, Lucas's family and friends created the Lucas Horan Memorial Fund. Since then, over $50,000 has been raised, a portion of which will funded a bridge on the Garin to Niles section of Ridge Trail. The remaining funds will support the Council’s efforts to close trail gaps, encourage epic adventures and circumnavigation, and get more people out enjoying the trail.

Learn more about Lucas.