Light the Trail Ride 2017

The Light the Trail Ride was a 3700 mile cross country bicycle ride that started in Fort Clatsop, Oregon on September 3, 2017. The route followed the Lewis and Clark trail in reverse to St. Louis, MO and then continued on to Washington, D.C. arriving on November 11, 2017. The route on the Lewis and Clark trail was significant in that Merriweather Lewis suffered from severe depression and a few years after completing his expedition he died by suicide.

The Light the Trail ride had a few major goals.  One of the goals of the Ride was to raise awareness of the suicide crisis in the U.S. and the importance of suicide prevention. The other goal was to help break down the stigma of mental illness and suicide. The Ride team accomplished these goals by having conversations in each town they stopped at, reaching those who have been touched by suicide and those who have not.

In advance of the Ride, the JEHF had solicited, via social media, for the names and pictures of loved ones who had died by suicide for our Ride4. Before each ride the Ride4 was a daily dedication to these people, someone’s family member or friend, who was lost to suicide. Ride4 was incredibly moving for all who participated in those rides. 

-Ellen Harris