Deschutes Trails Coalition
Brand identity for Deschutes Trails Coalition, a recreation-focused non-profit based in Central Oregon.
Deschutes Trails Coalition is a Central Oregon non-profit that aims to be a unified voice for both motorized and non-motorized recreation in Central Oregon. With outdoor recreation being one of the biggest contributors to the Central Oregon economy it is hugely beneficial for user groups to be able to work collaboratively to ensure streamlines and efficient implementation of trails and other infrastructure. DTC brings together what has historically been desperate groups of (mostly) volunteers that are focused only on their own activities.
DTC is a fairly young organization and had been operating with a "placeholder" logo but felt there was a need for an identity package that spoke to their unique position among the world of recreation organizations in the region.
The previous logo was being used as something of a placeholder while DTC worked through their formation and found its legs as an organization. To that end it served its purpose and was certainly not the worst logo a fledgling organization could find itself with. However the mountain/river/trees motif is far from unique and did not speak to any of the organizations particular strengths.
The new logo is clean and striking and stands out amongst other organizations in this realm. The triangular is inspired by the common use of diamonds and triangles in backcountry way finding, maps, and GPS. It also references mountain peaks, with the negative space subtly forming the classic "snow cap" within the mark. The internal overlapping triangle shapes reference the unification of multiple user groups within the DTC organization.
The green and gray primary brand colors work to maintain some visual continuity from the original logo. This also allowed DTC to effectively use the new logo without investing in immediate large scale and expensive revisions, such as building a new website.
Brief illustration of the process from verbal explorations, sketching and eventually evolving into the more finalized DTC logo.
Three initial conceptual directions were proposed to Deschutes Trails Coalition. Each option emphasizes different characteristics of the brand, but all of them would work well. The logo itself is just an entry point to the brand so I often include mockups of supporting visuals to help illustrate how the logo can work to support additional brand design. DTC decided to go with option 3, at which point it was developed further and fleshed out into a full identity.
In addition the to primary brand mark, a separate logo mark for the $1 For Trails initiative was created. This program is run by DTC but engages all of its partner stakeholders to advertise and ask the community for donations. This is often done through local businesses at point of sale so a readily identifiable logo was necessary.
Deschutes Trails Coalition has a tagline that would be too long to incorporate into a lockup with the logo. Instead of that a separate tagline graphic was created that allows the organization to use it in a simple and consistent manner across their material, without overpowering the rest of the branding.