Supporter Spotlight: David Kappler
This month, we celebrate David Kappler, a fixture in local environmental and land-use advocacy, as he concludes his current term on the IATC board. David played a pivotal role in founding and shaping the Issaquah Alps Trails Club, from his early efforts to create a formal organization supporting the “Issaquah Alps” vision to guiding the Club’s growth and community impact over the decades. He leaves a legacy of leadership, mentorship, and enduring commitment to the trails and natural spaces he helped sustain.
David Kappler during Harvey Manning’s 100th Birthday Celebration, July 2025. Photo courtesy of Mark Griffith.
You’ve been with the IATC since the very beginning. How did you first get involved, and what inspired you to help start the organization?
I was familiar with Harvey’s books but had never met him. When he invented the “Issaquah Alps” idea, it was picked up by the daily and weekly press. I had been involved in several land use issues and had helped start the East Renton Plateau Community Council. In that process, I learned about getting a group incorporated and dealing with insurance and the like. I chaired the Environmental Committee there, and we commented on various land use issues. I had challenged the renewal of a gravel pit in May Valley that had been run horribly and was sending muddy water into May Creek. In that effort, I generated stories in the Seattle Times, the daily Renton paper, the Eastside Journal, and the weekly Issaquah Press.
I got up my courage to call Harvey and made my case that we needed to form a group to support his vision of the Issaquah Alps. Harvey had seen newspaper articles about my gravel pit battles, which helped legitimize my environmental credentials. I insisted that the group would need to be incorporated and have officers and the rest. I wasn’t the only person advocating to form a group—others with more experience were pushing as well.
Thinking back over the years, are there any moments or accomplishments with the IATC that you’re especially proud of?
King County was developing plans for areas not in a city or town, establishing zoning and services. The planning process involved defining areas and forming a twenty-member citizen committee to develop a plan. The Newcastle Plan covered the unincorporated area between Renton, Issaquah, and Bellevue. I was appointed as one of the most known “environmentalists” in the planning area. Major property owners with big ambitions for developing all over Cougar Mountain were also on the committee. The “green” folks generally had an 11-to-9 majority. On my kitchen table, Harvey and I produced a map that proposed a Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park and an area on east Cougar for an urban village that became Talus. Our support of the “village concept” led to the Issaquah Highlands and a large area of dedicated open space.
Then-IATC President David Kappler speaking at the Cougar/Squak Corridor Park Grand Opening on June 6, 2015. Photo from IATC Archives.
What has kept you passionate about protecting and connecting public lands in the Issaquah Alps all this time?
We kept winning by establishing the county’s largest park, building trails within the park and connecting to it, and protecting creeks, wetlands, and steep slopes within urban areas.
Do you have a favorite trail or spot in the Alps that’s especially meaningful to you? What makes it special?
Perhaps the Margaret’s Way Trail on Squak. I worked for months to get that land acquired by King County, and once it was, I pushed hard on the routing of the trail up to Debbie’s View.
Leading a hike on Margaret’s Way during the grand opening. Photo courtesy of IATC Archives.
As you wrap up your time on the board, what hopes or words of advice would you share with the next generation of IATC stewards and supporters?
We got great support from our younger members in our Save Coal Creek campaign. They worked hard and smart and saw how we’ve been successful for so many decades. Try to know the subject property and applicable policies, codes, and the like better than the applicant..
Dave Kappler, Co-Founder and former President of the Issaquah Alps Trails Club, on how the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust started. Source: MTSGT
On a personal note, any outdoor adventures or favorite places you’re looking forward to exploring this fall or winter?
My exploring may stay close to home. I have some ideas for improving the trail system in Lake Sammamish State Park. A much bigger project is figuring out the routing of a trail connecting new city park land on Squak with the existing Eastside Trail in the state park—going back to the old days of the Trails Club when learning the land was the priority.
David Kappler’s years of dedication to the IATC embody the Club’s mission to conserve and connect public lands. While he steps down from the board, his presence, guidance, and advocacy will remain an enduring part of the Issaquah Alps community.
David Kappler in the early years of IATC, June 1989, holding a handmade trailhead sign with his two young daughters. Photo from IATC Archives.