For decades, Tom Canales has traveled the Central Valley and Mother Lode by vehicle, using Highway 108 as a portal to the mountains.

The map dots in between whizzed by him at 40 to 50 mph. 

The Manteca resident says he never understood the region’s true value until he parked the car and stepped out on foot.

Take Oakdale, for example. The small Central Valley town is known globally as the Cowboy Capital of the World and counts a chocolate festival, rodeo, and high school football team as its most prized possessions.

Canales’ only connection with Oakdale was contained to a drive-thru menu. Oakdale — the Crunchy Taco Capital of Canales’ World. 

“I’ve driven through Oakdale I don’t know how many times,” he said. “I didn’t know anything about Oakdale other than it had a Taco Bell we always stopped at.”

That all changed when Canales joined the Delta Tule Trekkers, a walking club with the American Volkssport Association. 

Volkssporting, which has roots in Germany and about 300 active clubs in the United States, is an umbrella term used to encompass all sanctioned and non-competitive hikes, bike rides, swims and cross-country skiing events.

About 6 million people have participated in volkssporting since 1990. The following continues to grow in small increments close to home. 

The Delta Tule Trekkers were formed in 1987 and cover a large swath of the Central Valley, ranging from Mariposa and Fresno to Ione and Galt. They coordinate and host several walking events throughout the year, introducing their membership to the history and nuances of each town they visit 5- to 10-kilometers at a time.

For Canales, it has been an awakening of sorts. 

With the help of the AVA website (www.ava.org), he and his wife, Rita, have made these walks a part of all their travels, whether it’s a trip down Highway 108 or through the Pacific Northwest.

“I felt like I discovered Oakdale when we went on our walk. Since then, I’ve gone to places in Stockton I’ve never known existed,” Canales said. “That’s what got me hooked. It really opens your eyes to what a lot of these communities have to offer. It’s like an insider’s view of the town.

“We were in Astoria (Ore.) and we walked all around that town. I would never have learned about that town if I hadn’t gone to the website. You get introduced to the best points of these little towns. It’s like going with a docent when you go somewhere.”

The Delta Tule Trekkers have about 30 active members, said Canales, the club’s first-term president, and they meet once a month at the CK Grill in Lathrop.

As a group, the club offers 10 year-round walks, each set up so that members or interested parties can check in at any time and pick up a map that outlines that particular walk. 

In Manteca, the starting point is the McDonald’s restaurant on West Yosemite, near the Union Road intersection. The walk encompasses the Tidewater Bikepath and downtown murals.

There are also walks in Oakdale, Modesto, Stockton, Lodi and Galt, among others. 

“The walks are pretty easy,” Canales said. “Maybe a little up and down, but nothing too hard.”

In addition to year-round walks, the Delta Tule Trekkers also offer traditional walks typically staged around an event or special destination. These walks help the Trekkers market themselves to the masses.

Just recently, the Trekkers hosted a traditional walk at the Ripon Almond Blossom Festival complete with booth, brochures and food. The next traditional walk is April 18-19 at Knight’s Ferry, just outside of Oakdale, followed by a trip down the Pleasant Grove Creek Trails in Roseville this weekend.

Canales expects hundreds to gather in Arnold for the Big Trees walk on May 23-24.

To learn more about the Delta Tule Trekkers, visit www.deltatuletrekkers.org.