Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail: The missing link
It’s like a puzzle: You snap in one more piece and a picture emerges. A picture of a recreational trail with national significance, winding through Minnesota farmland and state parks, around lakes and over rivers. Can you imagine a scenic route connecting communities hundreds of miles apart and stretching from Fergus Falls to Cass Lake and St.Jos
eph to Bemidji? Yes, all you have to do is put in that one puzzle piece. A trail like no other
The Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail officially received state trail authorization in 2009. When completed, it will provide a connection between Crow Wing State Park and the Soo Line Regional Trail, linking the Central Lakes, Lake Wobegon, Soo Line, Paul Bunyan, Heartland and Mi-Gi-Zi Trails into one continuous recreational route. As a first in Minnesota recreational trail construction, it will also be a true multi-use trail from the beginning, accommodating motorized as well as non-motorized users. This has never been done in Minnesota State Trail history. The corridor study is complete, and the DNR finished the trail’s master plan. A formal path has yet to be determined, but the Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail will be a unique experience, it is not a rails to trails conversion. Connecting Communities
Along the way you will have access to Charles A. Lindbergh State Park, Crow Wing State Park, the Crow Wing and Mississippi Rivers, and many other natural and historic sites. The Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail will make Little Falls the hub of a trail system hundreds of miles long and provides access to the communities of Baxter, Brainerd, Pillager, Randall, and Fort Ripley. It will also be a part of the Mississippi River Trail Bikeway (MRT), a signed route from the Mississippi Headwaters to the Gulf of Mexico. The Committee
The driving force behind this project is the Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail Committee which has had monthly meetings since the fall of 2009, an effort initiated by the Little Falls Convention Visitors and Bureau. Local trail advocates joined with the counties of Cass, Crow Wing, and Morrison, surrounding communities and townships, Region 5 Development Commission, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and the National Park Service to form the Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail Committee. This hardworking group has made considerable progress towards making this important trail connection a reality. The Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail has a broad scope:
Diversifying central Minnesota’s economic base by expanding tourism. A 2009 University of Minnesota Tourism Center study finds that trail users spend about $2.4 billion every year using the state’s existing trails. The Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail will connect six trail systems, creating a one-of-a-kind draw to central Minnesota, and bringing much needed food, lodging, and sales tax revenue to a region battered by the economic downturn. Enhancing the quality of life and overall health of local residents. A recreational trail provides a safe and convenient place to enjoy the outdoors away from traffic and contributes greatly to the quality of life of a community. Businesses benefit here as well. A recreational trail can become a recruitment and retention tool for a skilled workforce. We are currently working on our new website. Until it goes live, find links to the corridor study, master plan, the U of M Tourism Study, and see how the National Parks Service is involved at
www.crvtrail.org
