The center of this great state is a hotspot for bicycling, whatever your flavor may be. If you like road biking there’s a winding county road with your name on it. If a relaxed cruise with the family sounds more like you, there are trails just for that.

If you have biked around the region you have met a lot of fellow bicycling enthusiaststs on central Minnesota roads and trails. One thing you will notice is that while there are lots of spectacular riding oppportunities here, there is no organisation to represent the many bikers! Other trail users have very active representation, why not bicyclists? Why not have a group of individuals to share your experiences with, someone to help you with route planning or bicycle repair? We are just getting started and would love it if you joined us.

Find us on facebook and check out our website: www.cmnbikeclub.com !

If you have ever attempted to put together a puzzle, you know the feeling: the pieces are spread out on your table sorted by color, but that’s as far as you have gotten. You alternately stare at the image on the box and back at the mess in front of you, when suddenly you snap in one more piece and a picture starts to emerge. A picture, perhaps, of a recreational trail with national significance, winding through Minnesota farmland and state parks, around lakes and over rivers. A scenic route connecting communities hundreds of miles apart, stretching from Fergus Falls to Cass Lake or St. Cloud to Bemidji. And all you have to do is put in that one puzzle piece.

MN DNR Authorized Trails Map - Draft 2010.09.09

MN DNR is in the process of updating their State Trails overview map.

The current draft version is a welcome update. MN has hundreds of miles of existing state trails and hundreds more authorized.

There are a few missing elements that will hopefully make it into the final version:

• Existing paved trail from Glacial Lakes State Park (Starbuck, MN) to Villard, MN.
• Significant, regional trails should also be depicted on the map to give proper context of trail connections
  - Existing: Lake Wobegon, Soo Line, Mesabi, Soo Line North, Soo Line South
  - Planned: Dairyland Trail

 Full Size Map: MN DNR State Trails in MN (2 Mb)

Soo Line South Trail - Onamia, MN
Adjacent Paved/Gravel Trails

Designing the Camp Ripley/Veterans State Trail such that it is open to as many users as possible, which includes ATV and horseback, is a stated goal of the CRV Trail group. Being aware of existing trail designs, how they work, don't work, and impact the various user types and residents is going to be an important part of the ongoing discussion during the CRVST's development process.

Brian Peterson of the Brainerd Dispatch has written a nice article evaluating a nearby section of the Soo Line South Trail that has both motorized (ATV) and non-motorized uses. As a trail that has adjacent paved and unpaved treadways, it will be an important design to consider for the CRVST.

So how is it that, in the middle of the countryside, you would find bicyclists together with ATV enthusiasts?

The Soo Line Trail zig-zags across central and northern Minnesota. But here, for an 11-mile stretch from Onamia to Isle, it offers separate access for ATVers and bicyclists, joggers, walkers and rollerbladers and the like. A paved, five-foot-wide trail for the latter group of trail users runs parallel to a gravel ATV trail - slightly wider as it has spread out with use - with a small "median" of weeds, gravel and dirt between the two.

Until the Camp Ripley/Veterans Trail is completed (2015+), there are several existing road routes that are recommended for bicycle travel between the Paul Bunyan and Soo Line trails.

When using any maps of the area, be sure you can identify which roads are paved, as the majority of roads in this region are unpaved. Local snowmobile maps are perhaps the best resource for differentiating paved/gravel roads and can be obtained from the local chambers of commerce. The Brainerd Lakes Tourism website or Visitor Center (on Hwy 371) is a good place to get these local maps. The Little Falls Visitor Center also has maps, but you will want to specifically ask for snowmobile maps.

While all roads in Minnesota, except those specifically restricted, are open to bicycle travel. Not all roads are comfortable for cyclists of all abilities, especially younger or inexperienced riders.

A quick map of a few suggested connecting routes has been drafted and uploaded for your reference. The map will be revised/improved in the fall/winter of 2010 to show more detail and service information.

Route Map:

Camp Ripley/Veterans Trail - Interim Road Route Map - 2010.08.19 (921 Kb)