The July 8th, 2010 Camp Ripley/Veterans Trail meeting is going to be an important one.

The National Park Service will be attending to present on the Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program. Also in attendance will be Elizabeth Walton of MN DOT & the Mississippi River Trail.

National Park Service - Trail Assistance Program

Holly Larson and Randy Thoreson of the National Park Service will present information on the NPS Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance program, which is designed to assist in trail planning and development.

An online video from the NPS is available that provides a description of the program and how we might be able to participate.

Program guidelines and the application can be found on the NPS RTCA website. Camp Ripley/Veterans Trail members are encouraged to go through these materials prior to the meeting.

This program has assisted several Minnesota recreational trails, which are similar to the Camp Ripley/Veterans Trail, including the Casey Jones Trail and Swedish Immigrant Trail. It will be an important opportunity to determine if we might quality for their assistance.

MN DOT - Mississippi River Trail

Liz Walton of MNDOT will provide us with an update on the quickly developing Minnesota portion of the Mississippi River Trail. Her attendance will be an opportunity to discuss how our two trail projects can work together, as the Camp Ripley/Veterans Trail corridor and mission match with the goals of the MRT.

The MRT has identified a road route that is identical to the CRV Trail corridor between the Soo Line Trail (Bowlus/Royalton) and the Paul Bunyan Trail (Crow Wing State Park). Perhaps the CRV Trail group can help spearhead local efforts to get our section of the route signed this fall or early 2011.

This signed, road route would serve as an interim and immediate connector route between the Paul Bunyan and Lake Wobegon Trail systems. Once the route is made official, all of the trails will be able to start marketing our regional SYSTEM as early as spring 2011.

Meeting Details

Thursday, July 8, 2010
17:30 - 19:30

Camp Ripley, MN (National Guard Base)
Headquarters Building, Environmental Classroom

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