REGIONAL— Oh, so close. That’s the word on the Mesabi Trail, which is within just a handful of miles of bridging the two final gaps in this 150 mile long paved bike trail stretching from Grand Rapids to Ely.
The long-awaited stretch from Tower to Ely, which most consider to be the trail’s most scenic stretch, was finally completed late last year, about 25 years after one of the trail’s first sections, which runs from Tower to nearby Soudan, was completed. That section is now slated for reconstruction this year.
Meanwhile, trail officials are continuing to assess possible routes to span the longest remaining gap, which runs about six miles from the intersection of Hwy. 135 and the Wahlsten Rd. to Tower. Trail director Bob Manzoline said that stretch has proven especially difficult due to opposition from landowners as well as some of the rugged terrain found in that stretch of Kugler Township. Manzoline has been meeting with township officials over the winter and said they’ve now agreed to run from Wahlsten Rd. to near Wiseman Rd., along the Hwy. 135 right-of-way, although that option is still running into heated opposition from some landowners.
Manzoline said he still has no idea of a possible route from the Wiseman Rd. to Tower, where landowner issues, extensive wetlands, and steep hills are daunting. “It’s a rugged stretch,” said Manzoline, who has been guiding the trail’s construction for well over two decades.
At this point, he’s hoping that construction contracts can be let as early as late summer for the southerly stretch, with completion expected sometime next year.
It’s been a similar story for a roughly five-mile gap between McKinley and Biwabik. “It’s been one thing after another there,” he said. But the route has now been confirmed and he expects construction could get underway there as well by late this year.
Tower-to-Soudan
reconstruction
Meanwhile, the contracts for reconstruction of the trail section from Tower to Soudan have now been let to Mesabi Bituminous, at a cost of $509,000.
The reconstruction had originally been slated for 2022 but delays over the replacement of the trail’s bridge over the East Two River had cost a year.
Under the contract, work could begin on the trail and bridge starting around June 10 and could continue through the end of August. That portion of the trail will be closed during the construction period.
Mesabi Trail ride
The annual Mesabi Trail ride, which regularly attracts hundreds of bike riders from around the state, will be held this year on Saturday, Aug. 5, and will run from Ely to Soudan and back, with shorter route options as well. It’s the first year that stretch of the trail has been included in the annual ride and is expected to attract a large number of riders. The full ride spans 50 miles, but there are 12- and 30-mile options as well.