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Bicyclists celebrate completed paving of Cedar Valley Nature Trail
It took 40 years, creating ‘endless memories’ along the way
Oct. 4, 2024 6:32 pm, Updated: Oct. 9, 2024 8:55 am
Cyclists make their way along the Cedar Valley Nature Trail following a Friday afternoon ribbon-cutting in Urbana celebrating the completion of the 52-mile trail’s paving. It took 40 years to pave all of the trail, which runs from Hiawatha to Evansdale near Waterloo. (Nick Rohlman/The Gazette)
Bicyclists gather at the Urbana City Hall for a Friday afternoon ribbon-cutting celebrating the completion of paving of the Cedar Valley Nature Trail. (Nick Rohlman/The Gazette)
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URBANA — Glenda and Patrick Berry bicycled down from Waterloo to Urbana on Friday to celebrate the completed paving of the Cedar Valley Nature Trail, a task that was 40 years in the making.
More than 100 bicyclists from all over Eastern Iowa made their way along the trail to enjoy a cloudless, 75-degree October afternoon for the afternoon ribbon-cutting in Urbana to mark the paving milestone.
Glenda rode a TerraTrike bike with a seated-back position, with her legs in front of her. Her 1-year-old Yorkshire terrier, Pollyanna, was safely tucked into a pink travel case on the back of her bike.
Biking, she said, has been a huge part of her and Patrick’s relationship. It’s a part of how they met, and they’ve been biking the Cedar Valley Nature Trail since.
“It’s wonderful” to have it done, Glenda said.
Over the summer, the final 6 miles of the 52-mile Cedar Valley Nature Trail were paved from Urbana to the Bear Creek Bridge near the Buchanan and Benton county line.
“It’s not just a trail. It’s a thread that ties us together and showcases the best our region has to offer,” Linn County Supervisor Kirsten Running-Marquardt said at the ribbon-cutting.
The Cedar Valley Nature Trail has created “endless memories” for residents and visitors, with more memories waiting to be made, she said.
Running-Marquardt said she spoke with a Cedar Rapids resident last week who recalled riding her bike on the Cedar Valley Nature Trail with her Girl Scout troop shortly after the trail opened 40 years ago.
That person’s mother — who is now 78 — rode alongside her and the other Girl Scouts from Hiawatha to Center Point where they were to be picked up. But by the time they reached Center Point, some of the scouts were still full of energy and wanted to bike back to Hiawatha.
“Despite already being tired, her mom agreed to ride back with them on the trail,” Running-Marquardt said. “Now 40 years later … her mom still talks about that day and how much fun she had with her daughter. That memory has lasted a lifetime.”
Rails-to-Trails
Iowa was the first state in the nation to use a 1983 federal law known as the Rails-to-Trails Act, converting the abandoned Waterloo, Cedar Falls and Northern Railway right of way in the early 1980s to a bike trail, said Debi Durham, director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority.
Today, the Cedar Valley Nature Trail runs through four counties, cutting through Hiawatha, Robins, Lafayette, Center Point, Urbana, Brandon, La Porte City, Gilbertville and Evansdale.
It is accessible from several locations. A southern trailhead is on Boyson Road in Hiawatha. Another good access point in Linn County is the historic depot in Center Point.
The trail also links to other well-known trails in Eastern Iowa, including the CeMar, Grant Wood and Highway 100 trails in the Cedar Rapids and Marion areas. Those using the trails also can make their way down through Johnson County.
‘Time and effort’
While the Cedar Valley Nature Trail’s surface was originally crushed limestone, county conservation departments and others in Eastern Iowa have been working for decades to pave the entirety of the trail paved. The trail is owned and jointly managed by Linn and Black Hawk counties.
Dennis Goemaat, executive director of Linn County Conservation, said having the trail finally paved represents the “spirit” of collaboration and Iowans coming together to enhance the quality of life.
The trail provides a place for people of all ages to engage in healthy activities and connect with nature and each other, Goemaat said.
“We get the opportunity to say we’re done, we did it. But really, the credit goes to the past 40 years and the people who persevered and took the time and effort,” Goemaat said.
The last 16 miles of the Cedar Valley Nature Trail were paved with $3.5 million in funding from the federal American Rescue Plan allocated by the state in a Destination Iowa grant. The project also included bridge replacements, box culverts and watershed controls.
Economic impact
A 2012 study from the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, along with the University of Northern Iowa Sustainable Tourism and Environment Program, found that cyclists and trails generate $364.8 million in economic impact in the state, economic development director Durham said.
“I believe today it is much higher because bicycling has grown into one of the most popular outdoor activities in America,” she said. “… We’ve long understood the importance of trails. Trail development feeds our economic development.”
The businesses popping up along trails include “housing, ice cream shops, breweries and bike rentals,” she said, noting those additions are a “crucial part of building vibrant communities where people want to call home.”
Comments: (319) 398-8411; grace.king@thegazette.com
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