Casey Jones State Trail
Description
The Casey Jones State Trail is currently limited to three separate sections. The first section runs from the city of Pipestone due east for 13 miles (21 km) to the Pipestone/Murray county line. After a 4-mile (6.4 km) gap the trail resumes for a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) section leading into the town of Lake Wilson. These two sections have a natural surface. The third portion is a paved 6-mile (9.7 km) loop between End-O-Line Railroad Park & Museum in Currie and Lake Shetek State Park. The full plan for the trail is a route from Split Rock Creek State Park to Pipestone to Lake Wilson to Slayton to Lake Shetek State Park to Walnut Grove. A spur would provide access to Pipestone National Monument. The plan calls for parallel tracks, one paved and one natural-surfaced, to accommodate horseback riding and snowmobiling as well as biking, in-line skating, and cross-country skiing.
History
The Casey Jones State Trail was authorized in the late 1960s shortly after legislation was passed allowing for state trails in Minnesota. The original route was to follow the abandoned railroad grade and then sweep northeast through Slayton to Lake Shetek State Park. No further property was acquired, however, and only the 13-mile (21 km) section from Pipestone was developed, opening in the mid-1970s.
In 1993 Murray County secured federal funds through the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act to build the paved loop from Currie to the state park, which was completed in 1996. The following year a local group secured a key .5-mile (0.80 km) segment leading into Lake Wilson, and that section was soon opened for hiking.
The popularity of the paved loop helped renew public interest in the trail. The 2002 Minnesota Legislature officialized the loop as part of the state trail and authorized a 30-mile (48 km) extension to the main route. However a second bill to provide funding did not pass and a small appropriation was vetoed by the governor.
References
- ^ "Casey Jones State Trail". Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved 2011-06-06.
- ^ "Casey Jones State Trail Master Plan" (PDF). Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Division of Trails and Waterways. May 2005. Retrieved 2011-06-06.
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External links
44°0′9.1″N 96°18′24.51″W / 44.002528°N 96.3068083°W