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Dakota Dunes Trail Update February 7, 2012
The great flood of 2012 did a lot of damage to some of our trails, especially in those areas where the water stood for several months – many trees have fallen and the receding river left tons of sand which needed to be cleared. This condition affects sections of trails in Sioux City, South Sioux City, Dakota Dunes and Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve. Siouxland Trails Foundation applauds the public officials in each of these areas for their work in re-opening trails. The work is not complete, but things are looking up!
We received a copy of the following report on the limestone trail that runs thru the wooded section of Dakota Dunes to the point where the Missouri and Big Sioux Rivers meet.
This is a public trail partially paid for with State of South Dakota Funds and trail enthusiasts may want to check out this beautiful trail section.
The following is from Jeff Dooley, Manager of the Dakota Dunes Community Improvement District:
“For those of you who have enjoyed the trails down on the Pointe, the CID staff has cleared the trees from the path and it is now passable. The trail is a little muddy yet as the river deposited a layer of sediment on the limestone paths, but you should be able to walk all trails. For now, the trees have been pushed to the side. We hope to be able to clear the path of remaining silt and install some new limestone as budgets allow. If you get a chance, I would encourage you to take a walk down there as you can see the devastation of the summer flooding on areas not protected by the levee. There are a lot of trees down and the few that are standing may not live long – this area will look a lot different in the next few years (for the better). As you walk down there, try to make it to the Missouri River outlook. Dakota Dunes Eagle Scouts had built an eagle look out building and a solar lit flag pole. Both withstood the force of the water and you will see how high the water was in this area (3-4 feet). My compliments to the scouts who built these structures as they withstood some deep water with some fast current.”
“How the great flood of 2011 affected Adam’s Homestead and Nature Center Trail System “
The trails at Adams are some of Siouxland’s most scenic trails. The Adams’ team did a great job of keeping as much of the park open as possible during the 2011 flood, but the flood did severely impact the trail system and that impact continues.
Siouxland Trails Foundation received the following communication from Dan Grewing who manages Adams Homestead and Nature Center in mid December:
“The support the Siouxland Trails Foundation has shown over the years is very much appreciated. To update you on the trail system to this point we have cleaned and resurfaced about 6 miles of trail. With all the different levees that were built to protect surrounding developments the trail system received considerable damage from equipment and national guard vehicles doing their routine inspections of the levees.
We still have about 1 1/2 miles of trail that still needs to be cleared of trees and resurfaced. Unfortunately some of that trail is still under about 12" of water. I am not sure if that water will go down by this next spring or if we will be dealing with water issues next summer also.
The section of trail on the river loop that runs next to the Missouri River also has huge amounts of sand that was deposited over the trail. We have been working with FEMA and hopefully we will be able to have a contractor come in this winter or early spring to remove that sand. The observation deck in that area was also sweep away by flood waters and will have to be replaced.
A good portion of the trees in the tree belts along the trail system were killed by the flood waters. We had about 1000 acres under water. Those trees will have to be replanted but the old belts will have to be removed first and the ground prepared for replanting. With this event and all the storm damage we sustained from high winds the summer before its going to be a while before we get back to normal.”
Decorative Bike Racks
SIOUX CITY -- Decorative bicycle racks designed to grab attention will be popping up around Sioux City and South Sioux City. The additions are meant to encourage people to pedal to destinations.
The first two racks have been installed in front of the Sioux City Public Museum, 607 Fourth St. Others are planned at Bev's on the River, the Morningside Branch Library, the Anderson Dance Pavilion in Chris Larsen Park and in South Sioux City.
Each rack will be a different shape. The Public Museum rack resembles an antique bicycle.
"This project has been years in the making," said Siouxland Interstate Metropolitan Planning Council Transportation Planner Eric Sanders during an unveiling ceremony Wednesday. "It is a testament to our community that so many organizations have gotten involved in this."
The council partnered with Scheels, the sporting goods retailer that is providing the bike racks, along with the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce and the Siouxland Trails Foundation.
"The idea is that instead of putting up those generic bike racks that takes away from the landscape, we wanted something unique that went along with a theme" related to the location where each is placed, Sanders explained.
The project cost is $10,000.
"We have seen what other communities have done with decorative bike racks," said Siouxland Trails Foundation President Bob DeSmidt. "We took the idea to the chamber and it went from there. This is a good example of what can happen when a lot of organizations work together toward a common goal."
Flooding Affecting Several Local Trails
The great Missouri River Flood of 2011 is affecting a number of local trails. As of June 7th, 2011, the trail thru Chris Larson Park in Sioux City from Floyd Blvd to Hamilton Blvd is closed with portions under water. The trail from Hamilton to Riverside Park and the Chautauqua trails in Sioux City have been closed for I-29 work – the flooding will obviously affect both trails and delay re-opening.
Woodbury County’s Snyder’s Bend Park is closed and that includes the trail along the edge of the lake.
In South Sioux City the trail thru the soccer fields and under the rail bridge is under water. The new All American Trail from the Veteran’s Bridge to the new College Center on the west side of South Sioux City may be partially closed. The Trail around Crystal Cove is also expected to be affected by rising water.
As previously noted, the Perry Creek Trail is open but has some major detours due to construction.
South Sioux City has completed the traffic light work that had disrupted the trail going south from 39th Street – and have added a walk light at the intersection where traffic is coming off the bypass. Nice!
The Chautauqua Park trail is closed about .6 mile (1 mile according to the sign) north of the ball field park lot. The DOT is apparently doing tree work in preparation for next summer’s I-29 project. We were disappointed that there was no advance notice of this closure.
The Perry Creek trail continues to have two detours. Both are well-marked and easy to navigate (as long as you shift down when proceeding north on the one that takes you to 10th (?) Street – that hill is steeper than it looks!)
The Transit Avenue trail is finished and is very nice! The Yards trail is also supposed to be extended as a part of the Cunningham Drive project, so in the near future we may actually have trail access from Morningside. If you ride the Transit trail and decide to take the spur to Pulaski (sp?) Park, be very careful as you cross at the intersection of Transit and Cunningham. When northbound traffic has a green light, traffic turning right onto Transit from Cunningham also have a green arrow – makes crossing there kind of tricky!
Sioux City has also started to do some concrete repair on the Singing Hills and Ball Diamond trails. Watch for it if you’re riding down the hill on Singing Hills – no advance warning that the trail is blocked at the little bridge.
The Nordic Ski group is holding a work day on Sunday, October 17, to clean up tree damage from this summer’s storms at Adams Nature Preserve and is looking for volunteers.
Sioux City has filled in the missing piece of the Floyd trail under the Outer Belt bridge, so that trail is complete once again. Now we just have to hope for access someday over (or under) the RR tracks.
South Sioux has, I think, finished pouring their trail extension to the west of the Marina Inn. It was still closed on Saturday, but they had the sweeper out on it, so that looked like a good sign! It’s nice to see trail CONstruction rather than DEstruction for a change!
Siouxland's newest trail - Snyders Bend Park and points south Snyders Bend Park is located just south of Brown's Lake and west of Salix. The park is a nice destination for bicyclists traveling from Sioux City along Port Neal Road. Thanks to improvements recently completed by Woodbury County, the park is much more accessible to bicyclists. There is a new 1.2 mile concrete entrance road and a new concrete ˝ trail along the lake. In addition there is a .3 mile crushed limestone trail leading to an observation deck. From the observation deck, the park connects to land controlled by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and there is a path suitable for mountain bikers that extends for approximately 9 miles to Monona County. This is a beautiful and flat ride but a mountain bike is highly recommended as the terrain gets rough in spots. The DNR land is public hunting land, so beware during hunting season.
Snyder Bend Snyder Bend also boasts 4 brand new cabins that can be rented. Thanks to the Woodbury County Conservation Board and the Woodbury County Board of Supervisors for the great improvements at Snyder's Bend
South Sioux City constructing new park along trail - The City of South Sioux City has begun construction of its new 57 acre Freedom Park and Arboretum which will be a be Memorial Park to Veterans. The new park is being constructed on both sides of the Al Bengston trail between the Railroad overpass and the road that runs adjacent to the Sioux City Foundry in South Sioux City. The new park is a nice addition to a community dedicated to providing its citizens outstanding outdoor recreation opportunities.
This is a map(Click here for map) showing approximate location of two new trail additions to be constructed in South Sioux City in 2010. South Sioux City to construct two trail sections in 2010 which will allow a complete trail 'loop' of the community. The two new trails will run along the west side of the community. The American Trail will begin at Crystal Cove and travel North and West connecting to an existing short trail section West of highway 77. This section will be approximately 1.1 miles long. The Missing Link Trail will begin at the north end of the existing trail on the West side of highway 77 and will travel North between 6th and 7th Avenue and then turn East along 4th Street meeting the existing trail at the base of the Veteran's Bridge and completing the loop. This section will be approximately 1 mile long. The American Trail is presently scheduled for a Spring 2010 construction start and the Missing Link Trail is scheduled for a Summer 2010 construction start. Siouxland Trails Foundation had endorsed the grant requests to fund these two important trail additions. We applaud South Sioux City for its commitment not only to building recreational trails, but also for pushing to get trails connected and accessible from all neighborhoods of the City."
South Sioux City Opens Arbor Acres Trail - South Sioux City, Nebraska's first Bicycle Friendly Community designated nationally by the League of American Bicyclists opened the new Arbor Acres Trail in May of this year. The new trail runs from the Arbor Park 4000ft to the north to connect to the trail that runs along the banks of the Missouri River.. The new trail is 10ft wide and cost $180,000 to build. Funding came from the State of Nebraska thru the Papio Missouri Natural Resources District, Nebraska Game and Parks and the City of South Sioux. Siouxland Trails Foundation, Tri-State Trekkers and Siouxland Cyclists all endorsed the grant application.
The many benefits of this new trail include making it easier for many South Sioux City residents to access the community's other well connected trails. The new trail also connects Harney School to the system, bringing the community closer to its goal of having trail access to all of its school facilities.
Siouxland Tails Foundation - congratulates South Sioux City on this great addition to Siouxland's trails. In 2004 Siouxland Trails Foundation developed and printed 3600 Siouxland Trails Maps thanks to the generosity of the Chesterman Family Foundation. Those maps have almost all been distributed ! One of STF's goals for 2007 was to update the map for trail additions since 2004 and to print additional maps for free public distribution. In addition, we wanted to develop some permanent outdoor trail maps for the Sioux City riverfront area.
South Sioux City Opens Arbor Acres Trail
– South Sioux City, Nebraska’s first Bicycle Friendly Community
designated nationally by the League of American Bicyclists opened the
new Arbor Acres Trail in May of this year. The new trail runs
from the Arbor Park 4000ft to the north to connect to the trail that
runs along the banks of the Missouri River.. The new trail is 10ft wide
and cost $180,000 to build. Funding came from the State of Nebraska thru
the Papio Missouri Natural Resources District, Nebraska Game and Parks
and the City of South Sioux. Siouxland Trails Foundation, Tri-State
Trekkers and Siouxland Cyclists all endorsed the grant application.
The many benefits of this new trail include making it easier for many
South Sioux City residents to access the community’s other well
connected trails. The new trail also connects Harney School to the
system, bringing the community closer to its goal of having trail access
to all of its school facilities.
Siouxland Tails Foundation - congratulates South Sioux City on this
great addition to Siouxland’s trails. In 2004 Siouxland Trails Foundation developed and printed 3600 Siouxland Trails Maps thanks to the generosity of the Chesterman Family Foundation. Those maps have almost all been distributed ! One of STF's goals for 2007 was to update the map for trail additions since 2004 and to print additional maps for free public distribution. In addition, we wanted to develop some permanent outdoor trail maps for the Sioux City riverfront area.
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