Local trail lands on national map

Editor's note: Lance Franke, the Firelands Rails to Trails president, noted how his volunteer-based organization recently received recognition by state and federal authorities to further cement the North Coast Inland Trail as a premier pathway across the nation. NORWALK — We are designated as part of United States Bike Route 30. The approval was finally gotten from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials that gave the imprimatur to the designation. The Ohio Department of Transportation submitted this to the national certifying organization. By way of background, a system of federal and coordinated recreational routes is being developed for the whole country. The Midwest has the preponderance of these bike routes, and Ohio has the most of any of the states incorporating hundreds and hundreds of miles. We are part of this whole system and part of the longest transcontinental route, United States Bike Route 30. We worked with the state transportation department to get the bike route on the North Coast Inland Trail and off the local road net that was designed by a computer. We disabused the computer of its ignorance of traffic risks, and the state transportation department concurred. Now, United States Bike Route 30 runs, on its way along the North Coast Inland Trail contiguously — with the incorporation of the Fremont, Clyde, Bellevue, Norwalk and Wakeman bike routes — from Genoa, the western current trail end, to Lorain/Elyria. This is largely on the original Transcontinental Railroad line of 19th century fame. On the trail, just east of Collins, is the highest point on the Transcontinental Railroad between Chicago and Buffalo. Hopefully, we will be able to get across/around/through Toledo someday and hook up the North Coast Inland Trail with the Wabash Cannonball Trail and run from near the Indiana line at Montpelier to Elyria/Lorain. That future connection will make us, the North Coast Inland Trail with the Wabash Cannonball Trail among the 10 longest recreational trails in the U.S. United States Bike Route 30 goes north, as I recall, from around Toledo and proceeds up Michigan on its journey westward. If it's not the longest United States bike route, it will be one of the longest and the northernmost route. Sandusky is on an alternate route and is designated on United States Bike Route 230. We are putting up the route signs now, and the state will then be putting up the signs along the right-of-way beginning in 2022. The new section done by Sandusky County Park District between Elmore and Genoa is also designated already. We wanted to get our three-fold designations in place with the completion of our "last link." That, however, is not all. We are also a part of Ohio's official state circumnavigational trail, the Buckeye Trail, that goes all around the perimeter of the state. We worked with the Buckeye Trail Association to get the associated "blazed" on our part of the North Coast Inland Trail. "Blazes" are the blue-painted swatches that demarcate the trail for over 1,200 miles. Hence, the 17.6 miles of trail in Huron County is connected to the North Coast Inland Trail, the Buckeye Trail and the U.S. Bike Route 30. We are part of bigger things than just Huron County. That connectedness means tourist dollars and recreational developments in Huron County and connectedness to Sandusky and Lorain Counties as well as northern Ohio and the northernmost transcontinental route across the U.S. We just finished getting the "last mile" of trail done that we own, in conjunction with our partners, in Huron County. Our pioneer days are over, and we are not settlers who have to maintain and further improve what we have built. The developments of connectivity with the United States bike route, the Buckeye Trail Association and the North Coast Inland Trail mean more visitors from without and native users within the county. About 21 years ago, people probably thought that this would never be done. Thanks to park district partners outside of Huron County, dedicated volunteers, contractors in the county, donors, local businesses, hired consultants and people who have become members of Firelands Rails-To-Trails, we have all together built this trail for future generations of Huron Countians and people from all over. We even get to ride it ourselves.