Kansas trails move forward . . . slowly

Mike Hendricks recently wrote in the KCStar:

Kansas is nowhere close to the forefront in developing hiking and biking trails in rural areas.

The state Legislature even passed a law to make it more difficult to convert idle rail corridors into scenic walkways.

Thus, Kansas has nothing to

Thus, Kansas has nothing to match the Katy Trail, the hiking-biking path that runs west to east across much of neighboring Missouri.

The best Kansas has in comparison is the still-unfinished Prairie Spirit Trail, spanning the 50 miles between Ottawa and Iola.

Yet some are trying to rectify that.

While state government seems in no hurry to develop trails, volunteer groups like the one Meyer heads are building trails on a shoestring budget.

“Not a dime of it is tax money” is how Meyer explains the financial foundation for the Flint Hills trail, being built with the help of donations and volunteer labor along a rail right of way between Herington and Osawatomie.

The track is long gone. About 60 miles of the 117-mile route has been cleared of vegetation and is usable for hiking, though no single stretch is more than eight to 10 miles long.

Read the rest of the article here.

Kanza Rail Trails Conservancy web site.