RTP grant awarded to fund section of Envision Lincoln In-Town Trails plan

Montana State Parks awarded a Recreational Trails Program Grant to the Lincoln Ranger District for construction of a trail segment identified by Envision Lincoln in the In-Town Trails Plan developed in 2018. It will be the first trails from the plan to come to fruition.

A one-mile, figure-eight loop, the trail will be built on the15-acre parcel of Forest Service property adjacent to the east side of Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild.

"It will connect the sculpture park and will be a cross country ski trail and a footpath," said Envision Lincoln Coordinator Karyn Good.

The total cost of the natural surface trail project is $31,647, with the grant covering $24,097. A cash and in-kind match of $7550 rounds out the remaining cost.

Forest Moulton, the recreation lead for the Lincoln Ranger District, said the Forest Service match includes a construction crew, material - mostly gravel - and equipment.

"What we do need for that in-kind, is a dump truck that can haul the gravel and an excavator that could load the gravel into the dump truck," Good said. They will also be looking for a volunteer weed crew to go out one day a year to spray.

"It's pretty low ask, as far as in kind goes," she said.

Survey and design of the trail, and other prep work will begin this year, with the bulk of the project expected to get underway after the grant funds are awarded in July.

"I can't really say how much we'll get done this year, it all depends on fire season and where my people are needed the most," Moulton said. "We'll do some work this fall but we'll do the majority of it next year."

Regardless of how far they get on work this year, Good said under the terms of the grant the trail has to be completed by July 2022.

Sculpture in the Wild has been in talks with the Forest Service on a permit to use about five of the 15 acres to provide room for an expansion of the sculpture park. Moulton said if the expansion plan and permit move forward as expected, new sculptures in that area will likely be built near the new trail.

Several other trails in and around Lincoln have been identified as priorities for the community, including a trail along Stemple Pass Road from Main Street to the Community River Park and a trail connecting Lambkin Park to Sculpture in the Wild, but as planning for grant applications progressed, it became clear that much more planning and coordination would be necessary for grant applications to be successful.

Good said another high priority trail that will require considerable coordination and easement negotiations would provide access to the Blackfoot River by way of a trail along the western boundary of the Ranger Station property. The trail would access a campsite at the Lincoln Airport, cross the river and loop back to Stemple Pass Road.

"Again, private property issues and it'll be spendy," she said. "It's high priority, but low likelihood it's going to happen soon."

Last year, Envision Lincoln received a $38,000 Rural Business Development Grant from the USD to help fund additional planning for the in-town trails plan.