TART Trails to Groom Veronica Valley Park
The Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation (TART) Trails recently took possession of a new piece of grooming equipment to groom the Leelanau Trail for skiing between Traverse City and Suttons Bay. This new grooming attachment, called a Ginzu groomer, is designed to groom for both classic and skate ski techniques. TART Trails, Inc. is a nonprofit trail and pedestrian advocacy organization that manages cross-country ski grooming programs on both the Vasa Pathway and Leelanau Trail. The Leelanau Trail is generally groomed once a week, usually on Fridays or as snowfall dictates.
TART has made an agreement to groom Leelanau County’s Veronica Valley Park on Co Rd 641 on a trial basis. The initial groom was on Tuesday (2/16/10). Approximately 4 kilometers of trail were groomed for both classic and skate skiing. The Leelanau County Parks and Recreation Commission is hopeful that both visitors and county residents will take advantage of the newly groomed trails. If the groomed trails are popular with skiers; an arrangement will be made with TART trails to groom them for the remainder of the season. Veronica Valley is located in Bingham Township between County Road 641 (Lake Leelanau Drive) and Maple Valley Road. The 93-acre park was formerly a golf course owned by Bill and Diane Grant. The county purchased the property from the Grants in 2008 for $800,000, of which $580,811 was provided to the county through the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund (MNRTF) and $25,000 from Rotary Charities.
About TART:
Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation (TART) Trails, Inc. is a nonprofit 501 (c)(3) organization formed in 1998 and located in Traverse City, Michigan. TART works to enrich the Traverse area by providing a network of trails, bikeways and pedestrian ways; and encouraging their use. TART Trails include a network of trail systems located in Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties: including the Boardman Lake Trail, Leelanau Trail, TART Trail, Three Mile Trail and Vasa Pathway. These trails combine to form over 60 miles of recreation and transportation pathways spanning from Suttons Bay to Acme Township. It is estimated that the trails serve over 200,000 users annually while preserving valuable community green space. TART is working to integrate these trails into the community by advocating for interconnected bike lanes, bike routes and sidewalks, and is also working to extend these trails to connect with a developing regional trails system. For more information about TART Trails, please visit www.traversetrails.org
I used to love the TART Trail. When I first came to Leelanau County it was a wonderful, dirt two-track – perfect for leisurely walking. Paving it is a big mistake in my opinion. Can’t walk casually anymore because bikes are always whizzing by. Paving it is just making a blacktop scar on the land. Hard for me to understand how that’s environmentally friendly.
Just one guy’s opinion and I’m not into biking with all the trendy spandex. Guess I’ll find a new trail where the terrain, flora and fauna are undisturbed, for now.
I agree with you, Doug. The whole purpose of nature trails is to escape from civilization for a while. By grooming them for convenience or ease of access, you take away the thrill and challenge of hiking and mountain biking, and exploring!
Would like to see an updated website of Veronica Valley Park. Would like a map of the trails if their is such a thing. And lastly will the Tart trail be grooming the trails???? Just went cross country skiing today on the trails. That park is gorgeous and would love to see a map and groomed trails. Great place to skate ski if groomed. Please email me the answers to my questions. Thank you.