One of the biggest challenges to completing a hiking and biking trail between Coraopolis and Ohio has been convincing people it can be done, leaders of a group working to make the connection say.
They cite other “priorities,” said Mario Leone, the borough manager in Monaca and cofounder of the Ohio River Trail Council.
“They'll say ‘We have dilapidated bridges and you want to spend $1 million on a trail?' ” he said.
Another roadblock has been finding suitable routes.
“It's more difficult ... than using abandoned rail routes,” said Vincent Troia, the council's president. “Apparently the railroads are doing quite well in Beaver County; none are abandoned.”
Despite the setbacks, the group is forging ahead. A fundraiser for the effort to build the 40-50 miles of trail needed was held Sunday at Brady's Run Park in Brighton. The event included a 5K run/walk, mountain bike race, road cycling, kayaking, paddleboarding, canoeing, rock climbing wall, auctions, raffles, arts & crafts, live music and food.
The group says the Ohio River Trail is an important proposed route that would form a mega-trail system in four states, providing an opportunity to explore the landscapes and history of America by bicycle. It would link existing land and water trails in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia, and eventually would provide a continuous trail route from Cleveland to Washington, D.C.
“It's a great accomplishment to have a Pittsburgh-to-D.C. trail, but you can't stop there,” Troia said. “This brings the Rust Belt back.”
Troia envisions the day when the Montour Trail, which begins in Coraopolis, connects with the Great Ohio Lake-to-River Greenway in Columbiana County, Ohio, and the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage, which this year finished linking to a 184-mile Maryland trail that reaches Washington.
With Cleveland working on a link to the Beaver County line, cyclists someday will be able to ride from Cleveland to D.C., he said.
Rochester residents Presence and David Mercier support the effort.
“I want to be able to walk and enjoy the area,” David Mercier said.
“We camp, we hike, we kayak,” said his wife, who twice hiked the Grand Canyon.
The Ohio River Trail Council has secured more than $400,000 in funding for various studies from the National Park Service, Pennsylvania's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, First Energy Foundation and the Beaver County Commissioners, Troia said. The Environmental Protection Agency provided $175,000 for a brownfield study in Midland, Monaca, Aliquippa and Coraopolis, Leone said.
The trail council has printed 30,000 copies of a water trail map from Pittsburgh's Point to the Ohio state line, Troia said.
Craig Smith is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-380-5646 or csmith@tribweb.com.
