It's been a busy year of construction for the Trout Run Trail!  Not only were repairs done to parts of the bike trail that were damaged in 2008's flooding, but paving was completed on Segment 2, which connects the trail from Wold Park to Montgomery Street, and on Segments 7 + 8 southwest of the Trout Hatchery.  Trout Run Trail now runs all the way from the Decorah Campground in a clockwise circle to near Middle Calmar Road--eight miles of dedicated recreational trail in all!

What's next for the Trout Run Trail?  The engineering sketches have been completed for Segment 11 and the contract has been let for construction in 2010.  The project will involve a lot of earth moving on property along Highway 52, so bike riders can navigate "The Cut."  On the north end, a series of switchbacks will allow bike riders to connect with either the Dug Road trail or with the Decorah Campground. 

2009 was also a busy year for work on the public art along the trail.  Iowa City artist Bounnak Thammavong installed "River Horizon Archway," which spans the Trout Run Trail south of the Highway 9 bridge near Gundersen Clinic.  The arch is nearly 16 feet high and 27 feet wide and serves as a gateway between the rural and urban sections of trail.  Bounnak says he created the arch based on his memories of coming to Decorah to do trout fishing with his grandfather when Bounnak was young. 

Decorah artist Dean Schwarz also installed a ceramic tile marker he created for the trail.  The Ceramic tile mosaic is 7 feet long, 2 feet high and 2 feet wide, with limestone cap and base.  It has been installed at the Decorah Fish Hatchery, along Trout Run Road.

Doug Freeman is a 1975 Luther College graduate who is now a well-known Minneapolis artist who creates one-of-a-kind sculptures.  He is in the process of finishing the final public artwork that will be installed along the trail--along Dug Road, looking out onto the Upper Iowa River.  The sculpture will be installed in 2010.
 

This website is sponsored by Trails of Winneshiek, a non-profit organization of Winneshiek County citizens who have initiated the trail project and have invested thousands of volunteer hours developing and promoting it.
Contact Trails of Winneshiek through the Decorah Area Chamber of Commerce at director@decorah-iowa.com.
Donations to the Trout Run Trail are handled through the Winneshiek County Community Foundation, a 501(c)3 organization that can be reached at P.O.Box 1176, Waterloo, IA 50704

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