19 Jan Progress Continues on Nakwema Trailway

Winter is here, but progress continues on the Nakwema Trailway, which will link Traverse City and Charlevoix. TART Trails and Top of Michigan Trails Council are partners on this project.

Elk Rapids – Maple Bay – Progress continues on the Transportation Alternatives Program grant application, while design work is actively underway for the trail segment linking Elk Rapids and Maple Bay.

Torch Lake Township – The engineers are wrapping up the Alternatives Analysis to determine the best placement of the trail in Torch Lake Township. Officials plan to present the results of the alternatives analysis at a public meeting this month.

Join us for a Nakwema Trailway Community Update for Torch Lake Township on Thursday, Jan. 29, 6-8 p.m. at the Torch Lake Township Community Services Building, 2355 N. U.S. 31, Kewadin, MI 49648.

This update will include findings from a recently completed trail analysis that will inform trail design and engineering. We look forward to sharing our progress with you. Attend in person, via Zoom link, or watch the recording afterward.

Find the Zoom link and recording here.

Recently, the Torch to Bay Trail Team convened to share community-wide updates and trail design engineering developments with regard to the Alternatives Analysis. The group discussed the most effective information sharing methods, in anticipation of the results. As Torch Lake Township hones in on both their Master Plan and their Recreation Plan, everyone seems pleased to see non-motorized trails, parks, and natural spaces stand out as clear priorities.

If you are interested in becoming involved with the Torch to Bay Trail Team or the Elk Rapids Trail Team, please email dana@traversetrails.org to learn more.

The Nakwema (nah-KWAY-mah) Trailway will provide a vital, non-motorized connection between pristine freshwater shorelines, rolling dunes, and pastoral farmlands. The Trailway will provide critical foundational infrastructure for happy, healthy, resilient individuals and communities that make up the quintessential towns, villages, and rich cultural heritage that define northwest Lower Michigan.

Nakwema will be one trail that brings together the vision of many communities. The Trailway, when built, will be the keystone connecting towns and villages, and the natural spaces that we cherish. The Trailway will join over 25 natural spaces and parks together, creating a year-round asset for people of all ages and abilities to enjoy, today and tomorrow.