Partnership Leads to Expansion of National Trail

From left to right Lisa Ringstad (NCTA), Jon Lindgren (NCTA), Mark Zimmerman(North Dakota Tourism), and Ranger Scott Tichy (COE) cut ribbon at grand opening of the first segment of the NCT at Lake Ashtabula.

North Country Trail at Lake Ashtabula

Lake: Ashtabula Lake, ND

Partners: USACE; Sheyenne Valley Chapter of the North Country Trail Association (NCTA)

Partnership Type: Cooperating Association

Corps POC: Scott Tichy

Story: In October of 2000, Lisa Ringstad, President of the Sheyenne Valley Chapter of the North Country Trail Association (NCTA), joined forces with Corps of Engineers employees at Lake Ashtabula to construct a 35-mile segment of the North Country National Scenic Trail along the shoreline of Lake Ashtabula in Valley City, ND. The NCTA has provided grant money, tools, expertise, and manpower to help Corps employees plan and construct the first 25 miles of hiking trail. At the time of this article was written construction was in progress on the final 10-mile segment at Lake Ashtabula.

The Sheyenne Valley Chapter of the North Country Trail Association hopes that construction of the North Country Trail (NCT) at Lake Ashtabula will spark increased interest in the NCT locally in North Dakota and help with development of new trail segments in the state.