Members of the Eagle Grove Scouts BSA boys troop and girls troop joined together to clean up the trail head at the Eagle Grove end of the Three Rivers Trail last Saturday, in preparation for further improvements planned for the location.
The trail runs across nearly forty miles between Rolfe and Eagle Grove, and crosses the West and East forks of the Des Moines River, as well as the west branch of the Boone River. Established in 1991, the trail runs along the right of way of the old Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, which in turn followed an earlier stagecoach route. The classic railroad flavor of the packed limestone trail is still obvious today, with all 36 of the original railway bridges still intact and part of the trail. In fact, the end of the current line is directly across the road from the Eagle Grove trailhead.
Rated 5 stars on Google Maps, the trail crosses through the pristine countryside of the rural parts of three counties, Humboldt, Pocahontas, and Wright. Indeed the town of Rolfe at the other end is named after the man who married Pocahontas. Along the way the trail passes through a wide variety of terrains, from shrubs and grassland, to open prairie, and wooded areas. Also passing historic battlegrounds, and trail spurs that lead to spacious campgrounds.
The city of Rolfe has taken a keen interest in the trail, declaring itself the start of the trail, and even operating a bike share program for trail riders. But regrettably, Eagle Grove has thus far accepted the designation as the end of the trail, and done little to capitalize on it, or take part in it.
Sadly, the Eagle Grove end of the trail had become a wasteland, strewn with trash and junk left by hikers and bikers after exiting the trail, and even garbage dumped at the site. Additionally, several animal carcasses were reported to have been found disposed of there.
Eagle Scout candidate Dustin Dawson, who recently set the town record for push-ups to raise funds for Toys For Tots, decided that it was unacceptable to allow the local trail to be in such condition on its local end. He and his troop, led by his Father, Scoutmaster Rick Dawson, had traveled all over the United States to hike. Even going as far as Philmont, New Mexico. They couldn’t leave their own town’s most notable local trail in such condition, he resolved.
So on Sunday the troop headed out, and cleaned up the site. The condition beforehand was so bad, Assistant Scoutmaster Craig Voss related, that they removed three full trailer-loads of refuse from the site. When they were finished however, the site looked absolutely pristine.
Follow our coverage to discover what’s in the works for the site, in an upcoming issue of the Eagle.
