WATFORD CITY, N.D. (AP) -- The U.S. Forest Service is proposing a new trail system in the northern portion of the Little Missouri National Grasslands, and preparing to renovate a campground in the southern portion.
Both projects are linked with the popular Maah Daah Hey Trail for hiking, biking and horse riding enthusiasts.
The new trail in the north is planned from the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park to the northern boundary of the national grasslands. The Forest Service's McKenzie Ranger District is taking comments on the project from the public until July 26.
If approved, work on the Wolf Trail would start this year, said Curt Glasoe, a Forest Service grasslands engineer in Dickinson.
The trail would run nearly 15 miles. Future plans are to connect it with a trail being planned from Watford City. The Wolf Trail, together with the future county trail, would connect the existing Maah Daah Hey Trail to Watford City.
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The Forest Service also is extending the 96-mile Maah Daah Hey Trail from Medora south to the Burning Coal Vein Campgrounds near Amidon, in southwestern North Dakota. The new trail would be about 45 miles long.
The Forest Service is taking comments until Aug. 6 on a proposal to renovate the 40-year-old camp ground. The five primitive sites will be improved and seven more added. The project also calls for construction of walkways, a water well with a hand pump, sites for people with horses and a self-registration kiosk.
"With the increased use of the grasslands over the past five to 10 years, this will provide a facility that's upgraded, more accessible and provide a better all-around experience for all users of the grasslands," said project leader Steve Volesky.
