Male Interviewee A: Well, cycling in Michigan for me is absolutely wonderful. The rail trails, I think, are the best part. Mainly because most of these trails that we have are corridors that have been left alone for many years are tree lined. And so you do have the ability to ride in shade. You do have the ability to ride out of the wind most of the time, and they’re straight, and they’re flat.

Female Interviewee A: Get out enjoy them. Invest in a good bike and make the effort to go enjoy it.

Male Interviewee B: Well in this trail there are some people even just walking with their kids and had little maps and, you know, observing things, taking pictures. I mean it really isn’t a high-end investment. It’s not a lot of high maintenance. It’s so easy you just have to remember that they’re here and access them and do it.

Male Interviewee C: It’s different than just running on, like, the highway. You kind of get away from people There’s nice views; you see farms, different where people live at, and it’s kind of cool to see how they’re living and that you can kind of run behind there. It’s interesting to be in that kind of environment.

Male Interviewee D: It’s a nice mix of countryside, open areas of woods and fields, that’s also punctuated with small towns and villages and buildings along the way that make for an interesting ride.

Male Interviewee E: Try it once couple of miles, and they will realize that it is a lot of fun. You don’t need to have a fancy bike just [use] any bike that you can find, and you don’t need anything fancy to do that. [00:01:46]

Chuck Nelson: We’re here at the western anchor of the Lake-to-Lake Trail system in South Haven, Michigan. The beginning of the trail is at the Kal-Haven trailhead that takes you all the way to Port Huron, Michigan: 275 great miles. Once you leave South Haven, you’ll pass through many interesting towns: Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Jackson, Pinckney, Wixom, Pontiac, Rochester, Richmond, and Saint Claire, as well as the anchor town of Port Huron.

Paul Yauk, State Trail Coordinator, Michigan Department of Natural Resources: In the past, we had great railroads for lumbering and for logging and for fishing and that type of thing. We’re following those old courses that were really old Indian trails [from] 1000 years ago.

Andrea LaFontaine, Executive Director, Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance: Driving over here today, we crossed over Pontiac Trail which has significant history here in Michigan. That was a trail, hundreds of years ago, that used to be used by Native Americans.

Clare Risner, Trail User, Mike Levine Lakelands Rail Trail: When I was born in 1944, The railroad still used [the tracks] and I used to ride my bike up and down [and] play on it all the time, and eventually they tore up the tracks and it was just a dirt trail. But I still ran on it and walked on it and thankfully over the years time they have improved it so now it’s a very beautiful trail.

Andrea LaFontaine: So, there are actually five Great Lake-to Lake Trails statewide, and it was really a movement that started back in 2011 when our former executive director Nancy Krupiarz got together a group of- I want to say it was over 100 stakeholders. [She] brought them all together and thought of this idea of having this network of trails that connect one Great Lake to another all throughout the state for people to access.

Bob Wilson: Many of the trails in Michigan took those old abandoned rail corridors and turned them into active trails with the potential, at some point in the future, to return them to transportation use if necessary. So, what we have here along the Falling Waters Trail is a perfect example of taking one of those old abandoned railroad corridors and turning it into a non-motorized trail.

Sheila Troxel, Trail User, Falling Waters Rail Trail: This is just a great way to bring families together, bring communities together and connect people, connect cities, connect communities. I think it’s a great thing.

Andrea LaFontaine: Trails are at our root as people. As transportation corridors they were what people used to do and use before cars. Now we’re kind of getting back to that, and it’s great because it’s not only a transportation alternative; it’s connecting us to our roots, to our history, how we started, and we’re just kind of evolving back to it and embracing it in our day-to-day life.

Bob Wilson: So, the great opportunity that’s available to us here [unintelligible] trail route one is an Amtrak. A lot of their rail service runs almost parallel to this trail. So, with that in mind you have a chance to have a multimedia experience. You can park your car at a rail station, an Amtrak rail station, hop on the trail, [hop on] your bike, and then pick up the Amtrak train and head back to your car.

Anne Hubscher, Trail User, Falling Waters Rail Trail: That’d be really nice.

Ed Hubscher, Trail User, Falling Waters Rail Trail: The Amtrak idea is- I never thought of it. That’s a really good one.

Anne Hubscher: Yeah, I never thought of it either because if they have a place to put the bikes and trikes, that would be ideal. I mean, then we could go farther.

Dena Leaster, Amtrak Conductor: They got new cars made by Siemens and they’re going to have the luggage racks, the bike racks, built right into the luggage racks. Yeah, it’s really good. It’s going to be really cool.

Paul Yauk: We do follow some of the old railroad grades. We do have a partnership now with Amtrak where let’s say you want to go from South Haven to Kalamazoo. Then, you can jump on the train. Or you want to go from all the way from South Haven to Port Huron. Then, you can get on a train and you can come back. So it’s a great partnership with the railroad, and you can put your bicycle now on that railroad car and come back. So [it is a] good partnership. [00:05:52]

Chuck Nelson: Human spark plugs are vital to trail projects. They provide that burst of energy to bring projects to a successful conclusion. A key spark plug for the Great Lake-to-Lake Trail Route 1 is Mike Levine.

Bob Wilson: [Mike Levine’s] vision was to build the Great Lake-to-Lake Trail Route 1 between South Haven and Port Huron. Mike had a passion. He certainly had the resources necessary to help us build the trail, but more than anything else, he made a personal commitment to trails.

Mike Levine, Inventor/Philanthropist, Hamburg Township: My son said to me “Dad, you can do anything, you [can] invent anything you want. You’re never gonna put a trail together.” And that’s all I had to do is wave a red flag and I said “watch me.” And we went ahead and started putting the pieces together working with MDOT and DNR.

Bob Wilson: Then, We are very fortunate to have people like Paul Yauk.

Paul Yauk: We have these individual column trail champions, but it’s growing. You have Mike Levine, but there’s a number of people along the way. You’ve got Washtenaw County and all the leaders there and then Livingston County, Oakland County, Saint Clair County, and you even have elected officials now and community officials. People are realizing the impact. It may be health; it may be recreation; it may be tourism, and it’s cultural, so you’re pulling a lot of things together.

Jeff Hardcastle, Board Chair of the Huron Waterloo Pathways Initiative, Ann Arbor, MI: The Ralph Wilson Foundation has been exceptional throughout southeast Michigan. We received a 2.8 million dollar grant from them three years ago. [We] have leveraged that for additional state money [and] for quite a bit of private money as well. So, collectively, I think we’ve spent something like 15 million dollars now in the last three years building seven or eight different trail projects in Washtenaw County.

J.J. Tighe, Director of Parks and Trails Initiative, Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation: On October 17, 2018 there was an announcement that would have been on Mr. Wilson’s 100th birthday where we made a commitment for 100 million dollars in southeast Michigan and 100 million dollars in western New York focused on our parks and trails.

There [were] two main themes associated with that 100 million dollar commitment to the region here in southeast Michigan: 50 million dollars was set aside for the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Centennial Park, as it’s named now, on the riverfront in Detroit, and the other 50 million dollars was set aside for eliminating gaps in trails throughout the region like here at the Michigan Air Line Trail. Beyond that, 20 percent of both of those figures was pulled aside and set aside for sustainability to establish endowments to make sure that these investments are not just here when we cut a ribbon, but they’re here beyond that for future generations to enjoy.

[Regarding] our funding, we’ve supported capacity grants for organizations for trail planning grants so that segments of that trail, or the trails that we focus more broadly in southeast Michigan, can be developed into a buildable trail. We fund matching grants to support the actual construction of these, and I think there’s several examples of that along the the Great Lake-to-Lake Trail from end to end. We’ve provided a capacity grant to the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance to do a lot of the work, working with the communities along the way. We funded a trail planning grant and design grant focused on phase one and then ultimately phase two of the Michigan Air Line Trail. We’ve provided match funds for each of those to make sure that these can be done in a sustainable way.

I think the other piece that also doesn’t get highlighted quite as much is [that] we established that endowment that I mentioned for trails maintenance. One of those grants—the first ever that comes out of that endowment—is for another segment of the Great Lake-to-Lake just down the road here. That’s to bring back to life one of the trails that’s about four miles in length that hasn’t had that investment. It’s a segment that connects the West Bloomfield Trail, which is just on the other side of where we’re standing today, to the city of Pontiac, and I think a really important aspect to highlight. It’s not just about building these [trails] and cutting a ribbon, but, again, [it’s about] making sure that they’re maintained and the quality of these assets in our region are to the highest standard.

John Hensler, Trail Manager, Michigan Air Line Trail: You can’t really get the trail going without the funds, but you can’t operate it without the support of a dedicated group of volunteers. They’ve done a great job in terms of organizing clean up days; organizing going to council meetings and township board meetings; and making sure that people, our elected officials, understand how important the trail is to the people in the community. That’s a key thing. We’ve had a number of public hearings that we can count on them to show up and and make sure that their voice is being heard as well because when we’re applying for grants, funds, and support from the communities, it’s important to have the local folks come and say this is a vitally important thing for us to have.

Bob Wilson: So, trail building is all about resources. But more than anything else, [it’s] about individuals who stepped up to the plate to help us drive trail building forward.

Sheila Troxel, Trail User, Falling Waters River Trail: All it takes sometimes is a spark to get a community excited about things. Then you can write grants, and then you’re all of a sudden getting some tax dollars as well. So it starts with an idea, and look what it’s become; it’s gonna be a whole network of trails connecting lakes to lakes. It’s gonna be great. We’re excited. [00:11:38]

Chuck Nelson: Let’s meet some of the people who have benefited from the Great Lake-to-Lake Trail Route 1 through better economic development, recreation, opportunity, improved health, and safe social connection in this time of Covid.

Ban Chavez, Traffic Signal Designer, Michigan Department of Transportation: Those trains, they go across small little towns, “Small America,” what some people say, and you will find all kinds of small coffee shops [and] small bakeries [that] are mostly run by families. They put a lot of effort in making their things, so it is very enjoyable to eat and knowing that you’re helping a local business.

Mike Levine: There’s a woman that in Stockbridge, which is one of the dying type communities, opened the restaurant in Stockbridge.

Naomi Carson, Owner of Good Manna Restaurant, Stockbridge, Michigan: As this trail started to get improved based on the contributions of Mike Levine and the village of Stockbridge and some other folks, we really just started to see an opportunity. This building was sitting here, and it was abandoned and had been vandalized. We just saw—well wow if the trail’s being improved—we see an opportunity for the cyclists and the people who are using the trail [for] exercising and walking. This could be an opportunity for us to put some sort of a business in here.

Mike Levine: [Naomi] says “I’m so excited.” I said, “what are you excited about?” She said, “I’m leaving on Friday, and I’m opening this restaurant.” So I said, “where are you opening a restaurant?” and she says, “Stockbridge.” [unintelligible] I said because I knew the DNR had changed its tone because they had such an expense keeping vandals outside of the building, so somebody should live in it and take care of it.

Naomi Carson: This building was gifted to us in the amount of 1 dollar from my father who did have the initial vision for this. Our business really is trail dependent. So far, we’ve been open for about a year, we opened on September 16, 2019. Our opening day was the inaugural ride of the Great Lake-to-Lake bike ride from South Haven to Port Huron; it really made sense for us to open on that day because we are so trail dependent.

This year has been kind of different with the pandemic and everything. We had anticipated opening on in March, for sure by Earth Day, and of course we didn’t get to open until June. So we’ve seen not as much business as we would have liked to, but we are still very very trail dependent. Probably 50 percent of our business comes from cyclists and trail users, and so we’re very grateful for those folks who are out using the trail. It makes sense because even when folks are supposed to be cooped up at home, they can still be outside, properly socially distancing, and using the trail and getting some exercise.

Mike Levine has had a huge impact on us here. I met him kind of serendipitously; it was by accident. I mentioned to him that I was going to be leaving my current job because I was opening a little business in Stockbridge. It just happened to be on this trail system named the Mike Levine Lakeland Trail State Park, and at first he was kind of coy. He didn’t really acknowledge who he was, and I gave him my name. When I told him my name, he said “can you please bring me my assistant.” I thought, “who is this guy that he would have a a personal assistant?” So, sure enough, it turned out that I was talking to the one-and-only Mike Levine, someone who was so instrumental in the success of of our business here.

He flattered me as well. He told me that we were the incarnation of why he donated such a substantial amount of money to this trail project, and his vision was that if he contributed funds to the trail, that businesses like ours would pop up. Very much like little businesses did when the railroad was coming through small communities. And I believe that he’s right. [00:15:40]

Man lifting bike: Yeah, yep got it. Thank you.

Mark Wollensak. Trail User, Kal-Haven Rail Trail: What [we’re] doing here today is going on a bike ride starting here in Kal-Haven in South Haven at the trailhead. We’re gonna be riding into Kalamazoo and staying at a hotel in Kalamazoo for the night and then riding back.

James Christians, Trail User, Kal-Haven Rail Trail: We are camping in South Haven for the weekend, and we were just looking for an activity that would get us outdoors early in the morning, get the blood pumping, and see some of the the beauty of southwest Michigan.

Brian Kraus, Trail User, Kal-Haven Rail Trail: [The] trail’s in fantastic condition. [There are] a lot of folks out, and it was great to socialize with our friends.

Dana Kraus, Trail User, Kal-Haven Rail Trail: It was actually busier than I thought it would be.

Angie Chrsitians, Trail User, Kal-Haven Rail Trail: It was busy, but it wasn’t congested ever.

Everyone: Yeah

Dana Kraus: It was a nice activity for the situation that we’re in right now to at least be outside and get some fresh air, but not feel crowded.

Sheila Troxel: Look at this family coming up. You see families doing stuff together, and this is just a great way to bring families together; bring communities together; and connect people, connect cities, connect communities. I think it’s a great thing.

James Christians: Well on this trail [were] people even just walking with their kids, and [they] had little maps and [were] observing things [and] taking pictures. I mean it really isn’t a high-end investment. It’s not a lot of high maintenance. It’s so easy. You just have to remember that they’re here and access them and do it. It’s definitely a great way to get outdoors and spend some time.

Brian Kraus: And support it. Support it with your local community and with state government support funds to go to establish these because it’s kind of a neat part of Michigan.

Shari Schrader, Trail User, Kal-Haven Rail Trail: For me, not living in Michigan but growing up here, I so appreciate what Michigan has invested in the state. I even look forward to coming back and retiring here and having the trails and biking available.

Gabbie Graf, Trail User, Mike Levine Lakelands Rail Trail: I think during Covid, it’s definitely helped us to have an activity to do when you just feel like you’ve been inside for too long. On a trail, you’re safe. You can stay away from people at nice distance, but still say hi and talk to them and see where they’ve been and what their story is. You can go explore something new that you haven’t seen yet.

Charlie Ross, Trail User, Mike Levine Lakelands Rail Trail: Yeah, I think it’s just the natural aspect with Covid [and] being cooped up; the hardest part is not being able to interact with people. I think something as little as a hi or nice seeing you gets people back up in the spirits; just being able to have those, I know they’re small, but at least something that gives me some substance to know I’m still here and alive and everything.

Jeff Hardcastle: Especially in the year of Covid, usage is sky high already. We’ve got counting studies that we’ve done all across the county, and we’re seeing huge numbers. [They are] probably double what they were last year in part due to Covid but also in the fact that we built nine miles of trail in the last two and a half years. So as our individual corridors get built out, we’re seeing traffic increasing exponentially.

Shawn Shepherd, Trail User, Mike Levine Lakelands Rail Trail: I think it’s actually done really great with [unintelligible], with having the trail right here. [It’s] so convenient, and unfortunately probably one of the best things that came out of Covid is the fact that the trails are busier this year than they’ve ever been since we’ve lived here.

Marian Frane, Trail User, Mike Levine Lakelands Rail Trail: I have to say also as we get older, we are more interested in riding on trails like this where we don’t have to ride in the traffic.

Lyle Marshall, Trail User, Mike Levine Lakelands Rail Trail: Yeah, [it’s a] much safer environment here being on a trail where we don’t have cross traffic or traffic whizzing by us at 35 to 60 miles an hour. So it’s safer.

Marian Frane: Some of the trails take you through nature, so that’s always a plus.

Female Interviewee B: Well, I have a progressive form of Multiple Sclerosis, so my balance isn’t very good. So this [recumbent tricycle] helps me actually because with a bike you have to balance and stuff. I used to do that when I was younger, but now obviously I don’t have a good balance so it helps a lot.

Paul Yauk: Today with Covid, trails are really unique because we want to get the public outdoors, and the public [feels] safe in the parks. They, in particular, feel safe on trails.

Mari Craft, Trail User, Falling Waters Rail Trail: We came to the trail today because we needed to get out of the house during the pandemic. We’ve been kind of cooped up, and this gives us a chance to get out and enjoy ourselves outdoors.

Sarah Morris, Trail User, Falling Waters Rail Trail: It’s the one thing that happens on a day that I can come with Sarah; when all of what I was worried about at home, I leave there.

Ben Chavez: On days like today when you had a hard day at school, a really busy day at school or at work, it’s nice just to go out and get on your bike [and] bring your family. In this case, I got my daughter [and] her friend, and we just had a lot of fun. [00:20:40]

Chuck Nelson: Let’s look ahead now to the future of Michigan’s dynamic trail system.

Bob Wilson: Five years from now, Michigan will not only be the nation’s leading land trail state; we will be the nation’s leading water trail state. Right now we have 4200 miles of coastal trails surrounding Michigan. We have inland lakes and rivers and streams [that] can connect those lakes and connect land trails. So you will see five years from now an incredible multi-media experience. If you want to go out on trail, you could be on a land trail, you can be a water trail, and when you combine that with Amtrak and the incredible transportation opportunities, we have a chance to build an interconnected network of trails.

Dakota Hewlett, Iron Belle Trail Coordinator, Michigan Department of Natural Resources: It takes significant investment to develop a trail, but that’s not where it ends. Ongoing maintenance for years is crucial to keep the life of that trail and keep that trail serving benefits to the community. We have groups like the Fred Meyer Foundation that have invested heavily in endowment to help take care of some of Michigan’s trails well into the future, and those endowments are very important to pay for maintenance costs and reconstruction paving, all those costs that come when you think about building a trail. It doesn’t end with development. Maintenance is so important. Having partners willing to donate and willing to help fundraise for maintenance is crucial, and also having regular people and trail users get involved in their local trail organization helps make Michigan’s trail network much stronger. [00:22:20]

Bob Wilson: We need to make the trails accessible and welcoming for all people in Michigan. That, I think, is our greatest challenge right now and our greatest opportunity. When you do that, you make the state stronger; you make it more connected; you build communities that way. So I would say we need to really focus on increasing diversity. It’s got to be our mission.

Andrea LaFontaine: If you are curious to check out a trail but have never done so, I highly encourage you look up a local trailhead. You find a place to park and just go check it out. You don’t have to be doing anything extreme; you don’t have to assume that you have to have all the gear and the fastest coolest bike. Go out there with your family. Just bring them out for a walk, take your dog if you need to, check out the nature near you. I think I say that a lot, but really it’s amazing because these amenities are right in our backyard. Covid has really compounded things, and people now being at home more often are looking to explore places near them, and we have all these fantastic trails so close to home. So I encourage people to explore, to get out there. Take your kids; take your family, and just go out there and walk, jog, hike—do whatever you want to do—ride your bike. Just get out there and enjoy it.

Karl Grieve, Trail User, Falling Waters Rail Trail: I think the great thing about having the interconnected network is that, [as much as the Falling Waters Trail has been a huge asset to the community], it’s still just a point to point. We start here in Jackson, we ride to Concord, and then you ride back. If you don’t want to ride on the road, you’d rather stay on a rail trail or something, that those opportunities tend to come in small chunks. So it’s nice for those people that want to get out for those longer rides, or even for the people that want to actually make a vacation out of it—and we’re going to do some bike touring and go from one place to another as a destination—that an interconnected trail system gives you that opportunity that you’d never have.

Bob Wilson: Trails are all about people: foundation of trails, people use the trails, involves people. To move Michigan forward, we need more commitment from the passionate people of the state. Michigan is the nation’s leading trail state in terms of mileage. To maintain that leadership, we need people to make trails a priority as a land use tool, as a recreation tool, as a society building tool in their community, and we have seen numerous examples around the state where people have come forward and supported local millages. It’s not just that; it’s also getting people out onto the trails working as volunteers [and] supporting trails as important land use tools. We need more of that. [00:24:52]

John Hensler, Trail Manager, Michigan Air Line Trail: The best trailhead in the world is your own driveway. So pedal over if you can, get over to the trail, and then from the trail you can go and connect to all these other areas, and you can go far [or] you can stay close. Nobody’s telling you to drive 50 miles or ride 50 miles on your first ride. You can ride five miles; you can ride three miles on your first run.

Alison Fredenberg, Trail User, Border-to-Border Rail Trail: I really love this trail. We bought our property here just because we wanted to get out into nature having no idea that they were going to build this trail. I’m like wow, what a bonus. I think our property value might go up because of this trail.

Andrea LaFontaine: Those who are interested in getting more involved with trails can definitely look up Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance. Michigantrails.org is our website. They can get involved with being a voice in their local communities, being an advocate for trails, participating in different events statewide. We really look to embrace that grassroots level of communities that want to be involved with connecting trails to each other, connecting communities to each other, connecting people to each other; the opportunities are endless. So we welcome people, we encourage local citizens to get involved [and] embrace their local trail, but then also look this up and see if we can build on that local effort to make it more of a statewide network like this Great Lake-to-Lake Route 1 Trail.

Mike Levine: Trails connect people together that wouldn’t ordinarily connect. When I come here on my bike on a Sunday just for recreation, I meet hundreds of people. Walking and cycling are the only two sporting things you can do and talk at the same time. You can’t play tennis [and talk at the same time].

John Calvert, Founder, Friends of the Lakelands Trail: I think the best thing that comes out of the trail experience is the ability for everyone to interact and break down the barriers that seem to be limiting our current world. There’s no reason why you can’t talk to somebody and listen to them and figure out how we can make things better going forward.

Chuck Nelson: So as you’ve seen and heard, Michigan’s trail system, including the Great Lake-to-Lake Trail, welcomes everyone. Come out and have an adventure: ride, walk, run, or jog. I look forward to seeing you on the trail.