Missing links: Trail ends reach toward forts

A new trail adding a more authentic perspective of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers is taking shape. Yet, easement negotiations stymie a full link between Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center and Fort Union.

The path is part of efforts to enhance tourism efforts during the bicentennial of the Meriwether Lewis and William Clark exploration of the Lousiansa Purchase.

"We've got both ends under construction. The confluence part with an all-weather trail is roughly a mile long. There the all-weather surfacing is complete," said Greg Hennessy, chairman of the Friends of Fort Union/Fort Buford.

An iron foot bridge which came from the 1909 Lower Yellowstone Irrigation District will complement the confluence portion of the bridge. "We'll be able to use it as a foot bridge at the confluence area," Hennessy explained.

"The other end in place is Fort Union which is in the process of being graded. The all-weather surface has not been added yet. It goes west from Fort Union property along the Montana state line and proceeds east past the park and the palisade walls and keeps going to the river front along the open area of Fort Union Park."

That portion stretches about 1 1/2 miles.

Hennessy said negotiations with three land owners going past the Fort Buford continue. If easement settlements can be reached, the path would connect all three historical sites. "Right now, they have land use issue concerns ... There are roughly two miles left."

Hennessy said the Friends of Fort Union/Fort Buford support the trail. "It's another means of linking the confluence sites in a tourism-friendly fashion. People can really get the feel for the river. The three chapters of the American West are all available at the confluence.

"You have the Lewis and Clark story, followed by 40 years of peaceful trade at Fort Union and then the post Civil War expansion with Fort Buford. After that, the railroad replaced the river for transport and we come to the modern age," stated Hennessy. "This gets them out of the building and gets them a feel of the river by being out in the open air and by the river ... They get a feel of the land and the river."

He stressed the confluence portion is usable right now and the Fort Union section will soon follow. "There's still a gap in the middle portion ... You can't go all the way from the confluence to Fort Union," Hennessy said.

He said the completed portion of the all-weather path not only brings tourists closer to the river, but helps set boundaries of where they should and should not go, thus protecting the natural grassland.

"The addition of the trail to the Fort Buford site would give visitors the chance to see more of the natural landscape," said Genia Hesser, site supervisor for Fort Buford State Historic Site. "The confluence leg of the trail that passes through our area had previously been inaccessible to the general public. We're excited to be able to share our area that belongs to the people of North Dakota."

The $400,000 cost of Phase I is being paid through a Public Lands Highway grant written by Jeff Altizer, director of the Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"The next phase will be a canoe trail that connects Fort Union to the confluence and Sunheim Park in Fairview to Fort Union," Altizer said.

Another $60,000 Park Lands Highway grant has been awarded at the federal level for the canoe trail, but appropriation is pending.

Grant money is earmarked for trail projects throughout the country.

Altizer said if additional funding is received, negotiations will continue with the landowners. "If it goes no further than Fort Union, it will be a wonderful trail," he said.

A gazebo is planned in the future for the confluence side, and signs and benches will be added throughout the trail.