The Heart of Vilas County Bike Trail System is a nationally recognized network of paved trails that extends from Mercer to St. Germain.
A local silent sport group wants to see the Mercer end of that trail loop back around.
There are plans in the works to add another 9 to 10 miles along Highway J that would loop the Mercer Bike Trail to Winman and circle back to Mercer through Manitowish Waters.
“It'd be a nice loop, great addition to our community and to our community businesses to be able to thrive with more bicyclists coming through our area,” said Gail Ondresky, board member of ICORE, Iron County Outdoor Recreation Enthusiasts.
Ondresky says ICORE was formed 10 years ago to promote silent sports opportunities in Iron County.
“We knew that there were a lot of people who were very much interested in supporting silent sports in our area. Motorized sports, ATVs, and snowmobiling have always been very popular in Mercer,” said Ondresky. “There's a lot of exposure to it, but not a lot of exposure to the silent sports that we have available to people. We want people to know that there's countless ways to enjoy the beauty of northern Wisconsin.”
The group hosts weekly outings and advocates for trail expansions in the county. ICORE also helps maintain trails.
They recently received a TAP grant from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to conduct a feasibility study on the loop trail.
ICORE and the Town of Mercer are holding the “Let’s Get Looped” event at Carow Park this Sunday, August 4 for people to learn more about the project.
“Kirsten Finn, who is the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Bike Federation, they're embracing this project along with us. She'll be there to speak on what's going on with biking right now, how it can be very advantageous to communities and to local businesses. Our engineering firm, our project manager, will be there to talk to the community and answer questions. He'll be asking people to fill out a questionnaire asking them about the importance of expanding the bike trail to them and how they'll use it,” said Ondresky.
There will also be family friendly things like quizzes to win bike helmets and accessories, live music, and a food truck.
ICORE will also be holding a ribbon cutting for the new kiosk at Carow Park.
The event is from noon to 3:00 p.m. on August 4th at Carow Park in Mercer.
The feasibility study is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
