“There’s no history associated with this land. So it’s a blank slate to try to introduce Decorah to new trail building techniques and hopefully, get something that beginners can use, but advanced riders will also find it a lot of fun too.”

That’s Brian Fuhrmann, Project Manager for Pine Creek Trail Builders. Pine Creek is in the process of building a brand-new eight-mile trail system in the town of Decorah, Iowa, in Carlson Park. The 110-acre park was donated to Decorah Parks and Recreation by the Carlson family, a multi-generational family from northeast Iowa with deep ties in the region.

Increasing Decorah’s trail diversity

Decorah is home to some of the oldest mountain bike trails in Iowa. The classic trail system “features 20 miles of some of Iowa’s earliest hand-built MTB trails, lovingly cared for by the community for over 40 years,” said Benji Nichols, Secretary for Decorah Human Powered Trails (DHPT). “But the [traditional] trails are real tight and rocky, as you would think of […] first gen [traditional] singletrack. So a lot of fun, but very challenging. Not a lot of beginner trail, as we would think of at this point in time, and not a lot of good places for especially younger riders to kind of get their feet underneath them and learn skills besides ‘just go.’”