River Trail Updates

The River Trail is coming closer and closer to completion.  About a month ago the Clinton Presidential Park Bridge (Rock Island Bridge) was opened to the public, connecting the eastern end of the River Trail with a bridge that doesn't require bikers to compete with cars (Main St.) or take several flights of stairs (Junction Bridge).

Near the recently completed bridge, a nice new boardwalk has opened to take visitors through the William E. Clark Presidential Wetlands.  Visitors to the wetlands can learn about native plants and wildlife, while taking in nice views of the Arkansas River and downtown Little Rock.  Herons, beavers, large turtles, and massive fish can all be seen from the boardwalk.   

I was also very excited to see that Metroplan paid for plans to be drawn up for the final segment of the River Trail connecting Riverdale to Downtown.  This section of the trail currently follows unattractive roads and tiny sidewalks through western downtown Little Rock making it the least safe and least aesthetically pleasing section of the trail.  As someone who is very proud of Little Rock, this stretch of the trail has long been a source of embarrassment and shame for me given that North Little Rock stole our concerts, our baseball games, and now they have the most complete and most beautiful sections of the River Trail.

Sadly, the article about the new plans mentions that the right-of-way has not been finalized and that funding has yet to be located, meaning I may have to be embarrassed for Little Rock for a few more years to come.

Photos and map below the fold.

View River Bluffs in a larger map