January 18, 2022
The dedicated volunteer Trail Crew has long had a need for a storage facility along the trail. Currently, the Friends have several spread out, inconvenient, and costly storage sites, none of which are ideal for storage of motorized grooming equipment. Often, the Friends rely on volunteers to bring their own… Read More »
December 1, 2021
Resurfacing the trail along Crystal Lake last spring represented the first major upgrade of the trail in decades…and we’re just getting started! The Friends have been working hard the past couple years to build the capabilities of our organization. We’ve added several new board members and staff who are actively… Read More »
September 21, 2021
In his words below, Jed Maker, Board President of the Friends of the Betsie Valley Trail reflects on the first Ironman 70.3 which was partially held on the BVT. The IRONMAN competition came to Benzie County and our community welcomed it with open arms. More than 2,100 competitors and thousands… Read More »
August 23, 2021
Celebrate summer and welcome fall with the new Betsie Valley Trail Half Marathon, 10k , 5k & 1 Mile Fun Run hosted by North Mitten Events. The event will take place on Sunday, September 19th. The Half Marathon, 10k and 5k courses are out and back on the Betsie Valley… Read More »
August 8, 2021
The Friends are extremely excited to have local triathlete, Frederik Stig-Nielsen representing us and raising funds as he competes in this year’s IRONMAN 70.3 Michigan event. As you’ll learn in the following entertaining interview, Fred is quite well-known in the community. Not just for providing criminal defense services as part… Read More »
June 23, 2021
Is there a speed limit on the Trail? Are dogs allowed on the Trail? Are e-bikes permitted on the Trail? These are a few of the questions we often hear from trail users and we’ll address these below, but we feel it’s important, as the Friends of the Betsie Valley… Read More »
April 27, 2021
In January of 2020, we were awarded a $150,000 DNR Recreational Passport grant to resurface the BVT along Crystal Lake. The Friends raised the required $50,000 in matching funds, but due to several factors, the project was delayed until this year. Today, the Friends of the Betsie Valley Trail are… Read More »
March 5, 2021
Most of us regular Betsie Valley Trail users are conditioned to stop and show extra caution when crossing M-115, but for visitors and the casual Trail user, the potential danger is not always readily apparent. That’s why the Friends decided to look into options that would help make this intersection… Read More »
February 22, 2021
In our last blog, Meet Our New Trail Care Coordinator, we introduced Charlie Gregory who is the new caretaker of the Betsie Valley Trail. Providing Charlie with the volunteers he needs to keep the Trail beautiful and to make new Trail enhancements is the role of our Volunteer Coordinator. Today,… Read More »
February 5, 2021
Last summer, when John Rothhaar let us know that 2020 would be his last year as Trail Care Coordinator, we knew it was going to be a difficult task to replace him. For the past four years, John has served tirelessly taking care of the Trail and serving on the… Read More »
