Community raises funds for Hurley trailhead

By RICHARD JENKINS

rjenkins@yourdailyglobe.com

Hurley — Trail supporters gathered at the East Wing in Hurley for the Iron County Outdoor Recreation Enthusiast’s trailhead fundraiser Sunday, within view of the planned trailhead’s location.

“We had a really good turnout,” said Mike Fauerbach, one of the organizers. “There were a lot of people from Ironwood, we had lots of people from Mercer.”

The planned trailhead will be located between the motorized and non-motorized trails on the 500 feet of land between the Montreal River and Second Avenue in Hurley.

Even without the trailhead, the section of non-motorized trail paved in October has already proved to be popular.

“The day it went in practically, people were out there using it,” Fauerbach said.

Fauerbach — who was involved with the regional trail group before it merged with ICORE and now sits on the ICORE board of directors — estimated roughly 130 people ate dinner, and said, “A lot of people who didn’t come to eat (also) contributed.”

While the final numbers are still being calculated, Fauerbach said the group raised over $2,500 Sunday. Along with raising funds for the construction of a trailhead, the money fulfills the local match requirement to the Gogebic Range Health Foundation’s grant that went toward purchasing the trailhead’s land.

The planned trailhead would not only provide a parking lot for both motorized and non-motorized users, it would also serve as a starting point for the effort of extending Michigan’s non-motorized trail into Iron County.

“People want to see this trail happen beyond just the trailhead. The trailhead — that’s the next thing we’ve got to do, but that’s not the end of this project,” Fauerbach said.

Along with a buffet meal, the event featured a raffle of over 20 items, a 50/50 drawing and tickets were on sale for a bike that will be raffled off Nov. 30.