BULLHEAD CITY – Local residents and visitors alike will enjoy enhanced recreational opportunities when the Arizona section of the Colorado River Heritage Trail opens next fall in Bullhead City. A groundbreaking ceremony was held Friday, November 22 for initial construction of the Trail that will stretch some five miles south from Davis Dam to Davis Camp, operated by Mohave County, and further south to the Colorado River Bridge on SR 95.
The portion of the trail that loops north from the Bridge back to Davis Dam along the Nevada side of the River opened in July, 2012.
Ceremony speakers said the Trail project is a testament to a highly successful partnership involving the Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, Mohave County, Bullhead City and Clark County, Nevada. They marveled at the various outdoor experiences the Trail will provide for the public.
“Recreation is the soul of America,” said Margaret Goodro, Superintendent of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area for the National Park Service. “Recreation also fuels the economy of America, and this is a fabulous example.”
Mohave County and Bullhead City will maintain portions of the Trail and sale of public lands in Nevada provides most of the project funding. A $5.7-million contract was awarded October 31 to DH Ortega Construction to build a hard surface12-foot wide multi-use trail for walking, hiking, cycling and bird watching, while affording access for fishing and kayaking along the Arizona side of the River.
Additional amenities include parking, restroom facilities, shade structures, landscaping features, interpretive panels, lookout points and bike racks. Pedestrians and bicyclists are able to cross Davis Dam, which is closed to vehicular traffic, and the Laughlin Bridge can be used to complete the River loop to the south.
