The greater Poplar Bluff area has some alluring trails for hikers, mountain bikers and horse riders — but they have not received much attention in recent years. Some people are hoping to change that.
According to Poplar Bluff Trail Coalition President Rob Nations, the Lake Wappapello trail is a 15 mile loop that has not been used for a long time.
“That trail was in rough shape and was very overgrown,” Nations stated. “It was too much for our small group to correct, but the state stepped in to help.”
Specifically, Nations explained, the Lake Wappapello State Park Superintendent Kimberly Diesel was responsible for bringing in the necessary equipment to clear miles of overgrowth on the trail.
“There was so much work that went into that particular trail,” Diesel explained. “There were parts of it that had basically been reclaimed by its environment.”
Diesel went on to explain that the daunting project started in November 2023 and continued on through early March.
“Work was done on it when weather permitted, but there was so much to do,” Diesel stated. “It took a lot of time and a lot of effort.”
The project has led her to anticipate more people using the trail in the near future.
“The trail is suitable for hikers, mountain bikers, and horseback riders,” Diesel said. “We’re really hopeful that we’ll see more people using the trail in the coming months.”
Nations shared that hope and wanted the public to know the trail is open again.
“At one point it was a very popular trail,” Nations remarked. “The more people that know about it, the more we’ll see people there and on other trails, also.”
“This trail wouldn’t be open without the hard work from Martin Luke and Tyler Turner, who are both maintenance (workers) for the state park,” Diesel stated. “They worked incredibly hard. Trees had to be cut and removed. It was very time-consuming. Martin and Tyler’s hard work a tremendous part of this whole thing.”
Diesel stated a team from AmeriCorp assisted with some trail work for approximately two weeks.
“The trails have all been cleared and bedded,” she explained. “It really looks nice.”
Diesel said the next few trail projects have already been determined, with the next one being the Allison Cemetery Trail.
“We’re hopeful that more people will get involved, because these trails are beautiful and they’re definitely underutilized,” Nations remarked. “More people need to know about them.”
PBTC is a nine-person board that is entirely composed of volunteers, Nations explained.
“We have a Facebook page, so people can reach us and message us there,” he said. “We will always welcome more help. It’s definitely a labor of love.”