Members of the Banadad Trail Association met with Forest Service officials regarding maintenance of the Banadad Trail. (L-R) Pete Harris, Ted Young, Steve Schug, USFS, Jim Morisson, Barb Bottger, John Bottger, Dennis Neitzke.
Gunflint area residents and several members of the Twin Cities’ North Stars Ski Touring Club have joined together to form the Banadad Ski Trail Association. According to Karen Monsen, the Association’s new president and NSSTC member; “the purpose of the Association is to maintain and enhance the Banadad Ski Trail, preserve the history of the forest and the Trail, and promote appreciation and care of wilderness lands.”
The organization’s founding meeting was held Feb.14 on the Gunflint Trail. At the meeting bylaws were adopted and a Board of Directors elected. The new board in addition to President Monsen includes Linda Bosma of Minneapolis, vice president; Karla Miller of Duluth, treasurer; Barb Bottger of Hungry Jack Lake, secretary. Elected as at-large board members were Jim Morrison, Poplar Lake; Wayne Monsen, Stillwater; Tom Rice, Shoreview; Mel Peterson, St. Paul; Peter Spink, Poplar Lake and Minneapolis; Anne Rykken, St. Paul; and John Bottger of Hungry Jack Lake.
Following the meeting the new board met and selected Ted Young of Boundary Country Trekking (BCT) to continue to serve as the Trail’s maintenance manager. In addition, board members were assigned responsibility for incorporating the new Association as a nonprofit organization.
The new Association will manage the 46 kilometer Banadad Ski Trail System that includes the Banadad — the BWCA’s longest tracked trail, the Lace Lake, the Tim Knapp, the Tall Pines and the Seppala Trails. The trail system is centrally located along the 200-kilometer Gunflint Nordic Trail system.
Until a permanent mailing address and e-mail account are established, the Banadad Trail Association can be reached by e-mail at bta@boreal.org.
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