A long awaited recreational trail along the C&D canal is now ready for use.
State and federal officials gathered along the north bank of the C and D Canal Friday to open the Michael N. Castle trail.
The 6 million dollar multi-use recreational trail, named for former Delaware Governor and U.S. Congressman Mike Castle, is designed to accommodate pedestrians, bicyclists, equestrians, and anglers.
It took nearly a decade to secure the needed approvals and funding before construction began in July 2012 under Governor Jack Markell’s First State Trails and Pathways Initiative.
Castle thanked all the government officials and agencies who helped make the trail a reality, but reserved his biggest thank you for the citizens of Delaware who supported the project.
"If [the citizens] had said ‘No, no, this is not good,’ it would be a problem. But it didn’t happen that way, everybody became supportive," said Castle. "It’s a wonderful day, it’s a wonderful moment and I thank each and every person who contributed to this because without the support of all of you this frankly would not have happened.”
Markell says completion of the trail is a tribute to Castle’s tenacious leadership.
“They may not know a lot about you one hundred years from now," said Markell. "But they’re going to know back in 2013 and the years before that, there was a great leader in Delaware who was willing to do what he had to do to make sure that generations to come would be better off.”
The trail will be managed by DNREC's Division of Fish and Wildlife as part of the the C&D Canal Conservation Area.
"Opening this new trail will help support tourism, connect communities, get people outside, and help improve their quality of life through healthy activity and enjoyment of nature," said DNREC Secretary Colin O'Mara.
The trail also supports Delaware's Bayshore Initiative, supporting low-impact outdoor recreation and ecotourism.
The portion that opened Friday morning stretches 9 miles from the Branch Canal to the Summit Bridge.
Another 7 miles of trail are planned to be constructed in the near future, extending the trail from Delaware City to the Maryland border.
The next phase of construction will be a 0.9 mile Branch Canal pedestrian and bike path that will connect the path to the Delaware City Canalfront Promenade. The $1.4 million addition is set to be completed in late 2014.