• Article Photo. The Old Creamery Nature Trail will be placed under control of Benton Co. Conservation Dept. Monday.
    The Old Creamery Nature Trail will be placed under control of Benton Co. Conservation Dept. Monday.
  • Article Photo. The changes in spring flowers are among the things one can see on Old Creamery Nature Trail now.
    The changes in spring flowers are among the things one can see on Old Creamery Nature Trail now.
  • Article Photo. Old Creamery Trail Treasurer Nancy Baldwin makes final payment to Tom Neenan of Trails Council.
    Old Creamery Trail Treasurer Nancy Baldwin makes final payment to Tom Neenan of Trails Council.
  • Article Photo. Conservation Dir. Will Heber, Trail Council's Tom Neenan & Randy Scheel of OCNT transfer trail deed
    Conservation Dir. Will Heber, Trail Council's Tom Neenan & Randy Scheel of OCNT transfer trail deed

Thursday afternoon,  April 22, representatives from the Old Creamery Nature Trail, the Iowa Trail's Council, and the Benton County Conservation Board met at the Benton County Courthouse to start the official process of signing over the Old Creamery Nature Trail to the Benton County Conservation Board.  

Old Creamery Nature Trail Committee Treasurer Nancy Baldwin presented a check to Tom Neenan of the Iowa Trails Council. The Trails Council purchased the railroad right of way in 1995.

"This is great opportunity for all parties involved.," said Randy Scheel of the Old Creamery Nature Trail Committee. "The process started in June 2009 and has been positively received along the way." Once the OCNT has been signed over to the BCCB, a final approval must be given by the BCCB and the Benton County Supervisors to make everything official. The OCNT has been in existence since 1995 and has been maintained by volunteers and donations ever since. Moving forward, the volunteer base and donations will continue to be used in order to care for and maintain the trail.  In working with the BCCB, the OCNT benefits in many ways, including access to equipment, reduced costs for materials, and increased exposure.

The transfer of the property to Benton County Conservation is scheduled to be made official during the Conservation Board meeting at 5:30 Monday, April 26, in the Sherman Building, where Conservation Director Will Heber has his office.

The name will remain the same; Scheel said a t-shirt fund-raiser has begun.

Neenan said the Iowa Trails Council is one of the oldest and most active in the nation; more than 900 miles of railroad right of way has been sold to local government bodies or organizations for the purpose of trails

The first major trail project in the state was the Cedar Valley Nature Trail, which connects Cedar Rapids and Waterloo and includes approximately five miles of trail in northern Benton County, said Neenan.

The Old Creamery Trail gets its name from the Old Creamery Theatre, which was based in Garrison for many years. The old creamery, which was demolished a few years ago, sat adjacent to the Nature Trail, which runs from Vinton to Dysart.

For more information about the Old Creamery Nature Trail, click HERE.

For more information about the Iowa Trails Council, click HERE.