Grand Junction Daily Sentinel May 22, 2025-

A large crowd of local residents and supporters came out Tuesday evening to celebrate the official opening of the final phase of the Monument Trail, which connects the Lunch Loops Trailhead west to South Camp Road with a paved multimodal path.

The chain-breaking event recognized the many different partners who helped make the trail possible, including the City of Grand Junction, local residents, Colorado West Land Trust and project funders like Great Outdoors Colorado.

Colorado West Land Trust Executive Director Rob Bleiberg thanked the community for its support over the years for the Monument Trail, including the first phase that was completed in 2020 and connected the Riverfront Trail to the Lunch Loops Trailhead.

“Communities build trails, and when they do it right, trails build community,” Bleiberg said. “When I look around today and I look at this turnout, it’s clear that we did this right.”

Bleiberg began his remarks by noting that this trail took a lot of effort and its completion was not an inevitability without the hard work of many different people and organizations.

Grand Junction Public Works Director Trent Prall said the new trail, which completes a 10-mile loop through the Redlands on paved off-street trails, will improve access to the area’s recreation offerings to more users of different ages and abilities.

“This trailhead is one of the most popular here in Mesa County, particularly among locals,” Prall said. “It will allow many more people to reach the Lunch Loop trail by bike, experience the scenery, the bike park, the trails, the connection to each other and our outdoors, all without the use of a car.”

Both current Mayor Cody Kennedy and former Mayor Abe Herman spoke at the event, praising the work of city staff on the project. Herman said the Lunch Loop area was one he frequented often and that this project was a respite from more contentious political issues that came up during his time on City Council. Herman also praised the trail for providing a safe route for people along Monument Road.

“And this section of trail, it traverses through No Thoroughfare Wash, BLM land and city public open space,” Herman said. “The greatest thing is that it’s so distanced from this busy Monument Road, providing a safer connection and also a chance for people, who might not otherwise be able to experience it, to experience this landscape.”

This completed trail is part of a plan going back to 2004 to pave a path from the Riverfront Trail west along the Monument Road corridor. Pat Kennedy with OneRiverfront Foundation said that although this is not a trail along the river, it extends the access to downtown and to recreation via the Riverfront Trail.

“People have always asked me will this trail system ever be finished? And I said, ‘No. I don’t want it to be finished. We’ve got lots to do.’ We got the trail down, but we’ve got other things to do, much like this trail right now,” he said.

Speakers from GOCO and the Colorado State Lottery, which helped fund the project, highlighted the impact state funding has had in getting this project to completion. Bleiberg also recognized the thousands of local donors who supported the project.

“When I drive up Monument Road now and I see that concrete ribbon leading to the Lunch Loop parking lot from the Riverfront Trail, it just seems like it’s so right,” Bleiberg said. “It looks so good. It feels so good. The trailhead is so comfortable and it’s such a great representation of our community.”

By Dan West, Read full Daily Sentinel article here