By the 1970s, quiet, little Lanesboro had grown even quieter. Few trains came through here, even fewer stopped. A farm crisis slowed the economy. Businesses on Parkway Avenue struggled, some had closed. A vibrant local art scene was years in the future. At popular gathering spots that were still open conversations over morning coffee often focused on concerns about the town’s future.

Fast-forward to the Year 2000. Hundreds (sometimes thousands) of people fill Lanesboro streets on a summer weekend. Live theater is thriving. New restaurants are full, so are B & Bs. Shopping at antique shops and art galleries is brisk. Canoers, kayakers, and tubers happily float down the Root River, sharing space with eager fishermen. How in the world did all that change?

Lots of reasons. If you’re pressed to choose one, the Root River State Trail revived this town. In the 1980s abandoned rail lines of the Southern Minnesota (later Milwaukee) Railroad were transformed into one of the most popular hiking-and-biking trails in southeast Minnesota, if not the entire state.

A movement called “rails-to-trails” had gained momentum a decade earlier. (Wisconsin’s Elroy-Sparta Trail was the first to open in 1967.) The idea of doing the same in Lanesboro was soon discussed. Despite some early opposition, the idea advanced. Under the management of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the Root River State Trail officially opened in 1986.

Today Lanesboro sits mid-point on a 60-mile, asphalt-paved trail connecting Fountain with Houston, with extension trails to Preston and Harmony. Most trail miles hug Root River curves, creating a premier riding experience for bikers of all ability levels. The scenery it provides—over rolling farmlands and beneath towering bluffs, crossing streams and historic railroad bridges—delights thousands of users each year. It’s now hard to imagine Lanesboro, the heart of bluff country, without it.