Persistence pays.

And it also paves.

That was Russ Hopkins’ message to Kingfisher Rotary Club last week when he discussed the 17-year history of Kingfisher Trails, the brainchild of founding directors John Gooden, Brian Walter and Hopkins, who set out in 2002 to create a continuous walking and biking path to promote healthier lifestyles for local residents.

The dream started with a paved walkway connecting Gilmour Elementary School to Kingfisher High School.

“That eventually became just a little spur section of the Trails,” he said.

Hopkins, who is also a Rotary member, told his fellow Rotarians and guests that “17 years later the pieces of the puzzle have all been connected” from Briscoe Park southwest of Kingfisher, to the railroad tracks on the north end of Kingfisher where Kingfisher Creek and Uncle John Creek merge.

Hopkins narrated a sequence of photos on a projection screen showing the feature points of the Trails on his recent walk north from Briscoe Park, then behind the high school to Overstreet, across 13^th Street and continuing north to the middle school, crossing to the north side of S.H. 33 to Robberts Avenue and then to the Pioneer Telephone Plaza on North Main Street.

The plaza serves as a scenic northern entry point to the city for southbound travelers entering Kingfisher on U.S. 81.

Hopkins said a new entryway is being built just north of the Pioneer Plaza, also on U.S. 81, which will feature a welcome sign similar to the one on the south end of town, plus trees and other landscaping.

Work is already in progress for the project, located on the triangle of land directly south of Double D’s convenience store, which is a collaborative venture involving Kingfisher Trails, Kingfisher Tree Board and the city of Kingfisher.

Hopkins said there are other “puzzle pieces” of sections of Kingfisher Trails on the east side of the railroad tracks, with hopes to ultimately join it with the completed trails.

He said the goal is to follow along Uncle John Creek south through the park and beyond to complete the loop to the intersection of Highway 81 and Starlite Drive, follow along the south side of Walmart and then turn back north along 13^th Street to Briscoe Park.

Although it’s been tweaked based on easement acquisition, financing and other factors, the entire Trails project is based on a master plan by designer Connie Scothorn, who has been involved since the beginning.

“John Gooden has been successfully writing grants for all these 17 years, and as we have new money come in, we build more sections of trails,” Hopkins said.

“It’s been amazing what John has been able to accomplish over the years.”

He said to date, the Union Pacific Railroad has not allowed for any sort of crossing to connect the Trails from west to east. He said numerous attempts to open up that dialogue have been largely unsuccessful.

He asked Rotary members for ideas as to how to better accomplish the task.

“It’s been frustrating. We think we have made inroads, and will be working up the chain of command with Union Pacific, but then it will stall and nothing will come of it,” he said.

“We haven’t given up. Going under the rail line (at the existing bridge) would be ideal, but so far, we’re not any closer to our goal,” he said.

“For those of you who have not visited the Trail over there where the creeks join, it’s a very nice nature walk.

“There’s an observation tower that was built several years ago, and a bird watching station as well,” he said.

In addition to government grants and matching funds provided by the city of Kingfisher, Gooden and the Trails board also have been successful in soliciting corporate and private donations to fund different pieces of the project.

A park and festival grounds funded in large part by the Newfield Energy Foundation and named in the company’s honor will be constructed west of downtown, primarily on property reclaimed by the city in its federally-funded flood buyout program.

Coleman Plaza, located on South 13th Street and featuring a ring of the iconic Coleman lanterns originally manufactured in Kingfisher is another added feature.

Gooden and Kingfisher Trails also have been instrumental in the Kingfisher Visitor Center project, to be constructed at the location of the old Sinclair station just east of Gooden’s larger-than-life statue of Jesse Chisholm.

With fundraising recently jump-started by a large local bequest, the visitor’s center will house the Kingfisher Chamber of Commerce and will serve as the first point of contact for visitors and transplants to the city.

Hopkins encouraged Rotary members and guests to explore the entire Trails system and venture beyond the widely utilized south end to check out the new sections on the north edge of town.

“Most of us use the Briscoe Park and high school section quite heavily, but so far, the usage in the flood plain west of downtown has not been that much,” he said.

“I think that will change with time. It’s unique and worthwhile.”