An oft-requested path from the George S. Mickelson Trail to Mount Rushmore National Memorial could eventually become a reality if a feasible route can be found.

State Game, Fish & Parks park director Doug Hofer said a feasibility study will be performed this year to determine if and where a path can be built.

"There are a number of options, and so we need to study which ones are the best routes and which one would actually ultimately work best," Hofer said.

After the feasibility study is complete, the next step would be to get funding for the project, Hofer said.

The state Department of Game, Fish & Parks, the USDA Forest Service, the National Park Service and Mount Rushmore National Memorial are working together on the project, according to Hofer.

He said the various entities would try to find a route that is environmentally conscious, affordable and efficient.

The project has been discussed for the past three years, Hofer said.

"It would be a wonderful recreational opportunity for people to be able to bike and hike to Mount Rushmore from the Mickelson Trail," he said. "It would be a wonderful expansion of the Mickelson Trail. That's become one of the most popular trails in the Black Hills."

GF&P parks and recreation regional supervisor Harley Noem said that he often gets requests from Mickelson Trail riders who want to be able to ride all the way to Mount Rushmore. He believes the trail would be a hit.

"Mount Rushmore is such a national attraction. … If they could ride up there, I think it'd be very popular," he said.

The George S. Mickelson Trail was completed in 1998. It spans the entire length of the Black Hills and is open to nonmotorized users.

Noem said a path leading to Mount Rushmore likely would have to be put in somewhere from Hill City south to Custer.

Mount Rushmore National Memorial Superintendent Gerard Baker did not return a call for comment Thursday afternoon about the trail.

However, through a news release from the GF&P, Baker said the trail could potentially connect with an 8-mile hiking-trail system that is proposed at the national memorial.

"The system will provide new opportunities for visitors to experience and learn about the natural and cultural resources of Mount Rushmore National Memorial and its representative central Black Hills landscape," Baker said.

A number of specific factors will be considered during the feasibility study, which Black Hills National Forest Supervisor Craig Bobzien said likely would be completed this summer.

Bobzien said that the trail would likely have to go through the Peter Norbeck Wildlife Preserve - an area designated under federal guidelines to be managed for game animals and birds - in order to reach Mount Rushmore.

He said the study would have to determine just how much a trail would affect that area.

"We'll have to evaluate the human impacts on game animals and birds," he said.

Bobzien said the trail would be a valuable addition to the Mickelson Trail.

Noem said the grade of the trail would also have to be considered. The Mickelson Trail currently does not have a grade of more than 4 percent.

The proposed path would have to be studied to see if it would have to exceed 4 percent and whether or not it would be too steep for trail users.

Contact Ryan Woodard at 394-8412 or ryan.woodard@rapidcityjournal.com