(1) The North Country National Scenic Trail, 
although only approximately half completed, provides 
outstanding outdoor recreation experiences to United 
States citizens and visitors to the United States. 
(2) The North Country National Scenic Trail is 
an outstanding example of the recreation opportuni-
ties that can be provided through a partnership of 
Federal, State, and local governments, private non-
profit trail organizations, individual volunteers, and 
landowners. 
(3) Modern, digital measuring equipment indi-
cates that when construction is completed on the 
currently authorized route, the actual length of the 
trail will be approximately 4,200 miles, rather than 
the 3,200 miles estimated at the time of authoriza-
tion in 1980. 
(4) The currently authorized route in Min-
nesota going westward from the vicinity of Duluth to 
the Chippewa National Forest is not feasible because 
most of the land between these points is tamarack 
swamp. 
(5) More than 300 miles of existing and 
planned hiking trails extend northeastward from the 
vicinity of Duluth to the vicinity of Grand Portage, 
and then westward to the vicinity of Ely. These 
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trails are the Superior Hiking Trail, Border Route 
Trail, and Kekekabic Trail. 
(6) The Superior Hiking Trail, Border Route 
Trail, and Kekekabic Trail would serve as an excel-
lent route for the North Country National Scenic 
Trail in northeastern Minnesota, in lieu of the cur-
rent route, and would take hikers through out-
standing northern scenery that truly epitomizes the 
‘‘North Country’’. 
(7) The length of new trail construction to con-
nect these routes to the existing authorized trail in 
the Chippewa National Forest is approximately the 
same as the length of trail construction that would 
have been required along the currently authorized 
route. 
(8) Public input during a route assessment 
study conducted by the National Park Service dem-
onstrated that there is broad support among af-
fected public agencies, private trail organizations, 
and Minnesota citizens for making this change in 
the authorized route. 
(9) This new route would increase the length of 
the North Country National Scenic Trail by approxi-
mately 400 miles, resulting in a revised estimate of 
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the length of a completed North Country National 
Scenic Trail of approximately 4,600 miles. 
SEC. 3. ROUTE REAUTHORIZATION. 
Section 5(a)(8) of the National Trails System Act (16 
U.S.C. 1244(a)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(8) The North Country National Scenic Trail, 
a trail of approximately forty-six hundred miles, ex-
tending from eastern New York State to the vicinity 
of Lake Sakakawea in North Dakota, following the 
approximate route depicted on the map identified as 
‘North Country National Scenic Trail, Authorized 
Route’, dated February 16, 2005, and numbered 
649/80,002. The map shall be on file and available 
for public inspection in the office of the Director, 
National Park Service, Washington, District of Co-
lumbia. The trail shall be administered by the Sec-
retary of the Interior.’’. 
Æ 
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