Quad Cities now American Discovery Trail headquarters with unique agreement between trail, visitors bureau

The Quad Cities is now the headquarters of the American Discovery Trail as a result of a management agreement between the American Discovery Trail (ADT) Society and the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau (QCCVB). The memo of understanding outlines membership, financial and marketing services the QCCVB and its staff will provide the trail organization. Training and transition of operations are yet to be fully completed but full transition is expected shortly.

“The American Discovery Trail  Society is pleased to partner with the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau in an innovative, cutting-edge approach to manage and market both trails and destinations,” said ADT Chair Eric Seaborg who resides in the Washington DC area. “Our board of directors held its annual meeting in the Quad Cities in 2013 and we were immediately taken by the community’s enthusiasm for trails and its hospitality for trail users. The Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau’s deep understanding that trails are not just recreation but drivers of economic impact and community development is exceptional.”

ADT is a 6,800 mile trail running from California to Delaware, with a northerly route through Iowa and Illinois. The trails comes into Scott County from the west, follows the Quad Cities riverfront trails and continues east through Rock Island and Henry Counties along the Hennepin Canal. ADT has a membership of about 1,400 from across the nation.

“The central location of the Quad Cities and its visitor centers located immediately adjacent to the trail will serve hikers and bicyclists well as trail centers. We are pleased to call the Quad Cities the headquarters of the American Discovery Trail,” Seaborg said.

Joe Taylor, President/CEO, Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau, began discussions in 2015 about management of the trail from the Quad Cities when he learned the ADT’s current single part-time staffer in the Washington, DC area was about to leave the position.

“I recalled the enthusiasm for the Quad Cities and its trails that trail advocates from around the nation had when they met here in 2006 for the National Trails Symposium. I pointed out to ADT that the Quad Cities CVB and the Quad Cities community can provide more resources, engagement and advocacy than a single part-time employee,” Taylor said.

“Formalizing the trail headquarters here makes perfect sense for destination marketing efforts, long-range transportation plans, Q2030 regional vision which calls for us to be cool and connected and the Quad City Health Initiative which encompasses Be Healthy QC and the new qctrails.org website.

“What better way to be connected to the Atlantic Ocean in Delaware and the Pacific Ocean in California than by way of the American Discovery Trail,” Taylor said. “Much like the first railroad bridge united the nation east to west, the ADT is positioned to unite the nation by trail from east to west.”

Trail meetings, trails summits, trail festivals and new hiking and biking events are all future possibilities here.