Helena Adventure trails
Brand Strategy • Placemaking
The Helena Adventure Trails system is an innovative quality of life and tourism product for Helena, Arkansas as of 2021. An initiative of Thrive Inc., made possible with the help of many partners, the trails symbolize our devotion to strategizing and creating new untapped economic opportunities for our community. Thrive recognized an outdoor tourism market that wasn’t being addressed and designed a public recreation venue for local residents, tourists, and small businesses to use as they may.
Helena Ridge Ride
This 37 mile trail is a gorgeous adventure through diverse environments, including St. Francis National Forest, knobby cypress lakes, sandy river beaches, and farmland expanses.The trail system is nestled between two state parks, Mississippi River State Park to the North(including the new Storm Creek Lake Cabins) and Delta Heritage Trail State Park to the South(with access to the Delta Heritage Trail rails-to-trails gravel trail). To the East is the great Mississippi River which is parallel by the “Low Road”(gravel/dirt) and the High Road(paved).
Harbor View Trail
This one-mile hiking, biking and walking loop kicked off the entire trail system project. Working closely with students of our CLYP program the Harbor View Trail has come to life in the Helena River Park in historic downtown Helena. The HVT is a walking distance destination for downtown residents and a perfect get-away for bird watchers waiting to see the woodpeckers at work in this bottomland hardwood forest.
Big River Loop
A two-mile walking loop that connects Historic Downtown Helena to The Helena River Park, this pedestrian wayfinding project connects the downtown residential community to the Mississippi River. In addition, tourists from visiting riverboats can skip the hop on and off busses and find their way to downtown shops, stick their toe in the river, or get some exercise on the Harbor View Trail while waiting in Helena Harbor during their stay.
