Vandal cuts down 28 newly planted River Gorge trees

June 30th, FMR was one of the first to hear some very disturbing news from the Minneapolis Park Board: someone cut down 28 newly planted oak, sugar maple and basswood trees in the Mississippi River Gorge.

The 6-foot saplings had been planted as part of the reconstruction of the Winchell Trail, which runs just below the rim of the gorge between Franklin Avenue and South 44th Street in Minneapoliss Seward and Longfellow neighborhoods. Due to erosion, some trail sections had been rerouted to the bluff-top and parts of the old trail alignment planted with trees (as pictured) to restore them to forest and prevent further erosion.

FMR was alerted to the crime to help spread the word to neighborhood volunteers and trail-users to be on the lookout for such activity in the future. Word traveled quickly, and the atrocity was featured by local and regional media, including the Star Tribune and KSTP.

— Irene Jones, River Corridor Program Director