One Foot in Front of the Other Jim Wehling’s Vision & Twenty-Years of Planning Behind the Shuster’s Way Heritage Trail.
HALEY: I remember it as the first snow of the season and a bitterly cold January morning in Pennsylvania to be walking outside. Jim had agreed to show me the newly extended portion of the Shuster’s Way Heritage Trail and I thought this would be a great opportunity to pick Jim’s brain about funding I have been chasing for a local dog park.
Jim had just finished applying for a mini-grant that if awarded, would fund trail amenities such as benches and dog relief stations. As we briskly walked both directions of the trail, nearly four miles, Jim would stop to take pictures for future maintenance resolutions and to identify potential bench placement locations by placing small, yellow flags. He likely was also placing a few mental red flags on my lack of preparation as I showed up with no gloves or poop bags for my rescue lab.
Jim and Jo Wehling moved to Bedford in 1999 from the Washington D.C. metro area. Jim’s idea was that Bedford needed to do something (to attract locals and tourists alike) and if the Springs didn’t re-open, trail development was his idea of something. Jim always saw the idea of the Shuster Way Heritage Trail as a way to keep Bedford viable and economically healthy. He began working on the project in 2002. Yes, you read that right twenty-two years ago. Momentum grew in 2006 thanks to Bette Slayton and the Bedford County Development Association. BCDA helped secure grant funding for a master plan to connect Old Bedford Village, a living history site with nearly forty authentic structures preserving Bedford County’s culture, to Downtown Bedford. In 2006 Jim also personally purchased land on the east side of the Juniata River for trail development.
The Bedford Joint Municipal Authority was re-established in 2010. Being a landowner, Wehling doesn’t sit on the authority but remains a driving force in the continued recreational and trail development. The trail’s construction was completed in two phases. First, connecting the Omni Bedford Springs Resort to downtown Bedford, and second, the downtown area to Old Bedford Village.
Q: Are you a visionary?
JIM: A visionary! (laughing), Well clearly, I had, and have a vision!
Q: Where are you from and what brought you to Bedford County?
JIM: I am from a small town in western New York. There were 32 people in my graduating class. It’s an area of New York that is far enough from the Great Lakes, Finger Lakes, and industrial areas so it’s not economically viable. I didn’t want to go home. My wife, Jo, is from a town in the very western portion of Virginia, that is in a similar state. When we both retired, we knew we wanted to leave the DMV area. Before retirement, we started looking for small towns that had outdoor recreational opportunities and were not going to grow too rapidly but were not going to die either. We looked at towns in western Maryland, West Virginia, and western Pennsylvania. At that time, we were doing a lot of mountain biking and trail biking and were particularly drawn to the developing GAP Trail (The Great Allegheny Passage.) We were also interested in being close to rivers for kayaking and fly-fishing as well as both cross-country and downhill skiing. On one of our trips, we traveled through Bedford and stopped for a night’s stay at the Golden Eagle Inn. On that stay, we saw some houses on the market that were interesting and started making offers.
Q: Where is your favorite place to spend time outdoors locally?
JIM: Lots of places. Shawnee Lake, particularly during migration season, the Spring or Fall whenever you see snow geese on the lake, (it’s) is always a big deal.
Q: What micro adventure would you recommend locally?
JIM: Paddling on Shawnee Lake from either Colvin Access or the Kegg Run Launch Area towards the Shawnee Branch tributary feeding the lake. It is such a contrast area to the lake. It makes you wonder what happens to that crystal-clear water that you find in the tributary as it makes its way into the lake.
Q: What prep should one consider if it is their first time visiting?
JIM: It is a shallow area with lots of vegetation. Also, make sure you go as far as you can. There are points that you would think you can’t go any further. Go until you hit a gravel bar.
Q: What is an item that you always have on hand before you head into nature?
JIM: A daypack that carries some of the things you might need if things don’t go right.
Q: What do you envision for the future?
JIM: Developing a rustic loop along the river on the newly extended portion of the trail and extending to Weber Lane near the Pennsylvania Turnpike Interchange. Also, to work as an authority to collaborate with other projects and to assist the growth of outdoor recreation opportunities in the Bedford area.
HALEY: I suggest parking at the Elks Country Club and strolling to the Omni for a cup of coffee at the Evitt House Coffee Bar before doubling back to your car. The trail system into the woods facing the resort is well-maintained, breathtaking, and worth exploring. Parking for the heritage trail can be accessed at Fort Bedford Park, Bedford Elks Country Club, and trailhead parking at the Omni Bedford Springs Resort.
Hikes with Haley are monthly conversations with local outdoor voices attempting to highlight the outdoor gems in Bedford, Pennsylvania (PA) and the greater surrounding region of the Southern Alleghenies. For trail recommendations and more guides check out @hikeswithhaley on Instagram.
