Great Headwaters Trails
Building family-friendly biking and walking trails near the source of a Great River
Since its founding in 2010, the Great Headwaters Trails Foundation has been closing in on its goal to build 40 miles of biking and walking trails in eastern Vilas County. The system we envision will expand the Heart of Vilas Trail System and connect the towns of Eagle River, Conover, Phelps and Land O’ Lakes, resulting in a connected, family-friendly, hard surface trail system over 110 miles long.
The first leg of the Great Headwaters Trails system is the Conover-Phelps Trail which was completed in 2021. The next leg, the River Trail, will connect St. Germain to Eagle River.
HELP US GET THE WORD OUT about GHT's bike trails. Contact us at ghtinfo@ghtrails.org. Watch for our booths at various events in Eagle River, Conover, Phelps and Land O' Lakes.
Help us develop more biking and walking trails in eastern Vilas County!

Helping build the River Trail in the Age of Zoom
Despite COVID-19, progress on a biking and walking trail between Eagle River and St. Germain is moving forward. The River Trail Commission continues to meet, and the Friends of the River Trail (FoRT) has also been meeting and getting ready to swing into action. Zoom provided one way for the…
Read MoreEquipping 2 communities for economic recovery – Pt. 1
Despite all the dark news, the current status of completing the Conover-Phelps Trail is bright: • Expensive special engineering needed due to the 2018 trail reroute has been completed. • To complement the last 2 miles of the trail, a multi-use trailhead is being planned north of Military Creek and…
Read MoreCompleting the Conover-Phelps Trail
Here’s where things stand as the summer of 2019 comes to an end. All the key pieces are in place to provide a complete biking and walking trail between downtown Conover and downtown Phelps. That includes the funding we believe will be needed to build the last 2 miles of…
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