Sign development of the Crow Wing Trail was showcased at the committee's annual general meeting Monday held at the Ginew Wellness Centre located on The Roseau River First Nations Reserve.

The Crow Wing Trail is 191 km long and is the largest part of the Trans Canada Trail. Originally the trail was used in the 1800s to transport goods to and from the Red River Settlement on the Red River and the Crow Wing Settlement on the Mississippi River.

Trail Coordinator Wayne Arseny says despite the weather the meeting was well attended.

"The snow was sort of tapering off, it was our opportunity to showcase what we were able to accomplish in 2016 and our intentions for 2017. It was also a chance to meet representatives, the executive director and the person conducting all our GPS tracking."

Arseny added the Crow Wing Trail committee is a bit ahead of others due to not having to hire contractors to complete the work that Arseny is doing himself, noting in 2017 new signs will go up marking the municipalities and welcoming travellers along the trail into communities.

"We have had to do some wear and tear fixing to the trails where you might say quads have worn down the road surface and some work to the Senkiw or Roseau River swinging bridge after an ice jam took some boards away and put us behind by about a week.  We are definitely doing maintenance and the trail is being used, that's what we want so we have to upkeep the trail to make it user friendly for everyone," explained Arseny

The trail connects Emerson to Winnipeg through the municipalities of Emerson-Franklin, Roseau River First Nation, De Salaberry, Niverville, and Ritchot.