Photos by JUSTIN COOK The Roanoke Times

A jogger runs past a bale of hay along the Huckleberry Trail. The ultimate goal of the planned trail extension is to construct a bridge over Peppers Ferry Road for those biking or walking the trail to cross safely, and extend the trail to the Christiansburg Recreation Center.

A patch of daisies lines part of the Huckleberry Trail. New River Valley residents use the trail for walking, running and biking.

A $165,000 federal grant will allow the beginning phase of the trail extension, taking it from its current end point at the northern end of New River Valley Mall to Peppers Ferry Road.

The ultimate goal is to construct a bridge over Peppers Ferry Road for those biking or walking the trail to cross safely, and extend the trail to the Christiansburg Recreation Center.

"We're excited that it'll allow us to move forward," said Bill Ellenbogen, president of the nonprofit Friends of the Huckleberry.

Last fall, the town of Christiansburg sponsored an application to extend the trail using federal Transportation Enhancement Program grants. When the town previously requested the grant in 2007, VDOT passed on the application to fund other projects that were already in progress.

This application cycle, the town requested $700,000, which would fund the construction of the bridge over Peppers Ferry Road, connecting the trail from the New River Valley Mall with the rear of Wal-Mart. The town was approved for $165,000, which won't be enough to construct the bridge, but supporters say it's a start.

"We requested more than that, but we were delighted to receive our first significant step," toward extending the trail, said Vice Mayor Brad Stipes, who has been a key supporter of the trail since taking office.

Stipes and Ellenbogen say this year's grant will be enough extend the trail to Peppers Ferry Road. The grant will be available Oct. 1, and construction will begin this fall, Stipes said.

He said that Gay & Neel is the engineering firm handling the construction plans, which have already been developed.

"By this time next year, the trail will definitely be up to Route 114 [Peppers Ferry Road]," Stipes said.

He said plans for the bridge to cross Peppers Ferry are still being finalized, but the town has an easement to continue the trail behind Wal-Mart. The plan is to construct a boardwalk-style bridge so cyclists don't have to dismount and walk their bikes across a set of metal ramps.

Ellenbogen, who Stipes referred to as the "godfather" of the Huckleberry Trail, said he plans to continue doing his part to help extend the trail.

Ellenbogen said the Friends of the Huckleberry have raised over the past three years about $85,000, which has been used to pay for the engineering work. He said having the engineering work taken care of made it possible to apply for and receive the grant.

"We've created the engineering plan to let this happen, now to see it happen -- it's going to be great," he said.

Stipes said until a project has engineering plans, it is only conceptual and isn't "real." He expects more private donations now that the trail extension will soon become reality.

The hard part was to begin the process, Stipes said, and now that it has begun, it should be more feasible to receive funding until it is complete.

"Once you get it moving, it's OK. It's just a new beginning in the overall sense," Stipes said.