VINTON, Iowa – A uniquie new trail is now open to Iowa riders – though it has already been drawing a crowd. The Nathan’s Miles Trail – perhaps the longest glow-in-the-dark trail in the world – has it’s ceremonial opening Thursday night. But Matt Boggess, Vinton’s Parks and Recreation Director, says the response to the trail has been “….overwhelming but very much in a good way.”

With views on social media posts totaling over 1.5 million and people driving from hours away to experience the two mile trail, Boggess says the trail is doing exactly what he and city officials thought it would do: attract people to visit Vinton.

In mid-May we brought you the story of how the trail – with 3,000 pounds of glow stones incorporated into its concrete surface – was nearing completion. Now that Nathan’s Miles Trail is complete we take a look at the trail after the sun set. The stones glow is subtle but the overall effect is striking.

The trail’s name honors Nathan Hesson, a former Vinton city council member who was a big supporter of trails and this project. Hesson passed before the trail was completed.

The trail is on the southern edge of Vinton. It runs from the high school southward then returns to town near the Marvin Lindsey Baseball Complex.