A cross-country bicycle ride that brought five combat veterans through Starke County is almost complete. Back in May, they set off from Washington, D.C. on the Great American Rail-Trail.
The transcontinental route passes through the local area on the Erie Trail, and the veterans went through North Judson on June 19. Last Saturday, Paul Cook was the first to arrive at the finish line in La Push, Washington, according to information shared by Starke County’s Prairie Trails Club.
The club notes that non-motorized trails currently make up a little more than half of the Great American Rail-Trail. The rest of the way, the veterans had to travel alongside cars and trucks and, at one point in Wyoming, had to escape a herd of charging bison.
Cook tells club members that he logged a total of 3,830 miles. Trekker Joe De La Garza was expected to finish this weekend, with the rest of the veterans not far behind.
The trip was organized by Warrior Expeditions, a nonprofit group that helps veterans transition away from their wartime experiences through an outdoor therapy program.
