The Axel Lindgren Memorial Trail was closed February 10, 2023 due to storm damage and unsafe conditions at the bottom of the trail. Back-to-back "temporary closures" have followed, and the trail remains closed.
Meanwhile, in 2022 the Tsurai Ancestral Society (TAS) commissioned GHD for an engineering study to redesign and reroute the lower part of the trail along the traditional path to the beach, improve safety, and better protect irreplaceable cultural resources. A report was submitted to TAS June 30, 2023. I believe TAS carefully reviewed the report before sharing it with the City. After receipt of the report, the Mayor had it posted on the City website in a meeting packet.
A key feature of GHD's redesign is the rerouting of the lower part of the trail, pictured below overlaid onto Google Maps:
The existing route (depicted in a beige color) crosses raw, wet, eroding, blue-clay melange at the base of the slope. Cable steps are draped over to reach the beach. The cable steps have washed out repeatedly in violent winter storms.
The restored traditional route (depicted in a fuchsia color) would cross a small stream and terminate atop a boulder on the beach (Coastal Commission exhibit Photo 2). GHD wrote that bridges may be needed to safely span the small stream and to connect from the hillside to the rock on the beach.
Opinion goes back and forth. City staff and TAS investigated the traditional route and found it more challenging than anticipated. This has caused delay. City staff favor reopening the trail in the current configuration until rerouting is properly planned out, with feasability and funding established. TAS opposes reopening the unstable lower alignment.
Some Trinidad residents protested the long closure. When on August 13, 2024 the City Council approved another extension, two residents appealed to the California Coastal Commission. At the hearing for the case, February 6, 2025, the Commission ruled that continuing the temporary closure was not a substantial issue, so the appeal was denied. The Coastal Commission staff report contains a wealth of information on the history and issues involving the Axel Lindgren Memorial Trail.
In addition at the meeting on August 13, 2024, the City Council resolved to
(1) Commit discretionary trail funds to the [TAS/GHD] project;
(2) Dedicate City staff time to search and apply for eligible grants;
(3) Have staff provide monthly progress assessments to the City Council; and
(4) Set Memorial weekend 2025 as the target for reopening.
On May 14, 2025 the City posted a permit application at the trailhead for
"Repair and maintenance activities, including vegetation trimming and replacement of the cable steps at the base of the trail, in order to keep the trail publicly accessible."
At a Special Trails Meeting, May 20, 2025, the City Planner explained that the application simply amends the original 1996 CDP/Design Review/Use Permit within the alignment established in 1996. She noted TAS opposes repairs within the lower alignment to the beach, but the City Council unanimously approved the permit application.
On June 29, 2025, TAS appealed the City's application to the California Coastal Commission. At a hearing on September 10, 2025, the Commission concurred with its staff that there is a significant issue. No further action was taken at that time. The Coastal Commission will consider the permit application or some modification thereof at a future meeting. Details below:
City of Trinidad Axel Lindgren Memorial Trail Repairs – Appeal No. A-1-TRN-25-0020
Staff Report Exhibits Correspondence
Sage Alexander wrote about Trinidad's permit application and TAS's appeal in the Eureka Times-Standard newspaper.