Ding Darling and His Greenway
 

Near the boat ramp at Prospect Park on the Des Moines river, you'll find a new brass plaque commemorating the nationally famous Iowa artist, Ding Darling. In addition to donating much of the land that makes up Prospect Park, Ding drew many cartoons and wrote many editorials promoting the wise use of our natural resources. Ding's Greenway extends along the Des Moines River (and both sides) some 9+ miles from downtown Grand Avenue up almost to the Saylorville Dam. It encompasses 2,500 acres of publicly owned land. Ding's Greenway currently features five trails.
 

Ding's Trails
 

Trail #1 -- The Saylorville Trail provides a paved surface suitable for biking, roller blading, jogging or strolling. It starts at Pete Crivaro Park in downtown Des Moines and continues along the east side of the river on north to Saylorville Dam and way beyond
 

Trail #2-- The Sycamore Trail on the west side of the river provides an unpaved rugged mountain bike trail. After a rainy day, the riders face special challenges. This trail starts at the Euclid Target store and heads north almost as far as Saylorville Dam.
 

Trail #3 -- The InterUrban Trail runs east and west, most of it along Urbandale Avenue. It hooks into the Saylorville Trail where the former InterUrban bridge crosses the Des Moines River.
 

Trail #4 - The Des Moines River Water Trail (currently under construction) followsthe Saylorville Trail. Proponents want to expandthis "Rowing TraiI" from Iowa's border withMinnesota to our border with Missouri for a total of 404 miles of "rowable" water.
 

Trail #5 - The Dragoon Trail provides an automobile route along the river from Lake Red Rock to as far north as Ft. Dodge and Webster City.
 

Boat, bike or drive? You can travel these trails in the manner you prefer.
 

More about Ding
 

Want to know more about Ding Darling? Jay Norwood 'Ding' Darling gained national prominence as a conservationist who made things happen. He personally knew nine presidents. Presidents Truman and Eisenhower were founding trustees of the Darling Foundation.
 

Ding encouraged us all to use and enjoy our natural resources wisely. He expected us to protect them. He believed our natural resources -- air, land, water, plant life and animal life were our true riches, not money.
 

Ding covered a multitude of topics in his cartoons and writing. Constant pressures on Ding to "cover topics of the day" focused the bulk of his time on politics, finance, science, religion, and culture. He spent only 10% of his efforts on his "hobby" -- conservation of our natural resources.
 

Ding's Cartoons
 

Today, Ding's cartoons and writings on the conservation of our natural resources and environment are his best remembered contributions to our country.
 

Ding gave us many timeless messages that live on today. Recurring requests for his work dating all the way back to 1901 testify to the need to preserve his multitude of cartoons,
 

Kip Koss, president of the Darling Foundation, has developed a CD-ROM that contains 6,800 of his
cartoons.
 

Ding's Book
 

David Lendt, Ding's biographer, is currently revising Ding's autobiography. Look for both the biography and the CD-ROM to market as a package in late 1999.
 
 

This Greenway is part of the Central Iowa Greenway Plan.  This plan provides long range continuity of purpose to assure maximum public benefit of recreational and educational uses as well as the protection of natural and cultural resources.

Discover beautiful Iowa, discover the Ding Darling Greenway!

Dick Le Croy, Trustee, J.N. "Ding" Darling Foundation