SOUTH HAVEN, Mich. — A South Haven icon will soon be torn down.
For decades, people have visited the Nichols Covered Bridge, located along the Kal-Haven Trail.
The bridge was featured on the cover of the 2022 Pure Michigan Fall Travel Guide.
On Sunday, Friends of the Kal-Haven Trail bade farewell to the Michigan landmark with a brief ceremony.
The bridge will be rebuilt as it can no longer bear as much weight as it used to, posing safety concerns.
It’s part of a resurfacing project that will close 15 miles of the trail for the next 6–8 months.
However, the South Haven/Van Buren Convention and Visitors Bureau (SHVBCVB) — citing the Michigan Department of Natural Resources — says the rebuilt bridge will not be covered.
“We did everything we could to try and maintain the historical significance and integrity of our beloved attraction,” says SHVBCVB Executive Director Jennifer Sistrunk. “The Visitors Bureau offered $100,000 in funding to kick off local fundraising efforts for a new bridge cover and we have been diligently working with the DNR since we learned about the repaving project late last year. We’re sad to see that our efforts were unsuccessful at this time.”
We're told the DNR plans to save parts of the bridge for storage and future use.
