Rail Trail Fans
08-28-15, 10:55 AM
#2
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In May of this year, I rode from LaPorte, IN, to New Castle, IN, a little over 170 miles. I utilized the Nickle Plate rail trail and the Cardinal Greenway for almost 70 miles of that route. Big plus and a great help!
08-28-15, 11:11 AM
#3
Banned
Banks~Vernonia trail, here, is nice.. Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department: Banks-Vernonia State Trail
08-28-15, 11:15 AM
#4
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Not a fan of overly crowded trails or those that are boring. I did most (about 100 of 109 miles) of the Mickelson Trail in South Dakota back in June during a 10-day tour of the Black hills. Quite an interesting experience. It's not a warm and fuzzy trail. What I mean by that is that the surface is rather rugged most place, and it doesn't pass through a lot of towns with services. On the flip side, there are several trail heads with shelters and water cisterns. Some also have restrooms. And there are many beautiful stretches. (Outside of Hill City you can see the Crazy Horse monument from the trail.) Also, it's not flat in many places. There are some "climbs" of over 2%. Makes for slower going than you might think. The rugged nature makes it hard to really bomb the downhill sections. Some sections have a lot of wooden bridges. The transition between dirt and bridge decks are often rough, requiring you to slow down. And there are several cattle gates. You have to stop, open the gate, make your way through and then make sure it shuts after you pass through. (They have counter weights to assist with closure.)
This photo through the one just before the train with the cloud above it were taken along the trail:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/105349...7655263744881/
The Mickelson is doable in 2 days. Deadwood to Hill City and then Hill City to Edgemont. The former is a hard day. The latter is easier. Or you could make it three days by stopping in Custer, which is between Hill City and Edgemont. There is indoor lodging and camping available in those town. Camping along the trail is not allowed.
The GAP (Great Allegheny Passage) between Pittsburgh, PA and Cumberland, MD, is quite the opposite. The surface is, for the most part, crushed limestone, and it passes through towns with services more frequently.
This photo through the one just before the train with the cloud above it were taken along the trail:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/105349...7655263744881/
The Mickelson is doable in 2 days. Deadwood to Hill City and then Hill City to Edgemont. The former is a hard day. The latter is easier. Or you could make it three days by stopping in Custer, which is between Hill City and Edgemont. There is indoor lodging and camping available in those town. Camping along the trail is not allowed.
The GAP (Great Allegheny Passage) between Pittsburgh, PA and Cumberland, MD, is quite the opposite. The surface is, for the most part, crushed limestone, and it passes through towns with services more frequently.
08-28-15, 11:24 AM
#5
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I just rode a rr line last weekend in MN. It was the Glacier Trail from Wilimar, MN Paynseville, MN. 40 miles, was 1/2 in wooded area and very scenic and the other 1/2 followed MN hwy 23...was boring. Trail was nice though and had some nice spots. Would ride again but wouldn't go out of the way to get there....
08-28-15, 11:54 AM
#6
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I ride one to work every day. Or, at least I was until the local college kids started plugging it up upon their recent return.
08-28-15, 12:00 PM
#7
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I've ridden the 230 mile Katy Trail in Missouri from end-to-end the last 4 years.
https://mostateparks.com/park/katy-trail-state-park
https://mostateparks.com/park/katy-trail-state-park
08-28-15, 12:22 PM
#8
Life is good
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Rail Trails are all over Florida. This one of the reasons we retired here. There are 5 or 6 trails that aren't very far from the house. 
Withlacoochee Trail State Park
Suncoast Trail « Biking Florida
Nature Coast State Trail
And the list goes on.
Withlacoochee Trail State Park
Suncoast Trail « Biking Florida
Nature Coast State Trail
And the list goes on.
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The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. - Psalm 103:8
I am a cyclist. I am not the fastest or the fittest. But I will get to where I'm going with a smile on my face.
The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. - Psalm 103:8
I am a cyclist. I am not the fastest or the fittest. But I will get to where I'm going with a smile on my face.
08-28-15, 01:21 PM
#10
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I'm a fan.
I live about 2 miles from Missouri's Katy Trail. I ride it with some frequency, but I've become bored with the sections that are close to my house.
I just got back from doing a 35 mile ride on the St Louis Metro East "Trails of Madison County". I love riding that interlocking network of black top paved trails. Unfortunately, I HATE the 35 mile drive to my starting point.
My all time favorite trail is Sparta to Elroy in Wisconsin. It's crushed limestone, like the Katy, and around 30 miles or so each way. The thing that makes it interesting is the tunnels. Essentially you ride up a 3 or 4% grade for a while, pass through a tunnel (bring a light), and coast back down on the other side of the hill. You do that 3 times in about 30 miles. I love it.
I live about 2 miles from Missouri's Katy Trail. I ride it with some frequency, but I've become bored with the sections that are close to my house.
I just got back from doing a 35 mile ride on the St Louis Metro East "Trails of Madison County". I love riding that interlocking network of black top paved trails. Unfortunately, I HATE the 35 mile drive to my starting point.
My all time favorite trail is Sparta to Elroy in Wisconsin. It's crushed limestone, like the Katy, and around 30 miles or so each way. The thing that makes it interesting is the tunnels. Essentially you ride up a 3 or 4% grade for a while, pass through a tunnel (bring a light), and coast back down on the other side of the hill. You do that 3 times in about 30 miles. I love it.
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My greatest fear is all of my kids standing around my coffin and talking about "how sensible" dad was.
My greatest fear is all of my kids standing around my coffin and talking about "how sensible" dad was.
08-28-15, 02:55 PM
#11
Senior Member
I'm a fan.
I live about 2 miles from Missouri's Katy Trail. I ride it with some frequency, but I've become bored with the sections that are close to my house.
I just got back from doing a 35 mile ride on the St Louis Metro East "Trails of Madison County". I love riding that interlocking network of black top paved trails. Unfortunately, I HATE the 35 mile drive to my starting point.
My all time favorite trail is Sparta to Elroy in Wisconsin. It's crushed limestone, like the Katy, and around 30 miles or so each way. The thing that makes it interesting is the tunnels. Essentially you ride up a 3 or 4% grade for a while, pass through a tunnel (bring a light), and coast back down on the other side of the hill. You do that 3 times in about 30 miles. I love it.
I live about 2 miles from Missouri's Katy Trail. I ride it with some frequency, but I've become bored with the sections that are close to my house.
I just got back from doing a 35 mile ride on the St Louis Metro East "Trails of Madison County". I love riding that interlocking network of black top paved trails. Unfortunately, I HATE the 35 mile drive to my starting point.
My all time favorite trail is Sparta to Elroy in Wisconsin. It's crushed limestone, like the Katy, and around 30 miles or so each way. The thing that makes it interesting is the tunnels. Essentially you ride up a 3 or 4% grade for a while, pass through a tunnel (bring a light), and coast back down on the other side of the hill. You do that 3 times in about 30 miles. I love it.
I'm starting to get bored with the Metro East Trails as I've been riding them a couple of times a week. The repaved Heritage Trail from Glen Carbon to Marine is my favorite lately.
08-28-15, 04:14 PM
#12
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I rode a small part of the Erie Canalway Trail, from eastern Syracuse to Durhamville and back last weekend. Very nice, very scenic, and not very crowded. Next year, when I have more vacation, I'm going to do the half from Syracuse to Albany.
08-28-15, 04:18 PM
#13
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Illinois Prairie Path is a not-crowded and very serene path. About the most peaceful riding you can get in the Chicago suburbs.
08-28-15, 04:25 PM
#14
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This site has a pretty comprehensive list of trails.
TrailLink
Not all of them are Rail Trails, but a good number of them are.
GH
TrailLink
Not all of them are Rail Trails, but a good number of them are.
GH
08-28-15, 06:17 PM
#15
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In the bluffland area of southeastern MN near Lanesboro (named one of the best small towns in America to visit in 2014 by Smithsonian magazine) there are about 65 miles of paved trail near the Root River. There are also Amish settlements and markets in and near the local towns. There is also a very nice paved trail between Cannon Falls and Red Wing MN which is about 20 miles one way along the Cannon River. Both trails are very beautiful.
08-28-15, 07:40 PM
#16
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Rowan
My fave photo threads on BF
Century A Month Facebook Group
Machka's Website
Photo Gallery
Rowan
My fave photo threads on BF
Century A Month Facebook Group
Machka's Website
Photo Gallery
08-28-15, 08:00 PM
#17
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Three blocks away from paul bunyan trail. One of the longest rail trails in Minn. If you count the rail trails that intersect it its about 150miles give or take
08-28-15, 10:29 PM
#18
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I do most of my riding on the network of trails in Madison County, IL. Only problem is that I've lost my ability to climb hills.
08-29-15, 06:50 AM
#19
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I like these in Western Mass: Northampton is the hub of two different extensive rail trail systems, the 104 mile Mass Central Rail Trail, which heads east towards Boston, and the 84 mile New Haven & Northampton Canal Rail Trail which heads south towards New Haven Connnecticut. Neither trail is complete in full, but there are substantial sections which are beautifully ridable.
08-30-15, 09:42 AM
#20
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That's what the four of us must have looked like while she took our picture. I still think that it's funny that none of us had the composure to think about taking one of her.
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My greatest fear is all of my kids standing around my coffin and talking about "how sensible" dad was.
My greatest fear is all of my kids standing around my coffin and talking about "how sensible" dad was.
08-30-15, 09:48 AM
#21
aka Phil Jungels
And, the Fox River Trail system connects to oodles of others, including the Illinois Prairie Path. A gorgeous resource. for many, many, miles.
08-30-15, 11:15 AM
#22
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For sure. I used to live in St. Charles just off Rt. 25 and my yard bordered the Fox River Trail. That was like a bike highway for us to get from everywhere from West Dundee to Aurora. That's actually how we discovered the Prairie Path and the Great Western Trail in the first place as we were riding the Fox.
08-30-15, 11:25 AM
#23
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I really enjoy them. Most folks don't like them because of crowding, but being retired I have got into the habit of getting up early and hitting the trail at sunrise. Never crowded and nothing like riding as the morning sun is rising.
08-31-15, 05:12 PM
#24
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scott s.
.
08-31-15, 06:05 PM
#25
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Boston as a compact East Coast urban environment has a nice set of bikepaths that connect the downtown area through the midtown as it were, and out to the residential neighborhoods and inner suburbs, providing utilitarian byways for cycle commuting or recreation, though these paths are not completely connected. These include:
- the Paul Dudley White bikepath named for Dwight Eisenhower's personal cardiologist and an early advocate of exercise for cardiac fitness. It follows both sides of the Charles River (“Love that Dirty Water”), with scenic views of the Boston and Cambridge skylines.
- the Southwest Corridor (Pierre Lallement) bike path through residential neighborhoods named for the inventor of the modern bicycle who died in Boston in obscurity, in the late 1800’s.
- the Jamaica Pond Bikepath also through residential neighborhoods and passing the restful Jamaica Pond
- the Minuteman Bikepath through pleasant suburbs of Arlington to Lexington, and on to Bedford passing by the Lexington Town Green, site of the first skirmish of the Revolutionay War. Many nice photos are found on the local regional thread, Metro Boston: Good ride today?
ADDENDUM: See also this description.
- The Minuteman Historical Site, as described by me:
…The adventuresome part began in Lexington where we were directed onto the Minuteman Historic National Park. This is a 5 mile long roughly-paved to hard pack to slightly sandy trail with historic makers. It traces the path the British took to return to Boston from the fights at Lexington and Concord. There are signs that are marked by descriptions of, and the time of day that various skirmishes occurred during the march. I had never been there and I switched from tour guide to tourist along with the others…
Also a few historic houses and visitor centers are along the route, such as the Capt. Wiliam Smith House pictured below. The family tended to a mortally wounded British soldier for his last few days and he gave them gold sovereign he had hidden in his coat. Captain Smith was cousin of Abigail Adams. While riding the trail, we saw a demonstration of how the Minutemen loaded and fired their muskets.
…A few miles before the end of the ride we rode over the Old North Bridge where “Here once the embattled farmers stood / And fired the shot heard round the world.” - Other including including Cape Cod: Cape Cod is a premier and historic resort destination, and several nice bikepaths are scattered about including paths along the sand dunes and ocean, and a 26 mile Cape Cod Rail Trail.