Originally Posted by
robow
Thanks Rob for putting my mind at ease. We are probably going to do the route over 6 days and therefore average closer to 55 - 60 miles per day so that we can do some exploring just off the trail. Not sure yet if we are going to Camp the entire way but hopefully there will be adequate places to pitch a tent.
Looks like smudgy made it work. Did he camp in Xenia? There are some tricky spots if you want to stick to designated camping areas. I started from Cincinnati later in the day, and stayed with a Warm Showers host the first night because it didn't seem like there would be good camping close enough to get to before dark. Then I stayed at Ceasar's Creek State Park, which would be doable from Cinci if you started early enough, but the road to the actual campground is not a great biking road. There's a horse camping area a mile or two off the trail along some quiet roads, and I would look into staying there.
Free camping trailside in London, not far from Columbus. Then Smudgy found the other area that find to be problematic: Northeast of Columbus, I don't think there's an official campsite until Massilon, which is further than I would be willing to go in a day. He's not the first account I've seen of someone staying at the Bridge of Dreams pavilion in Brinkhaven/Gann. I don't think it's a sanctioned camping area, but it's probably a safe and quiet area. I think I read of someone staying trailside right in Kilbuck, a little further down the road, with the blessing of the local authorities. Then there are a couple of options south of Akron and one just north of Akron. Used to be a place (reservation only) in the Cuyahoga Valley park, but I think that's closed. But the free spot north of Akron will get you within a days ride of Cleveland. It's the stretch between Columbus and Massilon that's the one place I don't know of a good option for other than stealth camping.