Posts by Laura Stark Page 14

Photo © Jordan Hart

Ohio's Great Miami River Trail

Posted 06/01/14 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Connected Systems, Ohio, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

For those whose hearts call out for adventure as the summer begins in earnest, the fully paved, sinuous Great Miami River Trail irresistibly beckons. Nestled within western Ohio's Miami Valley, the 86-mile trail winds through woodsy parks beneath the soft rustle of tall, broad-leafed trees, quietly glides into the rich green and gold hues of farm country, and resonates with all the vibrancy and excitement of Dayton at its center.

Photo © Sheboygan County Planning and Conservation Department

Wisconsin's Shoreland 400 Rail Trail

Posted 05/01/14 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Wisconsin

Sheboygan County is rural, small-town America—no doubt about it. This is Wisconsin dairyland, situated halfway between Milwaukee and Green Bay, where the county seat is the Bratwurst Capital of the World. It's not the type of place that one would expect a thriving walking and biking culture, which made it the perfect candidate for a grand, national experiment that began in 2005. And in Sheboygan, the county's largest city, the Shoreland 400 Rail Trail was a little trail designed to have a big impact on changing modes and minds on transportation.

Photo © Christopher Martin/Atlanta Beltline Inc.

Georgia's Atlanta Beltline

Posted 03/01/14 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Georgia, Rail-with-Trail, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

Spring is upon us, and perhaps no region is more thankful than the South, hit especially hard by an unusually brutal winter. Residents of The Big Peach are more than ready to head out on the Atlanta Beltline to soak up the warmer weather. In a city once known as Terminus, the BeltLine trail network is a re-envisioning of its railroad past for a new wave of pedestrian and bike-friendly urban design.

Photo © Charissa Thacker

Florida's Blountstown Greenway Bike Path

Posted 01/01/14 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Florida, Heritage and Restoration, Overcoming Opposition, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

Straddled between two well-known tourist hubs in the Florida Panhandle is Blountstown, a small city in Calhoun County with only two traffic lights. Nonetheless, it is a growing destination. At the center of this movement is the Blountstown Greenway Bike Path, which was taken from an unlikely prospect to the "heartbeat of the community" by a surprising trail hero, a radio-station owner.

Photo CC Dan Pieniak via Flickr

Michigan's Dequindre Cut Greenway

Posted 11/01/13 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Art, Local Organizing, Michigan, Signage and Amenities, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

Everyone has heard about Detroit's troubles: the bankruptcy, the population decline, abandoned buildings and urban decay. What's not often heard is the story of the strength, resilience and pride of Detroiters. Underneath the rubble of bad press, hope grows as a revitalized riverfront and developing trail system are changing the way people think about the Motor City. A signature component of this movement, the Dequindre Cut Greenway, is itself a Cinderella story.

Trail rendering courtesy Michael Van Valkenburgh and Associates

EYE ON: Illinois' Bloomingdale Trail

Posted 10/09/13 by Laura Stark in | Tagged with Design Strategies, Featured Magazine Articles, Illinois, Local Organizing, Urban Pathways

At nearly 20 feet above four northwestern Chicago neighborhoods, the Bloomingdale Trail (a.k.a. The 606) will be a park in the sky. It's a lofty project to be created from an elevated rail line that once was referred to as "an overgrown linear jungle." Plans for the rail-trail include a dramatic facelift, featuring art plazas, entertainment venues, flowering trees, winding nature walks off the main trail, an astronomy observatory, and benches where trail users can rest and enjoy the views.

Photo © Forest Preserve District of Will County

Illinois' Old Plank Road Trail

Posted 10/01/13 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Illinois, Local Organizing, Overcoming Opposition, RTC in Action, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

Traveling along the tranquil Old Plank Road Trail today, you would never know the site was once the cause of heated debate and a contentious struggle lasting 20 years. The paved 22-mile rail-trail now offers a canopy of oak trees and sugar maples rustling overhead, delicate prairie grasses that stir with the passage of bicyclists, and soft purple wildflowers that peek up through the green underbrush.

Image © SMART District

California's SMART Pathway

Posted 09/01/13 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with California, Rail-with-Trail, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Urban Pathways

When the sunset-hued Golden Gate Bridge first opened more than 75 years ago, it was the engineering marvel of its time. Just north of San Francisco's famed bridge lies an equally impressive transportation corridor for a new era. When complete, the aptly named SMART Pathway will include the most miles of bike and pedestrian trail alongside active railroad, 52, in the country.

Photo © Steve Stiert

You Think You Know Rail-Trails, Then Along Comes a Miniature Donkey

Posted 07/03/13 by Laura Stark in Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Community Events

Working on a story for the upcoming fall edition of Rails to Trails magazine, I learned about a fresh approach to rail-trail enjoyment from Steve Stiert of Ulster Park, N.Y., who runs a charitable therapeutic donkey program. He has seven miniature donkeys that he takes to nursing homes, schools, nature centers, or anywhere else where folks could use a little cheer courtesy of these cuddly and unusual animals.