Trail Use

Useful Biking Gear for Trails—Plus A Few MacGyver Tips!

Posted 03/30/18 by Amy Kapp in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Biking, Encouraging Trail Use, Gear, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, How-to, Mapping and Technology, OpeningDay, Sojourn Series, Trail Etiquette, Trail Use Tips, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

2017 Opening Day for Trails on the Three Rivers Heritage Trail in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Photo by Amy Kapp

To prepare for Opening Day for Trails, I asked my colleagues at Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, some of America’s most experienced trail riders, what equipment they’ve found super useful.

Full Story

12 Ways to Celebrate Opening Day for Trails

Posted 03/15/18 by Amy Kapp in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Best Of, Community Events, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, OpeningDay, Trail Destinations, Walkability and Bikeability

This year’s Opening Day for Trails is going to be the best yet, as people across the country officially kick off spring by hitting their favorite pathways (or new ones!). Below are just 12 ways you can celebrate Opening Day in your own neighborhood and beyond.

How to Be Equipment-Ready for Your First Long-Distance Trail Ride

Posted 03/13/18 by Tom Sexton in Trail Use, America's Trails | Tagged with Repairs and Trail Safety, Biking, Encouraging Trail Use, Gear, How-to, Most Essential, Sojourn Series, Trail Use Tips

If you’re planning a long-distance ride spanning several days or even a week—you’re probably hitting the trails to get in tip-top physical shape. But fitness is only one part of the equation—as the shape of one’s bike and gear can also help to determine one’s overall experience.

Photo by Justin Smith

Seven Reasons You Should Go on a Trail Adventure

Posted 03/08/18 by Suzanne Matyas in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Biking, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Pennsylvania, Sojourn Series, Trail Destinations, Walkability and Bikeability, Wild and Wonderful

Do you favor seaside escapes over sleeping under the stars? Would you prefer a trip with the entire family or a solo expedition to find yourself? How about a relaxing retreat instead of rollercoasters? RTC's Sojourn might be perfect for you!

Chicago Lakefront Trail | Photo by TrailLink user kristincreager

Best Trails of 2017 According to You!

Posted 01/25/18 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Success Stories, Health and Wellness, Trail Use | Tagged with Best Of, California, Circuit Trails, Connected Systems, Demand for Trails, Ecology and Environment, Encouraging Trail Use, Hall of Fame, Health and Active Living, History Happened Here, IHTC, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Route of the Badger, TrailNation, Vermont, Walkability and Bikeability

America has an amazing collection of multiuse trails with scenery and experiences as diverse as the country itself. More than 3,800 trails are currently included on TrailLink.com, our nationwide trail-finder database—and more are added every week. Here, are the top 10 most-viewed trails by the 7 million+ trail enthusiasts who visited the website last year.

North Diversion Trail by William Hofsess

What's Your New Year's Trail Resolution? (Here are 30 ideas!)

Posted 12/29/17 by Katie Harris in Health and Wellness, Trail Use, America's Trails | Tagged with Repairs and Trail Safety, Best Of, Encouraging Trail Use, Facts and FIgures, Health and Active Living, How-to, Trail Use Tips, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

The New Year is upon us! With that said, we’re pleased to bring you this list of 30 resolutions that we hope help inspire you to get out on the trail and get active. And, we want to know: What’s your trail resolution?

Eldorado Bicycle and Walking Path in Illinois | Photo by Gary Wilhelm

Rail-Trails Honoring America’s Veterans

Posted 11/09/17 by Cindy Barks in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Best Of, Featured Magazine Articles, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Hampshire

In addition to their value for recreation and transportation, rail-trails provide public spaces to share our collective culture and history. In recognition of Veterans Day, we’ve highlighted three rail-trails that offer quiet, reflective places to honor and remember our country’s servicemen and women.

Illustration by Anthony Le

Seven Haunted Tales from America’s Trails

Posted 10/17/17 by Amy Kapp in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Best Of, Community Events, Encouraging Trail Use, History Happened Here, Maine, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Trail Destinations, Washington, West Virginia

In the “spirit” of fun this Halloween, RTC searched for the spookiest tales we could find on America’s diverse collection of rail-trails and multiuse pathways. Check out these seven great (and sometimes strange) tales below, which show that our connections to our trails and our communities can sometimes truly be … otherworldly.

View of Simon Kenton Trail bridge from Buck Creek Trail | Photo by Louis Agresta

Ohio’s Simon Kenton Trail

Posted 10/13/17 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Best Of, Connected Systems, Design Strategies, IHTC, Local Organizing, Ohio, Rail-with-Trail, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Trail Use Tips

Western Ohio’s Simon Kenton Trail, named for a 17th-century frontiersman (and friend of Daniel Boone), offers the perfect opportunity for today’s travelers to do their own exploring of the state’s scenic woodlands and rural landscapes on a 35-mile adventure stretching from Springfield to Bellefontaine. For an even more epic experience, the trail is seamlessly integrated into the expansive Miami Valley trails network, which offers 340 miles of paved trails coalescing in and around the Dayton metro area.

Los Angeles River Trail | Photo by TrailLink.com/vikemaze

Bike Path and River Restoration Spark Urban Renewal in Los Angeles

Posted 10/02/17 by Laura Cohen in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with California, Disparities and Underserved Communities, Ecology and Environment, Health and Active Living, Heritage and Restoration, Trail Destinations, Walkability and Bikeability

Public access is a key component of the LA River revitalization, and Rails-to-Trails Conservancy has been a steady supporter of the bike path, which is more than half complete, but with some challenging gaps remaining, including near downtown Los Angeles.

The Cowboy Trail's spectacular crossing of the Niobrara River near Valentine | Photo by Eric Foster

Nebraska's Cowboy Recreation and Nature Trail

Posted 09/12/17 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Trail Use, Building Trails | Tagged with Demand for Trails, Funding, Local Organizing, Maintenance and Volunteers, Nebraska, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

Adventurers, take out your bucket lists and write this one down. Nebraska’s Cowboy Recreation and Nature Trail offers an authentic Old West experience, small towns with genuine, friendly people and picturesque landscapes of the High Plains and pristine prairie. At a whopping 219 miles, it’s already the third longest rail-trail in the country and yet has 100 more miles awaiting future development.

Volunteer on Anza Trail | Photo courtesy National Park Service

Five Great Ways to Give Back to the Outdoors

Posted 09/12/17 by Suzanne Matyas in Trail Use, America's Trails, Taking Action, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Community Events, Encouraging Trail Use, Maintenance and Volunteers, Trail Use Tips, Why Use Trails?

And although there is never a bad time to pitch in, with Make a Difference Day—an annual celebration of volunteerism and good deeds—right around the corner on Saturday, Oct. 28, we’re asking everyone to join us in making a difference for trails!