TrailBlog Page 16

Graphic by RTC, Photos courtesy Hyderabad Randonneurs and TrailLink user fredjerina

Trail Moments | A Student of Biking: Learning to Love Trails

Posted 09/15/21 by Ugesh Egala in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Health and Active Living, Trail Moments, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

Bike rides clear my mind and help me focus on the rest of the day. For me, quick physical activities during the weekdays are now based around trails—a positive lifestyle change that I would encourage for everyone.

Perry's depot along the Raccoon River Valley Trail | Courtesy Raccoon River Valley Trail Association

Iowa’s Raccoon River Valley Trail

Posted 09/10/21 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Connected Systems, Great American Rail-Trail, Hall of Fame, Iowa, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Walkability and Bikeability

In pastoral west-central Iowa, the Raccoon River Valley Trail has won this year’s blue-ribbon prize: entrance into the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame. The 89-mile pathway garnered some 16,000 votes in the national competition—a figure larger than the population of most of the small towns along its route, several home to fewer than 300 people.

Arkansas's Arkansas River Trail | Photo by Scott Stark

Top 10 Trails in Arkansas

Posted 09/10/21 by Robert Annis in America's Trails | Tagged with Arkansas, Best Of, Top10, Trail Destinations

Arkansas may seem to have gone all-in on singletrack—Bentonville bills itself as the “mountain bike capital of the world”—but there’s a growing number of rail-trails! It makes sense, as Arkansas is a former railroad hotbed, with multiple lines crisscrossing the state. In the coming years, communities in northern Arkansas will spend up to $55 million on new and expanded greenways, including the 60-mile Southwest Trail linking Little Rock to Hot Springs National Park.

The Elwha River Bridge in Port Angeles along the Olympic Discovery Trail has two decks—one for vehicles and one (below it) for pedestrians and bicyclists. | Photo by John Gussman

Connections of Land, Sea and Sky: Olympic Discovery Trail

Posted 09/07/21 by Cory Matteson in America's Trails | Tagged with Featured Magazine Articles, Great American Rail-Trail, People with Disabilities, Tourism , Trail Businesses, Trail Destinations, Washington

Eventually stretching from Puget Sound to the Pacific Ocean, the Olympic Discovery Trail (ODT) is a showcase of some of the most renowned cultural and natural assets on the North Olympic Peninsula.

Photos courtesy Dale Majors and TrailLink user protoolned, graphic by RTC

Trail Moments | How To Long-Distance Bike Tour With (Six!) Young Kids

Posted 09/03/21 by Dale Majors in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, How-to, Trail Businesses, Trail Moments, Trail Use Tips, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

I know it’s intimidating to plan a route that will be safe for your family while offering sufficient camping and have other important necessities like access to grocery stores close to the trail. We’ve found that good rails-trail routes can be very forgiving to those new to bike touring. We’ve learned so much since then and wanted to share some of our hard-earned lessons to make things easier for you.

Photo by Lisa Watts, graphic by RTC

Trail Moments | The Great Bike Shortage? For Me, It Was the Great Bike Summer!

Posted 09/02/21 by Silvia Ascarelli in America's Trails | Tagged with COVID-19, Demand for Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Schools and Young People, Trail Moments, Trail Use Tips, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

In late May 2020, during the early days of the COVID-induced Great Bike Shortage, I stood in line with a neighbor to buy a used bike. Her first bike. My neighbor Shahreen is in her late 30s and didn’t know how to ride a bike, so she asked me to teach her. And so began my Great Bike Summer.

Kansas's Flint Hills Trail State Park | Courtesy Kansas Tourism

Top 10 Trails in Kansas

Posted 09/02/21 by Robert Annis in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Kansas, Top10, Trail Destinations

The geographic center of the contiguous United States, Kansas served as, and remains home to, many Native American tribes, and was a frequent passing-through point for explorers and settlers heading west to find their fortune. Today, the state hosts five National Historic Trails marking these routes: the Oregon, California, Santa Fe, Pony Express and Lewis & Clark trails. In the latter half of the 19th century, railroads followed suit. Years after many of these rail corridors fell into disrepair and disuse, local Jayhawk communities saw an opportunity to offer fun, safe human-powered connections between cities, towns and parks throughout the state (although you’ll still see horses on some of the trails). This includes the creation of one of the longest rail-trails in the country.

Maine's Down East Sunrise Trail | Photo courtesy Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

Top 10 Trails in Maine

Posted 08/23/21 by Derek M. Strout in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Maine, Top10, Trail Destinations

Lighthouses, lobsters, L.L. Bean ... Maine may be renowned for these things, but we’re confident that its miles of multiuse trails belong on this list as well. Teams of visionary and devoted trail advocates across the state have created plenty of these amazing experiences for the whole family to enjoy. Here are just 10 of our favorite trails in Maine.

Michigan's Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail | Photo by TrailLink user jeanette.sheler

Top 10 Trails in Michigan

Posted 08/12/21 by Dayani Guevara in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Michigan, Top10, Trail Destinations

Michigan is home to an intricate and expansive network of multiuse trails. With 2,478 miles of rail-trails, trail users can easily weave through all parts of the state, getting a glimpse into both urban and rural environments. Michigan is also positioned in the perfect spot for breathtaking views of the Great Lakes—the state touches four of them—and the surrounding scenery. With so many beautiful trails to enjoy, here are just 10 of our favorites.