Indiana

Indiana's Erie Lackawanna Trail

Posted 03/16/18 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Community Events, Connected Systems, Demand for Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Heritage and Restoration, History Happened Here, Indiana, Success Stories, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Walkability and Bikeability

Erie Lackawanna Trail | Photo by Eric Allix Rogers

Northwest Indiana’s Erie Lackawanna Trail offers an experience of beautiful contrasts. The region boasts sandy dunes, a glimmering Great Lake and windswept prairies, but also has a rich industrial and railroad heritage, some of the largest cities in the state, and the urbanization and cultural vibrancy that comes with its close proximity to Chicago. The diversity and bounty of these surroundings is well matched by the area’s growing system of interconnected multi-use trails that’s allowing near-seamless people-powered transportation between these natural and manmade assets. The nearly 18-mile Erie Lackawanna Trail alone connects to or is in close range of half dozen other trails.

Full Story
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.

Volunteers on Montour Trail | Photo courtesy Montour Trail Council

5 Feel-Good Stories of Amazing Trail Volunteers

Posted 10/11/17 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Taking Action, Success Stories | Tagged with Community Events, Indiana, Maintenance and Volunteers, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Success Stories, Trail Destinations, Washington

I’ve had the pleasure of sharing more than 100 trail stories with RTC members over the years—and have been awed, inspired and impressed by the tireless work of trail advocates and volunteers too many times to count. Below are just a few of these—and I can’t wait to discover more.

Tampa Riverwalk, funded by a TIGER grant | Photo courtesy Matthew Paulson | CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

How Funding for Trails Moves America: 5 Trails Funded by TIGER

Posted 08/22/17 by Leeann Sinpatanasakul in America's Trails, Success Stories, Policy | Tagged with Arkansas, Case Studies, District Of Columbia, Federal, Funding, Georgia, Indiana, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Private Fundraising, State and Federal Programs, Success Stories, Trail Destinations

The federal TIGER program has funded more than $340 million in projects for trails, walking and biking to date—making it a powerful resource for those who want to create multimodal transportation choices in their communities for those who cannot or choose not to drive. Through the leveraging of additional federal, state, local and even private philanthropic sources, the highly competitive program (which also funds highway, freight rail, transit and maritime projects) promotes interplay between all levels of government and the private sector and strikes a good deal for federal transportation investments.

Tracks in Augusta | Photo courtesy Jim Grey | CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Notice: Upcoming Railroad Abandonment in Blackford County, Indiana

Posted 08/10/17 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in Building Trails, America's Trails | Tagged with Abandonment Notices, Corridors and Railbanking, Indiana

On or about Aug. 1, 2017, Norfolk Southern Railway Company filed for the abandonment of 0.2 miles of track in Hartford City, Blackford County, Indiana. We are providing this information because it presents an opportunity to develop a real regional asset: a multiuse trail that can accommodate hikers, bikers, equestrians and other appropriate uses.

Fallasburg Covered Bridge (Lowell, Michigan) along the North Country Trail/Iron Belle Trail | Photo by Tom Pidgeon Photography

Best of the Midwest: Five Major Trail Developments in America’s Heartland

Posted 11/14/16 by Brian K. Housh in Policy, Building Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Connected Systems, IHTC, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Route of the Badger, State and Federal Programs, Wisconsin

Today, representatives of 22 bike/ped organizations and government agencies from six states are convening in Illinois for Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s 2016 Midwest Policy Summit. The bike/ped landscape in the region has changed dramatically in recent years, and there are many major projects in the works. Here are five big happenings in the Heartland that are changing the face of active transportation (in no particular order).

Indy Cultural Trail in Indianapolis, Ind. | Photo by Robert Annis

The Time Is Right for Trails in Indy (New Hours, New Opportunities)

Posted 03/09/15 by Katie Harris in Trail Use | Tagged with Indiana, OpeningDay, Trail Communities

As we lead up to Opening Day for Trails 2015, we’re pleased to highlight another great example of a community doing great work on the ground to make their trails great places to walk and bike. Spring is a time of transition, longer days and, for many of us, enjoying that glorious sunshine we’ve been deprived of for the last few months! In Indianapolis, however, the change in seasons comes with another change for trail systems around the city: extended hours for trail use!

Top 10 Trails in Indiana

Posted 12/01/14 by Katie Harris in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Best Of, Indiana

We asked the great residents and visitors of Indiana to tell us which trails deserve a top 10 honor. Thanks for your input! We loved hearing your enthusiasm for Indiana’s trails, from urban corridors to rural routes and everything in between. To wrap up Indiana Month, RTC brings you this list of Top 10 Trails in the Hoosier State!

On the B&O Trail | Photo by Diana Virgil

What Could Be: Visionary Thinking Builds the B&O Trail

Posted 11/25/14 by Katie Harris in Building Trails | Tagged with Indiana, Overcoming Opposition

When Diana Virgil, president of the B&O Trail Association, first started on the B&O Trail in Indiana back in 1992, she had a clear vision of what could be. But, like many big thinkers, she was a little before her time, and resistance to her trail vision was standard. In fact, she believes she probably had more opponents than supporters during those beginning years.

Photo courtesy Freewheelin' Community Bikes (FWCB)

Positive Peer Pressure: Indy Earn-a-Bike Program Teaches Bike (and Life) Skills

Posted 11/18/14 by Katie Harris in Success Stories | Tagged with Repairs and Trail Safety, Indiana, Schools and Young People

Freewheelin' Community Bikes is a nonprofit ​ ​that uses bicycles to “bring out the best in people and their community.” It’s eight weeks of commitment for kids ages 10 to 16, with a big pay off at the other end: a set of wheels, and the knowledge and confidence that comes from knowing how to repair a bicycle.