Trail Communities

Cedar Lake Trail in Minneapolis, Minnesota | Photo by Tony Hull, Toole Design Group

How to Prepare for Your First Long-Distance Trail Ride

Posted 02/14/17 by Tom Sexton in Trail Use, Building Trails | Tagged with Best Of, How-to, Pennsylvania, Sojourn Series, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations

As Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) prepares for our 2017 Pennsylvania Sojourn on the Great Allegheny Passage and Montour Trail this June, we thought it was a great time to present five simple tips for long-distance trail rides! These are useful tips for any individuals who aren’t hard bike riders but who are interested in their first longer (over the course of several days or a week) off-road trip.

Moment from the 2015 Pennsylvania Rail-Trail Sojourn | Photo by Cleo Fogal, courtesy RTC

RTC’s 2017 Pennsylvania Sojourn Is Going to Be Awesome. Here’s Why.

Posted 01/12/17 by Amy Kapp in Trail Use, Building Trails | Tagged with Maryland, Pennsylvania, Sojourn Series, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations

We’re so excited that you’ve decided to join us on Rails-to-Trail’s Conservancy’s 2017 Pennsylvania Sojourn, which—with its amazing sites, legendary route along the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) and Montour Trail, and welcoming towns—promises to be an adventure of a lifetime. Here are just 10 reasons why this year’s trip is going to be awesome.

Trail's End Monument in Sedalia, 35 miles east of the Katy Trail's western end in Clinton, celebrating Sedalia's history as the first "cow town" | Photo by Danielle Taylor

Pathway to Prosperity: Missouri's Katy Trail Is a Beautiful Model for Commerce

Posted 12/02/16 by Danielle Taylor in America's Trails, Success Stories | Tagged with Featured Magazine Articles, Missouri, Tourism and Economic Development, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations

Missouri’s nickname—the “Show Me State”—reflects its residents’ prudent tendency to question unsubstantiated claims, so when early proponents of the Katy Trail began advocating for its creation in the mid-1980s, it was only natural that their assertions of increased tourism and economic prosperity met with a few skeptics. However, the trail has proved its worth several times over in the quarter-century since it opened, and it now supports more than 400,000 recreational users each year as well as dozens of communities and hundreds of small businesses statewide.

Ohio and Erie Canalway Towpath Trail (under Hope Memorial Bridge) along Cleveland's Cuyahoga River | Photo courtesy Behnke Landscape Architecture

Seven Wonders of the Ohio to Erie Trail

Posted 07/14/16 by Laura Stark in Building Trails, America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Biking, IHTC, Ohio, Tourism , Trail Communities, Trail Destinations

One state, 202 miles, four days, two wheels—it all adds up to an awesome biking adventure on the Ohio to Erie Trail, which crosses the Buckeye State at a diagonal like a prized sash. Here are seven amazing highlights of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Statue of Neptune along the Virginia Beach Boardwalk | Photo by Scott Stark

Destination: Virginia Beach

Posted 07/11/16 by Scott Stark in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Biking, Featured Magazine Articles, Tourism , Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Virginia

Experience the diverse sights and wonders of four trails around Virginia Beach—one of the state’s most popular destinations. Working together to help create a complete cultural experience, the Cape Henry Trail, Elizabeth River Trail, Norfolk Avenue Trail and Virginia Beach Boardwalk are also part of the proposed Beaches to Bluegrass Trail System, which could one day span all of southern Virginia.

Trail's End Monument in Sedalia, 35 miles east of the Katy Trail's western end in Clinton, celebrating Sedalia's history as the first "cow town" | Photo by Danielle Taylor

Destination Missouri: Katy Trail State Park

Posted 07/11/16 by Danielle Taylor in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Biking, Featured Magazine Articles, Missouri, Tourism , Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations

Missouri’s Katy Trail State Park is the nation’s second-longest rail-trail (at nearly 238 miles) and arguably one of its most celebrated.The route bisects Missouri at its waistline, allowing trail users to glimpse a 100-foot-wide slice of the state and revealing some of the geographic variety, cultural diversity, historical significance and exceptional people therein.

Bicyclists wave on day 1 (Sunday, June 19) of RTC's West Virginia Sojourn, which took nearly 130 riders from Parkersburg to Salem, W.Va., and back via the North Bend Rail Trail. | Photo by Mark E. Abbott

RTC Sojourners Wrap Ride in West Virginia

Posted 06/24/16 by Parkersburg News and Sentinel in Building Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Biking, Demand for Trails, Sojourn Series, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, West Virginia

Nearly 130 bicyclists ranging in age from 7 to 77 rode into the city Wednesday to conclude Rails-to-Trails Conservancy's 2016 West Virginia Sojourn.

Ben Franklin Bridge in Philadelphia | Photo courtesy Mark Willard | CC by 2.0

Forty-Years-Unused Rail Line Could Mean Huge Connections for New Jersey

Posted 02/11/16 by Liz Sewell in Building Trails | Tagged with Demand for Trails, Disparities and Underserved Communities, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Trail Communities

If transformed into a trail, a disused rail segment in Pennsauken, New Jersey, near Merchantville, could help link underserved communities to amenities in New Jersey, Philadelphia and beyond. Read about this in-progress initiative.

Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Towpath, part of the September 11th National Memorial Trail corridor | Photo courtesy PA DCNR

CSX Donates 130 Acres to Complete National September 11th Memorial Trail

Posted 12/09/15 by Kelly Pack in Building Trails, America's Trails | Tagged with Corridors and Railbanking, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations

Earlier this Fall, CSX announced their donation of 130 acres to help complete the September 11th National Memorial Trail, a planned 1,300-mile multi-use trail that commemorates those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001. The current corridor plan—shaped as a triangle—comprises a series of trail systems connecting the World Trade Center, Flight 93 and Pentagon memorials.

Nov. 1, 2015, ribbon cutting for the Thorn Creek Trail and Old Plank Road Trail extensions in Chicago Heights, Illinois | Photo by Thomas' Photographic Services

Illinois Completes Southeast Portion of 500-Mile "Grand" Trail Network

Posted 11/13/15 by Amy Kapp in Building Trails, Success Stories | Tagged with Connected Systems, Illinois, Trail Communities

A ribbon cutting recently took place in Chicago Heights, Illinois, to celebrate the completion of extensions for the 16-mile Thorn Creek Trail and 22-mile, in-progress Old Plank Road Trail. This is big for Cook and Will counties and big for the entire region, as it brings the 500-Mile Grand Illinois Trail Network closer to completion.

Cowboy Trail in Nebraska | Photo courtesy Ken Ratcliff | CC by 2.0

Nebraska Celebrates New Section of Cowboy Trail in Sheridan County

Posted 10/09/15 by Amy Kapp in Building Trails, America's Trails | Tagged with Demand for Trails, Nebraska, Trail Communities

Thanks to the efforts of Cowboy Trail West, Inc. and the Nebraska Game and Park Commission, three miles (two sections) of the Cowboy Recreation and Nature Trail in Gordon and Rushville have just been completed, culminating in a public dedication on Oct. 3., 2015.