Walkability and Bikeability Page 7

Cedar Valley Nature Trail | Photo by Liz Zabel, courtesy GO Cedar Rapids

Iowa’s Cedar Valley Nature Trail

Posted 05/14/19 by Cory Matteson in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Best Of, Ecology and Environment, Great American Rail-Trail, Health and Active Living, History Happened Here, Iowa, Local Organizing, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Walkability and Bikeability, Wild and Wonderful

Depending on who you ask, the Cedar Valley Nature Trail is either 52 miles long (the original length) or about 67 miles thanks to extension projects in Linn County. The trail’s website includes maps for both iterations. Both versions begin in Evansdale to the north and run south through a collection of small towns (Gilbertville, La Porte City, Brandon, Urbana, Center Point, Robins and Hiawatha) before reaching Cedar Rapids and, as the longer tally accounts for, now Ely.

Historic Battlefield Trail | Photo by Mark Lehmann

Find Out Why These Eight Urban Trails Are Perfect for On-Foot Exploration

Posted 04/22/19 by Suzanne Matyas, Amy Kapp in America's Trails, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Baltimore Greenway Trails Coalition, BATC, Best Of, California, Capital Trails Coalition, Caracara, Circuit Trails, Connected Systems, District Of Columbia, Florida, IHTC, Maryland, Miami LOOP, Pennsylvania, Route of the Badger, Texas, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, TrailNation, Urban Pathways, Walkability and Bikeability, Wisconsin

Whether you’re venturing to a new city or finally getting around to playing the tourist in your own backyard, walking can connect you in a unique and unequalled way. As a pedestrian, you’re able to access areas motorized vehicles cannot, meet the people that make up a community, experience nature and really immerse yourself in your surroundings.

Photo by Eva Garcia

A Grand Slam: 2019 Opening Day for Trails

Posted 04/16/19 by Suzanne Matyas in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Repairs and Trail Safety, Baltimore Greenway Trails Coalition, BATC, California, Capital Trails Coalition, CelebrateTrailsDay, Circuit Trails, Community Events, Demand for Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, IHTC, Local Organizing, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Route of the Badger, RTC in Action, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail Use Tips, TrailNation, Walkability and Bikeability, Wisconsin, Young Champions

On Saturday, April 13, people across the country kicked off the spring trail season on Opening Day for Trails (Opening Day). For the last seven years, Opening Day has brought trail newbies and long-timers together to say goodbye to winter and get outside on America’s spectacular trails and trails systems.

Warren County Bikeway | Photo courtesy Eric Pfau

New York’s Warren County Bikeway

Posted 04/16/19 by Robert Annis in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Best Of, Connected Systems, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, New York, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, TrailsTransform, Walkability and Bikeability

The Warren County Bikeway runs 10 miles between Glens Falls and Lake George, about an hour’s drive north of Albany. Riders pedal over rolling hills, past historic sites and picturesque New England villages, and through lush forests filled with pine and cedar trees. The trail is paved, but there’s a 1.5-mile section that takes riders off the path and along lightly traveled suburban streets and the Glens Falls Country Club.

New York's Walkill Valley Rail Trail | Photo by Drew Dupuy

A Sneak Peek from Our 2019 Guidebook of New Jersey & New York Rail-Trails

Posted 03/27/19 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Circuit Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Hall of Fame, Health and Active Living, Mapping and Technology, New Jersey, New York, RTC in Action, Tourism , Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Walkability and Bikeability

Within the pages of Rail-Trails: New Jersey & New York, you’ll find exceptional trails offering views of some of America’s most iconic natural treasures, such as the Great Lakes, the Atlantic Ocean coastline, the Adirondacks, the Finger Lakes and the Catskill Mountains. In this new guidebook, we highlight 58 of the region’s top rail-trails and other multiuse pathways, and as its editor, I’m thrilled to present you with this sneak peek of what’s inside. Rail-Trails: New Jersey & New York will be available next month, but here are few excepts and photos from the book to get your wheels turning!

Photo courtesy iStock by Getty Images

Step to It: Seven Ways to Spice Up Your Walks

Posted 03/13/19 by Suzanne Matyas in America's Trails, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Encouraging Trail Use, How-to, Trail Use Tips, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

It’s enjoyable. It’s a form of eco-friendly transportation. It’s exercise (and even an Olympic sport). It’s inexpensive—awesome entertainment. And it’s an unparalleled way to experience a place and to connect with your community. It’s walking.

Lift bridge, Hennepin Canal, night view | Courtesy of Hennepin Hundred

Illinois’ Hennepin Canal Parkway

Posted 03/11/19 by Cindy Barks in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Great American Rail-Trail, Illinois, Local Organizing, Maintenance and Volunteers, Threats to Trail Building, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Walkability and Bikeability

Now, with its 112-year history, the Hennepin Canal Parkway seems a natural for its latest chapter—as a “gateway trail” in the nearly 4,000-mile Great American Rail-Trail, a cross-country route planned by Rails to Trails Conservancy (RTC) to stretch across the United States, from Washington, D.C., to Washington State.

Fun run 5k on W&OD Trail in Arlington, VA | Photo courtesy Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

Here Are 13 Ways to Celebrate Opening Day for Trails on April 13

Posted 02/14/19 by Amy Kapp in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Best Of, CelebrateTrailsDay, Community Events, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, Trail Destinations, Walkability and Bikeability

This year’s Opening Day for Trails is going to be one of the best yet, as people across the country officially kick off spring by hitting their favorite pathways (or new ones!). Below are just 13 ways you can celebrate Opening Day in your own neighborhood and beyond.

Photo courtesy Prairie Corridor Foundation

Developing Trail in Lincoln Celebrates Nebraska’s Tallgrass Prairie Legacy

Posted 02/13/19 by Matthew Horne in Policy | Tagged with Connected Systems, Ecology and Environment, Heritage and Restoration, Nebraska, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, TrailsTransform, Walkability and Bikeability

Welcome to Nebraska’s tallgrass prairie, a rapidly disappearing ecosystem that Nebraskans are racing to preserve—and they hope to do just that with a new corridor and trail: the Prairie Corridor on Haines Branch.

Photo by Jeff London

Pennsylvania’s Mahoning Shadow Trail

Posted 02/12/19 by Danielle Phillippi in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Best Of, Community Events, Connected Systems, Cross-Sector Collaboration, Demand for Trails, Funding, Health and Active Living, Heritage and Restoration, History Happened Here, Local Organizing, Maintenance and Volunteers, Pennsylvania, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Walkability and Bikeability

Learn how the legendary groundhog Punxsutawney Phil helped create the Pennsylvania's Mahoning Shadow Trail in RTC's trail of the month feature.

Tony Knowles Coastal Trail | Photo by Jody O. Photos, courtesy Visit Anchorage

Alaska’s Tony Knowles Coastal Trail

Posted 01/15/19 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Alaska, Best Of, Biking, Demand for Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Heritage and Restoration, History Happened Here, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Transportation and Health, Walkability and Bikeability, Wild and Wonderful, Winter Uses

With views of the rugged Chugach Mountains and tidal inlets, Alaska’s Tony Knowles Coastal Trail offers a breathtaking experience unlike any other rail-trail in the country. Learn more in our Trail of the Month feature.

Baltimore, Maryland | Photo by Side A Photography

Eight Critical Wins for TrailNation in 2018

Posted 12/05/18 by Liz Thorstensen in America's Trails, Building Trails, Success Stories | Tagged with Baltimore Greenway Trails Coalition, Best Of, Biking, California, Capital Trails Coalition, Caracara, Circuit Trails, Connected Systems, Demand for Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Facts and FIgures, Florida, Funding, Health and Active Living, Health Organizations, IHTC, Local Organizing, Mapping and Technology, Maryland, Miami LOOP, New Jersey, Route of the Badger, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, TrailNation, Transportation and Health, Urban Pathways, Virginia, Walkability and Bikeability, West Virginia, Wisconsin

This past year, RTC worked with hundreds of partners across TrailNation to secure funding, provide technical expertise and generate public support for trail networks that are proving vital to the people and places they serve. Here is a spotlight on some of the critical project advances we made in 2018—and how they are bringing to life our vision of trails at the heart of healthy, thriving communities.