What's New in Miami Valley Rail Trails?
There are 324 miles of paved trail in the Miami Valley 
(See Trail List for all Trails and mileage)
 in the Miami Valley (2009) 

The following is a list of the major changes to the Miami Valley RailTrails Web Site, or trail news with the most recent changes shown first.

24 June 2009

• Union City Gateway dedicated - On Friday 19 June this new one mile trail was dedicated in Union City Ohio. The trail spans the state line between Ohio and Indiana. It is only the beginning of connectivity from the trail in Ohio, which I am calling the Ohio-Indiana Trail  to the Cardinal Greenway in Indiana. 
  
• New Trail Construction in Kyle Park (Tipp City) Complete -  I was informed by an alert reader that the trail that was to be built to the South end of Kyle Park was completed. 

21 June 2009

• Rivers Edge Trail South from Lock 9 Park to Peterson Road (Completed)   - I was able to take photos of this new three mile section of the trail today and built a new webpage for your "reading" and "viewing" pleasure. 

16 June 2009

• New Prairie Grass Trail Construction in Madison and Franklin County - As you know the Prairie Grass Trail (AKA Ohio To Erie Trail) starts at the Xenia Station, runs through Cedarville, South Charleston, London and currently ends 6.5 miles East of London at Wilson Road. The Franklin County Parks Department and the Columbus and Franklin County MetroParks are working together to extend the trail 11 more miles into Columbus. Called the Camp Chase RailTrail (since it goes past Camp Chase a Civil War POW Camp in Columbus). The sections are as follows:

  • Section 1 Wilson Road to Kropp Road (6 miles) - The first section has started construction. This 6 mile section starts at Wilson Road (the current end of trail), runs through the town of Lily Chapel, crosses into Franklin County and goes through the town of Georgesville to end at Kropp Road. The builders are hoping to have this six mile section completed this year; 2009.

  • Section 2 - Kropp Road to Galloway Road (2.4 miles)- This section starts at Kropp Road and runs 2.4 miles through the town of Galloway to end at Galloway Road. I do not have a timetable for Section 2 yet. 

  • Section 3 - Galloway Road to Columbus and Sullivant Road (3 miles) - The final section of the Camp Chase RailTrail will run 3 miles from Galloway Road crossing into Columbus. It will go under I-270 and end at Sullivant Avenue. At 2900 Sullivant Avenue is the Camp Chase Cemetery .

15 June 2009

• June 2009 Newsletter is Available -  We had a trail dedication at Piqua and some more news about the trail from Kyle Park to Taylorsville MetroPark. The Miami County Trails Task Force is planning for lateral trails from the main North to South trail that we will begin telling you more about.  I provide some construction plans by Five Rivers MetroParks for the Stillwater River Recreation Trail. There is news from Cincinnati about the Ohio River Trail. I have had a Ohio River Trail page for several years and I updated it (and other pages) this month. There is also new construction going on East of London on the Prairie Grass Trail.  The Little River Cafe in Oregonia is being rebuilt. The Southwest Ohio Waterways & Pathways is available at your bike shop or park's office. There are some new cycling events going on in the Valley. This month's featured webpage is the Trail Etiquette and Safety Page as well as the Law Page (bicycling law). 

15 May 2009 

• May 2009 Newsletter is Available -  This month we have property acquisition news from Clinton County, Trail Construction in Miami County (4 sections will be in work this year) and several webpages updated including Events, About Trail Names, Trail Usage Statistics and Approved Projects. I have also completely revised the Trails in Miami County page.  In our Did You Know? section the Cities of Columbus and Riverside got some recognition for working towards Bike Friendly status recently. The Drive Less Live More Campaign for 2009 has started. There are several new events including two trail dedications; the Iron Horse Trail in Centerville and the Towpath Trail in St. Mary's. Finally I have more information about the Interactive Trails Maps as my Webpage of the Month for May. 

05 May 2009

• About Multi-Use Trail Names and Route Numbers (Updated) - I have had a webpage for some time that explains that many trails have more than one name. This makes it a bit confusing when talking about them. On the same page I have information about a trail numbering system that five counties in Southwest Ohio are now using to mark your trails. 

02 May 2009 

• Events Page Updated - I have added a number of new events to this page. And I have deleted events that have already occurred. 

30 April 2009

• Trail Usage Statistics and Economic Benefits of Trails - page updated - I received trail usage statistics from Greene County for 2007 and 2008 and added them to the webpage. This page documents all of the data I have from every county or city in the area that is collecting data usage statistics using counters. 

27 April 2009 

• Updates to trails in the Fairborn Area-  I recently updated several pages to show new links to the National Parks Service (NPS) Wright Brothers parks area. They are:
  • Mad River Recreation Trail (Extension) - As you know this trail will be extended about 3 miles Northeast of it's current end point in Eastwood MetroPark to Huffman MetroPark. This construction will occur in 2010. 
  • Wright Brothers Bikeway - I updated it as well to show better links to the National Parks Service website that features sites about the Wright Brothers in the vicinity of the Air Force Museum including the Wright Brothers Interpretive Center at the Wright Brothers Memorial 
  • T-Connector & Wright Brothers Flying Field - I updated this page as well to show the Flying Field better and give better links to NPS. 
  • Three Counties Trail - As above I updated my links to NPS and made other changes to make your reading easier. As many of you know this trail that would have run from Eastwood MetroPark Park to Huffman MetroPark and then followed the Wright Brothers Bikeway into Fairborn would have been extended though Fairborn (Greene County) to Enon Park in Clark County but may not be built because of the current interest in passenger rail service in Ohio. 

21 April 2009

• New Trail Brochures Available for You - The Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission (MVRPC) has produced three brochures to accompany their outstanding Miami Valley Trails Map. I have the Adobe Acrobat copies of the three including:

  • Getting Started - Using Your Bicycle As Basic Transportation 

  • Bicycle Equipment Checklist

  • Cycling Safely, Predictably and Visibly

  available for download and printing. If you order a Map from MVRPC they will include the three brochures for your use. 

17 April 2009

• Interactive Trails Maps Added to Website -  I was able to secure rights to an Interactive set of Trails Maps for the Miami Valley. They have amazing information about the trails in the area including pictures and videos of the trails. Check It Out!

15 April 2009

• April 2009 Newsletter is Available - There is new construction planned for RiverScape in downtown Dayton as well as the City of Xenia's construction plans for this year. Most importantly, I have added a New Interactive Maps page to the website. I updated a lot of pages and added several. I give you detailed information (Section by Section) about the trail construction in Miami County. I provide economic benefits of trails and give your more information about Courteous Mass, a new bicycle group in Dayton. 

11 April 2009

• New Bicycling Brochures from MVRPC-  The Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission (MVRPC) has put three short brochures on their webpage for your use. I have downloaded them and added them to the Trail Safety information on my Trail Etiquette & Safety page as well as the Trail Maps Page. 

04 April 2009

• Trail Etiquette & Safety - A sharp eyed reader noticed that I had not discussed handicapped trail users on my Trail Etiquette & Safety page. I have updated the page. 

29 March 2009

• Greenville Creek Trail - I visited Greenville recently and had a chance to see (and photograph) this lovely short trail. Darke County Parks District  will be using this trail in Alice Bish Park as the beginning of their trail across the entire county to connect with Piqua in Miami County (eventually) and to the Union City Gateway (into Indiana) to connect (eventually with Indiana's Cardinal Greenway.)

27 March 2009

• Ohio River Trail Gets Funding - I recently got information that the long awaited Ohio River Trail that will connect to the Little Miami Scenic Trail near Lunken Airport in Cincinnati, got several funding boosts. See my Ohio River Trail webpage for all the details. 

26 March 2009

• Counter Data Received for Little Miami Scenic Park - I received the raw data from the three new counters in the Little Miami Scenic Park run by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. I added the data to my Trail Usage Statistics and Economic Benefits of Trails page. 
  
• Economic (and other) Benefits of Trails, Greenways and Open Space - I attended a Seminar at the Five Rivers MetroParks "Outdoor Summit" in February. Mr. Rory Robinson of the National Parks Service was the speaker and I was very impressed with his statistics on the economic benefits of trails. I asked him for electronic copies of his handouts. The new webpage is the result. 

15 March 2009 

• March 2009 Newsletter Is Available -  This month I profile the winners of the Federal Stimulus money, as well as information about the Mad River Recreation Trail extension in Riverside. Next I give you descriptions and links to five Dayton Daily News stories about bicycle trail planning in the area. I talk about what changes I have made to the website (removing dead links, for example) more useful for you. And then I describe what other changes I have made to the website this pas month. I tell you about a new OKI bicycle map of the region as well as a new events calendar on the new Go 4 The Outdoors website. Then I tell you more about the Outdoor Summit and the Economic Benefits of Bicycle Trails seminar I attended. Finally I tell you about new Events on my calendar including rides in Greene County with Trail Sentinels, a new street biking event called Courteous Mass and tell you that this month's webpage is the Mad River Recreational Trail.  

07 March 2009

• Updated Events Page for 2009 - I updated the Bicycling Events in the Miami Valley page with several new links including a new Outdoors Calendar from the new Go 4 The Outdoors website. 

20 February 2009 

• Updated Trail Maps Page - I am always on the outlook for tools that will help you plan your trail rides. The Ohio, Kentucky & Indiana Regional Council of Governments (known as OKI) funds all of the trails in Southern Ohio as well as Northern Kentucky and Eastern Indiana. They have established an online map resource that shows every built trail as well as every planned trail in the area. The URL is : http://maps.oki.org/Bike/  Or go to my Trail Maps Page and read the description there. 

14 February 2009

• February 2009 Newsletter Is Available  -  This month I give you detour information about the Paul Lawrence Dunbar Connector in downtown Dayton where the Wolf Creek enters the Great Miami River. Mike Monett has been adding updates to his Google Maps of the Miami Valley. I am abandoning the Multiply product which was the successor to MSNBC website that I used to communicate with you. There was a devastating fire at the Little River Cafe in Oregonia on the morning of February 13, 2009. I am asking you to provide letters and emails of support to Mr. Mark Burris, the owner of the Cafe. In Upcoming Events the Adventure Summit is at Wright State University 20-21 February and I have the new National Parks Service "Bike With A Ranger" schedule for 2009. And lastly this month's Webpage Of The Month is my Miami Valley Trails page where I keep track of every trail and every connected trail in the area. 

9 February 2009

• Detour on the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail -  The City of Dayton Engineering Department provided me with a MAP that shows you the detour you can use on the Wolf Creek Trail (see Below).
• National Parks Service's  Bike With A Ranger Brochure Available - I was recently given the 2009 brochure that gives all of the details of the very successful Bike With a Ranger program 

6 February 2009

• Edwin Moses Bridge over Wolf Creek Recreation Trail being replaced  - I've placed information on the Lawrence C. Dunbar portion of the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail warning cyclists that the bridge at the mouth of Wolf Creek is being replaced starting February 2008 and will be finished December 2010. I'll be putting information about a detour on the page soon. 

22 January 2009

• Trail Usage Statistics Page Updated - I am in the process of updating this page. At the end of each year I ask all of the parks departments that collect data to provide it to me. I have not only been updating the page, but asking those organizations who do not collect trail data, to buy counters and start. At the January Regional Trails Committee meeting held by MVRPC, it was agreed in principle that the parks departments would start planning to perform periodic trail counts (using people to actually count trail use). Planning will start in February 2009. 

16 January 2009

• January 2009 Newsletter Is Available -  News this month includes more about the Friends of the Little Miami Scenic Park, information about the new bridge to be built in downtown Dayton on the Wolf Creek as well as news from the quarterly MVRPC Regional Trails Committee meeting. I repeated information about the new Google Maps overlay that Mike Monett has built for our joint use. I mentioned that I updated my end of year Web Statistics page and I tell all of you more about my move from a website at MSNBC to its replacement; Multiply. I'm still looking for pictures of the Sherman Avenue Bridge on the Buck Creek Trail and the Webpage of the Month is the Simon Kenton Trail. 

10 January 2009

• Web Statistics Page Updated -  Several times a year, and always at the end of the year, I update my webpage that shows the activity on the website. I updated the page with data from Google Analytics and Quantcast. 

13 December 2008

• December 2008 Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletter is Available-  The news this month includes Construction on the Xenia-Jamestown Connector in Greene County,  the Little Miami Scenic Trail reopens and I provide a Google Maps overlay from Mike Monett for all of the trails in the Miami Valley. Because of his efforts I found some new trail segments that I was unaware of. Greene County Parks erected 16 new standard signs; 5 at Xenia Station. I provide a new timetable for the Mad River Recreation Trail extension to Huffman MetroPark. This month I updated my list of all trails in Ohio. This includes the alphabetical list as well as the list by region and county. Because of the newly discovered trail segments I had to update a number of pages to acknowledge them as well as updating my Trail Maps page to show Mike Monett's Google Earth maps. I recommend that all of you download and view his work. This month I asked for photos of the Sherman Avenue bridge on the Buck Creek Trail and told you about the Friends of the Little Miami Scenic Park. I quote an article about bicycle from Parade Magazine and finally tell all of you about the migration of my MSN website that I use for a mailing list to a new MSN product called "Multiply". 

08 December 2008

• Trail Mileage Grows -  I have added 5 more miles to the list of all the trails in the Miami Valley. 
  • Main Street - Pinnacle Road Bike Path - I found out about the "main Street - Pinnacle Road Bike Path" (nominal name) in the City of Moraine which is about 4 miles long from the Great Miami River Recreation Trail alongside Main Street and then Pinnacle Road to Deer Meadow Park (formerly Pinnacle Park) in western Moraine.
  • Towler Road Spur - I also found out about a .5 mile spur from the Creekside Trail along Towler Road to West Side Park in Xenia
  • Xenia- Jamestown Connector Grows - The Xenia-Jamestown Connector was extended about .5 mile from Jasper Road to Hoop Road near Xenia. 

03 December 2008

• Google Earth maps of the entire Miami Valley Trails System – A very helpful reader, Mr. Mike Monett, spent a lot of time building the entire trails system into Goggle Earth. Click Here to see his webpage about the trails system. You will need to download and installed the free Goggle Earth software to take advantage of these new maps with links to my website. Mike’s downloadable file will enable you to see all of the trails in the system including some “Bird’s Eye” views of certain areas. Because he has marked the trails in planning in red you can see where our trail system will expand in the future. On the maps those places marked with a “P” have more information, including some “Bird’s Eye” views and links to the webpage on my website that has the detailed information to go along with Mike’s efforts. 

01 December 2008

• Updates to Rail Trails, Towpaths And Other Trails In Ohio - I have been updating the pages for my links to all of the trails in Ohio. Soon I'll have all the pages with maps updated as well. 

16 November 2008 

• November Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletter is Available - The Great Miami River Recreation Trail reopened this month and the Iron Horse Trail in Centerville was finished. The trail is now complete in Miami County from Kyle Park (South of Tipp City) to Lytle Road (North of Troy) a total of 10.6 miles. Miami Conservancy District put up the first new signage that you'll be seeing on our local trails. There are two sections of the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Miami County) currently under construction. I have updated many of the trail pages for Miami County to reflect new construction. There was a good article about our trails in the Nashville Tennessean and I got a very nice email from an out-of-town user of our trails. Because of all the trail construction in Miami County the Trails in Miami County is this month's featured webpage. 

30 October 2008

• Tipp City Trail at Nature Center Dedicated - The Section 3 Trail from Tipp City's Nature Center North to the Southern end of Section 1 of the trail was dedicated Thursday 30 October 2008. This means that the trail is open from Kyle Park in Tipp City to Lytle Road North of Troy a distance of over 10 miles. The trail within Tipp City (Kyle Park to Section 1 is 3.58 miles long). 

24 October 2008

• New Iron Horse Trail (Centerville) Is Completed  - My "Spies" told me recently that the Iron Horse Trail being built in Centerville on the railbed of the old Cincinnati, Lebanon & Northern RR (CL&N) was near completion. I took new photos and have completely revised the webpage for your viewing pleasure. 

19 October 2008

• October Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletter is Available -  Three trails are completed in the Miami Valley. Two of them have announced dedication ceremonies that you are invited to attend. I have updated the Links Page, as well as the Trail Usage Page, Approved Multi-Use Trail Projects page and Miami-2-Miami Trail page. The $700 Billion dollar bailout plan has something in it for commuting cyclists. And this month's Webpage Of The Month is the Miami-2-Miami Trail page.
   
• Miami-2-Miami Trail Page Updated-   I added the fact that an important meeting was held on 16 October in Liberty Township. I'll be providing more information on this page as it is received. 

04 October 2008

• Links Page Updated - I have added new links to local cycling clubs and blogs to help you learn about cycling events in the Cincinnati area. 

03 October 2008 

• Trail Usage Statistics Page Updated -  I have been keeping trail usage statistics on this page for some years. It shows the year by year growth in the use of our trails. Also on this page I have been attempting to capture the Economic Impact of the trails on the local communities. That is, as the trails are used more, then the trail users spend a higher total on their trail outings. Recently a student studying Community Planning at the University of Cincinnati wrote a Masters Thesis titled: " The Impact of the Little Miami Scenic Trail on Single Family Residential Property Values" (3.8 Mb Adobe File. In the Abstract the author summarizes the study saying that the closer a house is to the trail, the higher is its property value!

02 October 2008

• Approved Multi-Use Trail Projects Updated- I am engaged in updating fully the webpage where I show all of the planned trails in the Miami Valley. I just updated all of the Clark County projects with the latest information with the help of the Transportation Coordinating Committee (TCC) which is Clark County's Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO); which is the organization that plans and funds for all transportation facilities in the county, including trails. I'll be updating the MPO for Montgomery, Greene and Miami counties as well as the Cincinnati MPO as soon as I can get the information. 

14 September 2008

• Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletter is Available -   This month I tell you about MVRPC's long range plan that has been approved, the Little Miami Scenic Trail is broken in two pieces, and there is news on the planned Bellbrook to Spring Valley Trail. I have new information about trail construction in Miami County. I have updated my Approved Projects page with the MVRPC data (above) as well as my Trails in Miami Valley, What's New?, Trail Statistics and Miami-2-Miami Trail pages. There is a new bicycle club in town and I republish a letter to "Dear Abby" from a Dayton cyclist. I remind my readers that the Clean Ohio initiative will be on the ballot in November and ask "What's you Neighborhood Walk Score? The Webpage of the Month in September is the Prairie Grass Trail (AKA Ohio to Erie Trail). 

04 September 2008

• Updated Miami-2-Miami Trail Page -  I have added new maps to the page and a ink to a Cincinnati Enquirer article about new trails in Deerfield Township and the City of Mason. 

25 August 2008 

• MVRPC had their Long Range Transportation Plan (2030) approved by the Federal Highway Administration. In Chapter VII of the document are all the approved (funded) and approved (unfunded) multi-use trail projects. I have updated the:
  • Trails In Miami County page as well as the
  • Approved Multi-Use Trail Projects Page.  I have added map references to each project and added the new MVRPC map so you can see where each trail will be. 

16 August 2008

• Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletter is Available  - The Wolf Creek Recreation Trail is open again, and there is more construction on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail from West Carrollton to Miamisburg. I explain about the "Complete Streets" concept in our trail planning, and tell you about three new trail segments being built in Miami County. This year Tipp City and Troy will be connected! The Village of Versailles is starting to plan trails, and Sidney built a one mile trail. The Little Miami Scenic Trail will grow in Anderson Township since they got new funds. I've updated a LOT of webpages to reflect construction projects and I show you examples of our new trail signs that we will be erecting soon in Montgomery, Miami and Clark counties. This month's Webpage of the Month is the Approved Multi-Use Trail Projects page.  

12 August 2008

• Construction on Great Miami River Recreation Trail -  Beginning 1 August the Miami Conservancy District will be repaving the Great Miami River Recreation Trail from West Carrollton South to Miamisburg. Construction will take about three months (November 2008). Two webpages show construction information
  • Stewart Street Bridge to Crains Run Section - From Farmersville-West Carrollton Road South 
  • Crains Run to Franklin Section - Construction ends at Sycamore Creek in Miamisburg 
    
• New Construction Pictures of Iron Horse Trail in Centerville - Several of my readers sent me some new pictures of the Iron Horse Trail construction and I updated the page for your reading pleasure.  
  

11 August 2008

• Troy Trails Update -   I recently took new pictures of the trail in downtown Troy. Last year the city of Troy added a new trail section downtown and took the trail off of the sidewalk on the top of the Eastern levee. Now the trail is at water level and goes under the Market Street and Adams Street bridges on its way to Duke Park. 
  
  
• Tipp City Trail Update - I've updated this page to reflect that it will be connected to the Troy Trail (see above) in 2008. 
  
  
• Trails in Miami County - I've updated this page to show construction to be accomplished in 2008

25 July 2008 

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) - Construction of this 14.5 mile trail is now complete from Triangle MetroPark in downtown Dayton along the Great Miami River to Taylorsville MetroPark in Huber Heights. I have added a lot of new photos and descriptions of the trail.  

20 July 2008

• Construction on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail Finished - There has been a trail washout on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail South of Miamisburg near Crains Run Nature Park since Spring. Recently I was told today (Sunday 20 July 2008) by one of "MY Spies" that the construction was completed. So now instead of six breaks in the trails near downtown Dayton we have only five. To read more about the trail breaks see my July Newsletter. 

16 July 2008

• Xenia-Jamestown Connector page Updated - I was able to get out to Jamestown recently to take new pictures of the additional 4.3 miles of trail built this Summer (2008) from Jamestown East to the Fayette County line. The railbed is owned by Fayette County from there to Washington Court House (County Seat). It is hoped that this connection can be made in the future. 
  
  
• July 2008 Newsletter Now Available -   I go to considerable lengths this month to describe "the mess" on downtown Dayton's trails. And to think that this could be avoided by some planning. Then I show you all of the webpages that I have updated to show "Construction Alerts". I rode the Xenia-Jamestown Connector (again) this week to photograph and report to you the new 4.3 mile section from Jamestown East to the Fayette County line. I have also updated this website's Statistics page as well as the Ohio Bicycle Law page. I was contacted by the folks in Pisgah to help them find documentation about the Miami-2-Miami Trail. I was happy to provide it. And I repeated my information about the Little Miami Scenic Park's looking for trail volunteers to patrol their 50 mile portion of the Little Miami Scenic Trail. 

05 July 2007 

• Website Statistics Page Updated -  I have been updating the Web Statistics page on a quarterly basis. Through the end of 2007 I was using hits as a measure of web activity. However since I have found that raw hits are not a good measure of activity. So now I am using reports from Goggle Analytics. You'll find the first half of 2008 report on the page. I show the top ten pages for views in the January - June 2008 time period for the first time. 

03 July 2008

• Corwin Peddler  is now open 7 days a week until Labor Day 2008. They have gone to their Summer Hours. Please click on the link to go to additional information.
  
  
• Ohio Bicycle Laws Updated - I have received the new changes for the bicycle law in Ohio and have highlighted the changes on the page. The Ohio Bicycle Law is connected to the Trail Etiquette & Safety page where I tell you the "Rules of the Road" as regards to cyclists. You can download a MS Word copy of the Ohio Bicycle Laws on that page or Click Here. 

16 June 2008

• June 2008 Newsletter Now Available -  The Xenia-Jamestown Connecter was extended, the Trail from Triangle MetroPark to Taylorsville MetroPark was finished, and I have news for you about Sections 3 and 5 of the Great Miami River Recreation Trail in Miami County. I have an article about trails that are planned to be built in the next couple of years, some of which have a webpage on my site but you need to go to the Site Map to find them. Since we are building new trails I had to update a number of maps to show completed trails. Finally If you'd like to be a Trail Volunteer on the Little Miami Scenic Trail in the Little Miami Scenic Park that runs from Southern Greene County to Milford, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (who run the trail there) are looking for volunteers. 

05 June 2008 

• Updated Maps in Navigate By Maps Pages - Since we have had (and will have) some trail construction this year, I have updated the maps and their links to my trails pages. 

01 June 2008

• Updated Trail Maps Page -  I have added information about an effort to map in Google Maps the entire trail system. I am collaborating with the original creator of the work Mr. JD Mackieiwcz. 

29  May 2008

• Part of Miami-2-Miami Trail Constructed -  A portion of the planned trail which when completed will run East from the Great Miami River Recreation Trail at Hamilton to the Little Miami Scenic Trail at South Lebanon was dedicated on 30 April 2008. The 2.93 mile trail segment runs West from Route 747 in Port Union to State Route 4 along the old Miami-Erie Canal. Click Here to see the article in the Hamilton Journal-News that describes it. The trail is planned to be built West to the Gilmore Ponds Interpretive Preserve in Fairfield. 

27 May 2008

• Xenia Jamestown Connector Extended - The additional 4.3 miles of trail from Jamestown East to the Fayette County line has been finished. The trail is now 12 miles long West from the Fayette County line to Jasper Road. This trail is not completed to Xenia Station. The trail will be finished to Xenia Station in 2010 or 2011. 
  
• Great Miami River Recreation Trail (GMRRT) Triangle MetroPark to Taylorsville MetroPark – This trail can be ridden now but will not be completed for a couple of weeks. Final landscaping and signage need to be installed. The trail is now 14.5 miles long from Triangle MetroPark in downtown Dayton to the Northern end of Taylorsville MetroPark at Old Springfield Road (Miami County border). Eventually, this trail will connect with the trail being built North into Miami County to connect to Tipp City, Troy, Piqua and Sidney in Shelby County.

23 May 2008

• Updated Sponsors Page -  On this page are the organizations that provide me information to help keep this website up to date. Today I revised information for the Warren County Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB). I update this page when requested by these organizations. 
• Little Miami Scenic Park Map - I have added to the Little Miami Scenic Trail home page a map from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the agency that manages 50 miles of the trail within the park for your use. 

16 May 2008

• Trail Maps Page Updated -  I have added an Adobe file copy of the Miami Valley Trails Map for your viewing pleasure. I also added a mileage chart so you can determine how far it is from one location on a trail to another.
  
• Website Statistics Page Updated - I added new statistics for the first three months of 2008 from Google Analytics to the page. 

15 May 2008

• May 2008 Newsletter Now Available  - Trail closures and delays; Stewart Street Bridge closing, construction at I-70 near Taylorsville MetroPark, Trail washout near Rice Field in Miamisburg and a trail closure of the Little Miami Scenic Trail between Morrow and the Lebanon Countryside Trail for tree root removal. MVRPC has kicked off its annual "Drive Less - Live More" campaign which includes Bike On A Bus. RideShare and Pedal Pals. MVRPC has taken the lead to make the Miami Valley a Bike Friendly Community. I have updated the site again this month, provided more events for your bicycling pleasure. The Webpage of the Month is the Creekside Trail and Creekside Recreation Trail. 

13 April 2008

• Who Do You Call For Help While On A Trail? - I have added a page to my website with the information you need to have in Greene, Montgomery, Clark, Champaign and Warren Counties, while you are on a trail. You can print it and carry it with you on your bike when you are riding our wonderful trails system. 

03 April 2008 

• Updated Events Page -  I've updated the Bicycling Events page for you with more events including bicycle rides in Yellow Springs ; the Young's Ice Cream Charity Bike Tour and the Greene County Cycling Classic as well as the Troy Classic Bicycle Races and the Calvin's Challenge. Check Them Out!

25 March 2008

• Approved Multi-Use Trail Projects -  I updated the page with the latest round of trail funds from the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission. This means that several more trail projects more closer to be accomplished. 
• Construction on Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Downtown Dayton) - There is more bridge construction on the trail in downtown Dayton. The Monument Avenue Bridge is being replaced starting March 2008. There will be posted detours. There is also construction where I-75 crosses the Great Miami River in downtown Dayton. Both construction projects affect the trail on both sides of the river. 

15 March 2008

• March 2008 Newsletter Now Available -  Monument Street Bridge and Stewart Street Bridge (Dayton) to be replaced, more on Austin Pike relocation project (and trail), Centerville-Washington Parks District gets additional funding for Iron Horse Trail (to be built in 2008), Telephone numbers you can call for emergencies, Upcoming cycling events and this month's featured webpages are the over 20 pages dedicated to the Great Miami River Recreation Trail. 

15 February 2008 

• February 2008 Newsletter Now Available - New signs to be placed on local trails, Austin Pike Meeting 8 March 2008, I-675 Bridge Closer to Funding, Trail Usage Statistics page updated, More on Trail Etiquette, Navigation Menus at bottom of every page for your use, This month's featured webpage is the free Miami Valley RailTrails Screen-Saver which you can download. 

15 January 2008 

• January 2008 Newsletter Now Available -  Information on trail detours caused by road construction; The Tipp City trail is now on contract;  you can visit my Trail  History webpage and new data on the Statistics Page. I see that other communities have trouble building trails and I provide information on Five Rivers MetroParks "Adventure Summit to be held in February at Wright State University. Finally, this month's featured webpage is the Little Miami Scenic Trail webpages. 

13 December 2007

• December 2007 Newsletter Now Available -   Prairie Grass Trail East of London was Dedicated, Washington Street Bridge (Dayton) now open, and the Xenia-Jamestown Connector construction has been slowed. News from Miami County Trail Construction. I have added a new History Page [Unfinished] to the website. The new bicycle trail map will be printed in about three weeks. I appeal to my readers for help keeping the website current and the Rails To Trails Consortium is collecting GPS data for the trails. The webpage of the month is my Navigate By Menu or Navigate By Maps webpages. 

06 December 2007 

• Washington Street Bridge Opens -  The new bridge in downtown Dayton opened with a dedication. This new three lane bridge with sidewalks on each side had been closed for over a year for replacement. For 2008, it will serve as part of the detour when the Stewart Street Bridge (downstream) closes for replacement in June 2008. 

01 December 2007 

• Prairie Grass Trail Paved to Wilson Road -  The Prairie Grass Trail was extended by 6.5 miles of paved trail, from Maple Road in downtown London East to Wilson Road, which is only 2 miles from Franklin County. 

12 November 2007 

• November 2007 Newsletter Now Available -  Construction on the Prairie Grass Trail East of London, Stewart Street Bridge to be replaced in 2008, Huber Heights plans trail through new Carriage Trails Development, Preble County Starts Trail Planning, Union City Gateway Continues Development, New Trail Open In Lawrenceburg, Indiana, Corwin Peddler Has Re-Opened, New Pictures of Xenia-Jamestown Connector, This website is 10 Years Old!, See My What's New Page? 

23 October 2007

• Construction Accelerates on Xenia-Jamestown Connector -  I am informed that the paving of the Xenia-Jamestown Connector has accelerated and that it should be finished before the end of the 2007 construction season. This effort will add 4.3 miles to the trail taking it from it's current Eastern end of Jamestown to the Fayette County line. Since the trail does not terminate at Jamestown the name;  The Xenia-Jamestown Connector, may have to be changed and is presently being considered by Greene County Parks. It is hoped that the Fayette County trail developers especially the Tri-County Trail folks work towards connecting this trail to its county seat; Washington Court House in the near future. 

11 October 2007

• October 2007 Newsletter Now Available  -  Miami Conservancy District is working on the Stillwater River Recreation Trail. There is also a new trail being built from Triangle MetroPark to Taylorsville MetroPark. Downtown Cincinnati may be getting a trail to the Purple People Bridge sooner than expected. Two construction projects in Clark County on the Buck Creek Trail and Prairie Grass Trail. Greene County Parks is seal-coating the Creekside Trail in the county. I've added a lot of new pictures to the new trail connecting Triangle MetroPark in downtown Dayton to Taylorsville MetroPark in Huber Heights. Information about the Miami Valley Trails Page as well as Page of the Month about my list of every trail in Ohio. 

06 October 2007

• New construction on Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) -  Five Rivers MetroParks began construction of the trail to connect Triangle MetroPark, in downtown Dayton, to the existing trail that starts South of Taylorsville MetroPark and runs North to the end of the park on Old Springfield Street. I took 96 pictures on 29 September 2007 that you can see on the page for the trail. The trail is planned to be finished in early 2008, when I will replace these construction pictures with those of a finished trail. 

17 September 2007 

• September 2007 Newsletter Now Available -  Mountain Biking comes to Dayton, Trail Construction has started in Dayton, London, Jamestown, Union City and Troy and will start Spring 2008 in Brookville. I have added a new Union City Gateway page to the website, and soon (2008) you'll be able to get a brand new map of the trails in the Miami Valley. Read all about my Table of Contents Page in my Webpage Of The Month. 

17 August 2007

• New Union City Gateway Page - I have added a new page for the planned "Union City Gateway Trail" that is to be built between Union City, Ohio and Union City, Indiana. This may be the beginning of what I am calling "The Ohio Indiana Trail."

14 August 2007

• August 2007 Newsletter Now Available - I have added the newsletter to the website. It contains information about: The new "T-Connector now brings cyclists to the Wright Brothers Flying Field on WPAFB, the City of Huber Heights and Bethel Township team up to plan new trail, New trail development in Western Ohio. The New Carlisle city fathers finally name their trail, Approved Projects Page Update, Page Updated for trail in Hamilton, Ohio, and the Website breaks one million hits a month (again), 

12 August 2007

• Wright Brothers Flying Field Open To Cyclists - In June 2007 the T-Connector opened, allowing cyclists to cross State Route 444 from the Wright Brothers Bikeway  to Huffman MetroPark. The National Park Service that manages the Wright Brothers Interpretative Center at the Wright Brothers Memorial, was able to get Gate 18C from Huffman MetroPark to the Wright Brothers Flying Field opened so you can ride onto the base. 

02 August 2007 

• Funded Project Page Revised -  I revised this page after reading the 185 page document from MVRPC called the Transportation Improvement Project (TIP). I have tried to give you information on all of our trail projects including the status, the estimated date of completion, the current funding, a description of what work is to be done and finally who is going to do it. I provide links to the trail pages for your continued reading pleasure. I have also added date from the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Council of Governments (OKI) who fund projects in Warren, Hamilton & Clermont counties. 

22 July 2007

• New Page - Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Hamilton) - I have added a new page for the Great Miami River Recreation Trail. As many of you know, it is being extended in stages for 28 miles from Crains Run Nature Park (Dayton), South through Franklin, Middletown to end at Fairfield. This trail is being built by the he cities in the area and with the management of the Miami Conservancy District. 
  
• Wolf Creek Recreation Trail page Updated - I spent some time taking out old pictures and putting on the page new pictures for your viewing pleasure. 

17 July 2007

• July 2007 Newsletter Now Available -  More information on the Xenia - Jamestown connector construction and the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) construction. Trail plans for the Bellbrook to Spring Valley spur that used to be an "Interurban Railroad: in 1900. The I-675 Crossing page has been improved with new photos and I have added a BikeRadar.com map to my Little Miami Scenic Trail home page. I ask my readers again to read my "Three Counties Trail Must Be Completed" page and to write their representatives. And finally I am asking for someone to photograph the trail in downtown Hamilton, Ohio. 

12 July 2007

• I-675 Crossing Page Improved - I recently took pictures of the vicinity of the planned bridge over I-675 in the vicinity of the Fairfield Commons Mall to be able to explain the planned construction to you. 

23 June 2007

• Revised Iron Horse Trail 1 Page -  I took new pictures of the planned trail in Kettering and Centerville. I have updated the page to show where the trail will connect to the existing trail in Kettering at State Farm Park. There is another possible trail Northeast from Kettering into Oakwood and ending near the University of Dayton campus. 

21 June 2007

• I-675 Crossing - I have added a new page to my website for the "I-675 Crossing." This is the proposed bridge over I-675 in Beavercreek to connect the City of Beavercreek to Wright State University. Please see the webpage for complete details on this great idea!

16 June 2007

• T-Connector Page Updated - I recently took new pictures of the almost finished "T-Connector" (see above for more). I replaced the old construction pictures I had on the page with a finished tunnel under SR-444 and tunnel over the NS tracks to connect to the Wright Brothers Bikeway . I also added the new photos to the Three Counties Trail (Nominal Name) page since the tunnel and bridge are an integral part of the Three Counties Trail. 

15 June 2007

• June 2007 Newsletter Now Available -  "T-Connector" dedication 25 June,  New trail construction in Troy and Tipp City, Xenia-James Connector to grow this Summer, new spurs to connect to the Creekside Trail in Beavercreek, Trail Names change in Piqua, I ask for help to get the Three Counties Trail built,  Changes (soon) to Iron Horse Trail pages, Bike With A Ranger, My article on "T-Connector" is in Fairborn Schools paper. 

19 May 2007

• Xenia-Jamestown Connector Grows – Greene County Recreation & Parks has announced that the 4.3 miles of trail East from Limestone Street (US-72) in Jamestown, the current trail's end, to the Fayette County Line will be completed this Summer (2007). The $536K construction is being funded by grants. When complete the trail will be 12 miles long from Jasper Road to the Fayette County Line. It is hoped that the City of Washington Courthouse can pave the railbed from the county line to the City of Washington Courthouse to join the  Tri-County Triangle Trail that is planned in Fayette, Ross and Highland counties.

16 May 2007

• May 2007 Newsletter Now Available -  Regional/Local Bikeway Plan started in Miami Valley, Data Collection activity for Bikeway Plan starts in Miami Valley, New Iron Horse Trail Page on website and Miami Conservancy Districts new map on the Drive Less Live More website is a Winner! Also new bicycling events in Miami Valley and elsewhere. 

09 May 2007

• New Iron Horse Trail Page -  With the help of Ms. Carol Kennard, Director of the Centerville - Washington Twp. Park District, I have added a new webpage to show where the Iron Horse Trail extension will appear in the City of Centerville. Plans call for engineering in 2007 and construction in 2008. 

15 April 2007

• April 2007 Newsletter Now Available - When you read it you'll find out about: Dayton One Way to Two Way Study continues in Dayton, Mountain Biking Trail in Huffman MetroPark still under construction. The comprehensive bikeways plan being performed by Alta Planning is underway. News of the "T-Connector" bridge and tunnel at Huffman MetroPark and SR-444. I've updated my Trail Usage Statistics page and Website Statistics page. Miami County Parks District is looking for trail volunteers and a restaurant in London changes ownership

10 April 2007

• Web Statistics Page Updated - Every month I update this page which tells me (and you) how many people are looking at this website. I take a great deal of pride in showing that in 2006, for example, this website exceeded 1 million hits a month in July 2006. This data is one indication of usage that the public is making of my website. Any if I didn't have anyone reading this website I would not be keeping it up to date, to say nothing of expanding. it. 

24 March 2007

• Trail Usage Statistics Page Updated -  On this page I provide statistics provided to me by the local Parks Departments. The data shows the number of users on each trail. I am also attempting to collect the economic impact of the trails on our communities. 

16 March 2006

• March Newsletter Now Available -  As many of you know I write a newsletter every month and post it on this website. In it I try to provide information about what new plans for trails or construction is going on in the Miami Valley. I also relate any changes to the website and provide information about cycling events going on soon in the area. If you are not a subscriber just send me an email to tom_ mvrt [at] yahoo [dot] com  If you read my January 2007 newsletter you'd find about:  A new bikeway bridge is in planning to connect Wright State University to the Mall at Fairfield Commons in Greene County. There is planned bike trail construction in Miami County and new planned spurs in Clark County. MVRPC have signed a contract for a trail inventory. Plans have been made to replace two bridges over the trail in downtown Dayton. Also parts of the Little Miami Scenic Trail and Prairie Grass Trails have been designated as a part of the Underground Railway Bicycle Route. Finally the Corwin Peddler in Corwin is re-opening. And there are new cycling events for your reading pleasure. 

14 February 2007

• February Newsletter Now Available -  Trail development in Eastern Indiana may connect with Darke and Preble Counties in Ohio. The Friends of Madison County's Parks and Trail receive additional funding to pave the trail East of town. Cincinnati is working on plans for the Ohio River Trail from Lunken Airport to downtown Cincinnati. I have updated my maps in the list of all trails in Ohio and their is a walk to raise funds for our children's hospital coming up soon. 

06 February 2007

• Trails in Ohio List Updated -  As many of you know I keep an alphabetical list of every trail (that I know of) in Ohio on one webpage. For ease in finding these trails I also have the same list broken down by region of Ohio and County. Please See Counties and Regions in Ohio  to see the map of Ohio. From there you'll choose a region of Ohio and from that page a county that you are interested in. Recently I updated the maps that I use. The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) was kind enough to provide me with new pictures of the various parts of Ohio. 

19 January 2007

• City of Cincinnati Plans Meeting to Discuss Ohio River Trail:  On 25 January 2007 a meeting was held with the Director of Transportation and Engineering and other interested parties to discuss the potential routes for the Ohio River Trail.  This is the planned trail to start at the Village of New Richmond 16 miles East of Cincinnati and run past Lunken Airport to connect with the terminus of the Little Miami Scenic Trail  and will end in downtown Cincinnati to connect with the Purple People Bridge to Newport Kentucky. The City of Cincinnati is working only on the Lunken Airport to downtown portion of this trail. OKI is working to get the rest of the trail built. You might also want to look at the email I posted on my other website inviting all my readers to attend this important meeting. It's titled Invitation to Discuss Planned Ohio River Trail in Cincinnati 25 January 2007

11 January 2007

• January Newsletter Now Available -  New photos of the construction of the T-Connector on that page and the Three Counties Trail page. I've added new pictures and a map provided by Mr. Chad Schroeder,  of the Miami Conservancy District, to my Crains Run to Franklin page and ground was first broken for the new Section 5 of the Great Miami River Recreation Trail in Miami County. I've even included some information about the new trails being planned for your use in the area.  

09 January 2007

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail Section 5 (Miami County) Construction Started  - Construction started on Section 5 of the trail in Miami County, that when completed in 2009, will run from Duke Park in Troy North, past Twin Arches Reserve on County Road at Eldean Road and end at West Peterson Road. There the trail will connect with Section 6 of the trail coming South from Piqua. See the groundbreaking photos as well as photos of the area of Twin Arches. 
  
• T-Connector Page and Three Counties Trail Pages Updated:  I took new photos of the construction going on at the "T-Connector" 24 December, 2006 and added them and new links to Yahoo Maps to both pages. 

02 January 2007

• New Pictures Added to Crain's Run Nature Park to Franklin page   -  In January I added some pictures that I received from Mr. Chad Schroeder a Miami Conservancy District engineer who managed the development of this new 3.7 mile trail. I'll be getting a good topographic map from him soon and  will add it to the page as well. 

12 December 2006

• Three Counties Trail Update
• T-Connector Update - I have updated both pages with the new construction of the T-Connector at Huffman MetroPark. Construction started October 2006 with a planned completion of July 2007. 

10 November 2006

• Ohio Mountain Biking Association - I found about this link recently from a neighbor. If you are interested in mountain biking this is a website you should see. I have also placed a link on my Links Page.  They also have a local club; the Miami Valley Mountain Bike Association. 

03 November 2006

• Iron Horse Trail Extended - This Summer the City of Kettering extended this trail by 1.7 miles to make the trail 5.4 miles long. They added a sidewalk alongside Research Blvd. in Beavercreek and connected it to an existing sidewalk alongside Countyline Road. It connects to a new trail section within State Farm Park in Kettering. 

26 October 2006

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail Reaches Franklin -  The trail was extended another 3.7 miles from Crains Run Nature Park to the City of Franklin. The dedication will be on Saturday 28 October at the Old Post Office in Franklin. 

05 October 2006

• Clean Ohio Trail Grants Are Announced  - I have had for some time a webpage titled: "Approved Multi-Use Trail Projects" on the website. I had only federal funding that MVRPC provided to Montgomery, Greene and Miami counties. I have added the State of Ohio Grants to every county in the area and the details of each grant for your use. 

20 September 2006

• 204 Miles of Connected Trail in the Miami Valley - In my September 2006 newsletter I revealed that of the 266 some miles of multi-use trail in the Miami Valley 204 miles are connected. I added a table to my list of all of the 266 miles of trail showing the connected trails and their mileage starting in Urbana in the Northernmost part of the Miami Valley. I'll be updating it as necessary to have another good statistic on trail development in the area.

06 September 2006

• Links Page Updated - I've completely updated the Link Page on the website. There you can find links to railtrail organizations in other states as well as find local bicycling clubs. I also have links there to things of interest in the Dayton and Xenia area as well as near the Little Miami Scenic Trail. 

28 August 2006

• Little Miami Scenic Trail in Terrace Park Now Open - ODNR finished construction one month ahead of time and the trail through Terrace Park that was closed during the week was opened as of 25 August 2006.
   
  
• Washington Street Bridge Closed for Demolition -  The Washington Street Bridge in downtown Dayton that passes over the Great Miami River Recreation Trail closed 28 August for demolition and replacement. The work is expected to be complete by December 2007. There is a planned detour for cyclists. See the link above for instructions. 

22 August 2006

• Wright Brothers Bikeway webpage updated -  I rode the Wright Brothers Bikeway from the Wright Brothers Memorial on Kauffman Avenue to downtown Fairborn recently in order to photograph it and update the page. This trail currently is a 4.6 mile stub and so goes nowhere. However Five Rivers MetroParks is purchasing a right of way from Norfolk Southern Railroad. The route will be from Eastwood MetroPark to Huffman MetroPark and from the end of the current trail alongside the railway in Fairborn to the Black Lane area of Fairborn and then on to Enon Park. At that point Fairborn becomes connected to the Miami Valley Trails System. 

11 August 2006 

• Updated Navigation List (At Bottom of Every Page) -  I updated what is known as a "Footer Page" which is a navigational aid that appears at the bottom of every page of this website. I added all of the "Resources" links that appear in the drop down menu on the Home Page. They join the "Other Links" material that was previously on the "footer." I hope that this will help you get around the website. I will add information about "The Footer Page" to the "How To Navigate this Website" page for your use. 

07 August 2006

• Site Map Page (Table of Contents) Updated - On occasion I find it necessary to update the Table of Contents page also known as the Site Map. For example I put the information about the new Trail Usage Statistics page on it when I released the new page. This time I added links to all of the sections of the Simon Kenton Trail.   By looking at it you can easily see that there are 10 webpages devoted to the Little Miami Scenic Trail. And when finished the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (GMRRT)  in Miami County will have the same. In another box just below the GMRRT in Miami County, is the explanation of the trail sections in Montgomery County. This trail is being extended, in sections through Butler and Warren Counties to Hamilton, Ohio 28 miles South of Crains Run Nature Park, the most Southern part of Montgomery County and "Trail's End" until recently. 

26 July 2006

• New Trail Usage Statistics Page -  For some time I have been gathering trail use statistics in order to add a page to the website. I mentioned it in my July 2006 Newsletter; Trail Use Statistics Webpage In Work . This new webpage will capture the actual use of our trails in the Miami Valley and the economic impact of those trails on our communities. 

25 July 2006

• Xenia Station Webpage Updated  - Recently I took new pictures of the Xenia Station and updated the page. I even added a link to the new Yahoo Maps so that you can see (and manipulate) a satellite photo of the Station. 

08 July 2006

• Morrow to Loveland Page On Little Miami Scenic Trail  (Updated) -  I've updated both these pages with some new pictures of the bridge between the Little Miami Scenic Trail and the Lebanon Countryside Trail. 
• Lebanon Countryside Trail Page Updated  
  
  
• Xenia to Yellow Springs (LMST)  Page Updated -  I photographed parts of this trail again. I wanted to show you the alternate route from James Ranch (access via the Creekside Trail )  to Yellow Springs. This way you avoid riding on sidewalks in downtown Xenia from the Station North to Shawnee Park where the multi-use trail actually begins. I also photographed again the Ellis Park Spur North of Yellow Springs. This .4 mile spur takes you North from the trail to a portable restroom, water and parking. 

03 July 2006

• Miami Valley RailTrails Website Exceeds 1 Million Hits  - For the first time in June 2006, this website exceeded one million hits a month!  I want to thank my loyal readers for making this website so popular. Click on the link to be taken to my Statistics Page  where you can see the growth in popularity of the website over time. 

01 July 2006

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail Construction Completed -  The Miami Conservancy District reported in the Dayton Daily News that the construction on the trail at Marina Drive in West Carrollton can be completed two weeks ahead of schedule. I reported the detour in my June 2006 Newsletter.  I had also added a "Construction Delay" on the webpage but have removed it today. 

30 June 2006

• Little Miami Scenic Trail (Milford to Little Miami Golf Center) Revised - Due to the help of Mr. Mike Mueller and Mr. Dave Dumbacher I have new pictures of this 4.4 mile extension South of the Little Miami Scenic Trail. I have updated the webpage and replaced all the pictures with new ones of the trail . 

26 June 2006

• Trail Etiquette and Safety Page Updated -  Governor Taft signed HB389 recently which revised the Ohio Code with respect to bicycles. It made all of Ohio's laws more uniform. See the page for the new rules. 

20 June 2006

• Creekside Trail Webpage Updated -  I recently revised this webpage by adding new photos, new links to local restaurants and new text to keep the content current and up to date. I think you'll like the new material. I decided to make the Creekside Recreation Trail (Montgomery County) and the Creekside Trail (Greene County) work better together by revising the order that the trails are reviewed. Now the trail review starts at the beginning of the Creekside Recreation Trail in Eastwood MetroPark and continues East to the Creekside Trail at the 5th/3rd Park and Ride. From there the Creekside Trail is reviewed running East to the terminus; Xenia Station. I think it makes the copy easier to read and understand. 
  

16 June 2006

• Creekside Recreation Trail Webpage Updated -  I recently revised this webpage by adding new photos, new links to local restaurants and new text to keep the content current and up to date. I think you'll like the new material.
  
  
• Iron Horse Trail Webpage Updated  -  I also updated the Iron Horse Trail webpage at the same time. I rode from Eastwood MetroPark and continued South to the Iron Horse Trail. So I added new pictures and copy to the Iron Horse as well. 

6 June 2006

• Washington Street Bridge Replacement -  The Great Miami River Recreation Trail runs through downtown Dayton. From June 2006 and running to December 2007 construction will take place to remove and replace the Washington Street Bridge that crosses the trail. Click on the link above to be taken to that page for information about detours. 

4 June 2006

• Milford to Avoca Trail segment to be Dedicated -  On 10 June at the Little Miami Golf Center the newest section of the Little Miami Scenic Trail  will be dedicated. That will make this most beautiful trail in Southwest Ohio almost 79 miles from Springfield in Clark County almost all of the way South to Cincinnati! Plans are to continue to build South to the Lunken Airport East of Cincinnati. Then the Ohio River Trail (in planning) will take riders to the Ohio River and then to downtown Cincinnati to cross into Newport Kentucky via the Purple People Bridge (the old L&N railroad bridge across the Ohio River). 
  
  
• 265.5 miles of trail in the Southwest Region of Ohio - I updated my RailTrails page on the website again today. I added the new 3.8 miles for the trail South of Middletown on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail ; then I added .25 miles for the Ellis Park Spur near Yellow Springs off of the Little Miami Scenic Trail and finally I added the additional 3.9 miles of trail from Milford South to the Little Miami Golf Center on the Little Miami Scenic Trail (see above for dedication information).  At the top of this page you can see the link to Trail List  which is my list of trails by County and the mileage for each. On that page I also keep the total of miles for trails in this area. Isn't it wonderful - more new trails to ride!

25 May 2006

• Middletown Trail Webpage finished  - I rode the new section of the trail recently. The Great Miami River Recreation Trail in Middletown is now 6.06 miles long. I put up a modified page with a lot of new photos. This trail is a part of the trail that will connect Dayton, Franklin, Middletown and Hamilton in what is called the Great Miami River Recreation Trail 

22 May 2006

• May 2006 Newsletter Published -  The May newsletter is in on the website with the following stories: Paul Lawrence Dunbar Connector being repaired, Findlay Street Bridge opens, Middletown Section of GMRRT opens, Ohio River Trail page updated,  Little Miami Scenic Trail pages rebuilt,  Trail Use Statistics page in planning, TABOR/TEL and you and Greene County Trails Classic (20 23 July 2006). 

17 May 2006

• Update to Ohio River Trail Page - I have updated this page with new information and new pictures of the Purple People Bridge. I found an good article on the Purple People Bridge in Wikipedia which is the on line encyclopedia of everything! That led me to a webpage of photos of the bridge taken by Mr. Jake Mecklenborg, on a webpage titled Louisville and Nashville Railroad Bridge. I have reproduced a picture by Jake on the page for the planned Ohio River Trail and have added links. Jake's website is Cincinnati Transit. He has photos on it or every transportation bridge in Cincinnati and it's well worth seeing. 

05 May 2006

• Mad River Recreation Trail Open - In Jan 2005 the Findlay Street bridge over the Mad River was closed for demolition and re-construction. On May 6 2006 the new $4.8 million dollar bridge that replaced the 1926 vintage one opened. Of interest to trail users, the trail below the bridge reopened. I have replaced the construction pictures I had on the webpage with pictures of the new bridge and the views from it. 

30 April 2006

• Little Miami Scenic Trail (Updates to Pages) In order to make the Little Miami Scenic Trail pages a bit easier to navigate I put a new navigation system on each page. All of them have the same header information and have links to every trail section. I hope that this helps. 

22 April 2006

• April Newsletter on Website - I finished my newsletter and posted it to the website on 22 April. In it I have information about Trail construction South of Crains Run Park to Franklin,  Construction in downtown Dayton on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail, Clinton County Trails, Trail Opening in Aurora Indiana, New Navigation Webpage, Website wins American Trails Award for "Best Virtual Tour". 

03 April 2006 

• Website Wins Award - The Miami Valley RailTrails website was awarded an Honorable Mention Award in the category of "Trail Tour or Virtual Visit by the American Trails organization. I'll explain further in my April newsletter. 
  
  
• How To Navigate This Website or Help Getting Around -  I’ve added a new page to the website that explains in detail with pictures how to use the drop down menus available from the Home Page of the website.
  
  

30 March 2006

• Dearborn Trail Open-  The new 2 mile trail from Aurora Indiana East to Lawrenceburg Indiana along the Ohio River has opened. Dedication will be 5 May. The developers are planning on extending the trail East to Greendale Indiana. I have added a link to the City of Aurora, Indiana's website since this trail is just West of downtown Cincinnati. Previously, I have only reported trails in Ohio. But since this trail is very close to Cincinnati, I decided to add it here and to my alphabetical list of all trails; RailTrails, Towpaths and Other Trails in Ohio

20 March 2006

• Newsletter March 2006 -   (Is Mailed to Mailing List Members)  Construction starts on the Little Miami Scenic Trail South of Milford. New webpage for Approved Bicycle Projects, New webpage for Ohio River Trail, Milford to Lunken Airport page updated. Multi-Use trail statistics; New land purchases by Five Rivers MetroParks lead to more trails. Traffic flow study in downtown Dayton may lead to lanes being converted to bicycle use (Repeat from Feb 2006. 
  (If you'd like to be added to this mailing list email me at tom_mvrt [at] yahoo [dot] com  

11 March 2006

• Milford to Lunken Airport  (Page Updated) -  I received new pictures to update this page and I have reworked it. Construction started 1 March 2006 to build the 2.5 miles trail from Milford through Terrace Park to Avoca. Trail North and South of the completed Avoca Trail Head will total .75 miles will also be built in 2006. 

06 March 2006

• Ohio River Trail  - Plans are being made to built a 16 mile trail West along the Ohio River from the Village of New Richmond to Lunken Airport in  Cincinnati. Along the way a Northern spur from this new trail will connect to the Little Miami Scenic Trail which is being built South from  Milford to Lunken Airport. Eventually the trail will be extended to downtown Cincinnati and cross the Ohio River to Newport Kentucky via the Purple People Bridge (the old L&N railroad bridge that has been converted to pedestrian and cycling use). 
  

1 March 2006

• New Approved Projects Webpage -    I have added a new webpage to the site that gives the status of all approved trail building projects in the Miami Valley. I am trying to find out all of the sources of funding and their status so that I can keep track of all of them for you. I now have CY 2005 funding for projects in Montgomery, Greene and Miami counties on the page. 

18 February 2006

• Newsletter February 2006  (Is Mailed to Mailing List Members) -  New construction planned on the Iron Horse Trail. Washington Street Bridge replacement. Findlay Street Bridge nears completion. New grant request in Miami County for trail construction. New Ellis Park Spur under construction. New Plan to change traffic patterns on the streets of downtown Dayton. 

10 February 2006

• New Iron Horse Trail Construction Plans -  The cities of Kettering and Centerville are planning new construction of the existing Iron Horse Trail that currently runs from the Creekside Recreation Trail South 3.7 miles. Kettering will continue from the current trail South to its' border with Centerville. The City of Centerville with the cooperation of Washington Township will build the trail North from Iron Horse Park to the City of Kettering. If a grant is approved this year, construction of the Centerville section could take place in 2007. 

04 February 2006

• Events Page Updated-    As I receive information from those who wish to publicize a cycling event I update the "Cycling Events" page. Recently I put information on the page about "Moonlight Rides" being sponsored by the National Trail Parks and Recreation (Clark County)  and Young's 2006 Ice Cream Charity Bike Tour. When your on this site you might want to check the events page. 

18 January 2006

• Ellis Park Spur - Greene County Parks and Recreation started building this .25 mile spur from the Little Miami Scenic Trail just North of Yellow Springs West to Ellis Park on Polecat Road. When it is finished in the Spring of 2006, it will provide another location for trail users to park.   

16 January 2006

• Newsletter Pages Revised - I have decided to change the Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletters page from a single page to one for each year of newsletters. So now you can find a 2001 & 2002 Newsletters page, a 2003 Newsletters page, a 2004 Newsletters page, a 2005 Newsletters page and the original page where you may find the 2006 Newsletters.  This makes the page faster to load and you can find the newsletters categorized by year. The pages may not be of great use to the majority of my readers but those interested in how far we have come in the last few years will not the progress interesting. If anyone would like to read the older newsletters from before 2001 and back to 1998, please contact me. 
• The Tecumseh Trail to Park Layne Manor - In a recent meeting a map of the proposed 3.7 mile trail from the planned The Tecumseh Trail to Park Layne Manor was provided. I have added a description of the planned trail to The Tecumseh Trail  as well as the map for your reading pleasure. 

15 January 2006

•   Newsletter January 2006 -    (Is Mailed to Mailing List Members)  New information on New Carlisle to Park Layne trail. Funding requests for Xenia-Jamestown Connector. New Three Counties Trail Page. New Sitemap page on website. Parking overnight at certain trail staging areas. Is the Little Miami Scenic Trail the longest paved trail in the US?

14 January 2006

• New Site Map Page for Website - I have completely revised the Table of Contents of the website. Hopefully I have made it easier for you to find pages on the site. 

06 January 2006

• Overnight Parking at Staging Areas on Trails - Recently I received information on which staging areas you can park your car overnight in Clark County. I have made changes to the Simon Kenton Trail staging areas at Villa Road and at the Eagle City Soccer Complex staging area to show that you can leave your car overnight with permission. I have also made a change to the Little Miami Scenic Trail from Yellow Springs to Springfield page for the Beatty Station Staging Area for your use. I will check with the other counties in the Miami Valley for their policy of overnight parking and amend the specific pages with the information I find. 

29 December 2005 

• Three Counties Trail  Plans Advance (Nominal Name) - This trail is being developed by Five Rivers MetroParks with the help of Greene County Recreation and Parks and National Trails Parks and Recreation District (Clark County). When finished it will run some 15.1 miles from Eastwood MetroPark Northeast to Huffman MetroPark and then into Greene County and Clark County. At Huffman MetroPark the trail will be connected to the existing Wright Brothers Bikeway which runs along Kaufmann Avenue to Fairborn via the T-Connector a bridge or tunnel to take the trail from Huffman MetroPark across State Route 444 to the Wright Brothers Memorial which is the terminus of the Wright Brothers Bikeway. Five Rivers MetroParks is currently in negotiation with Norfolk Southern railway to buy the right of way from Eastwood MetroPark to Enon. After the right of way is purchased each of the partners will have to secure funding to build this trail that will connect all three counties trails. 

28 December 2005

• Lebanon Countryside Trail Is Complete - Below I told you that the trail was finally finished. The bicycle bridge over Tuttle Creek alongside Kingsview Drive and the final 1/3 mile South of there is now complete. Why am I telling you this. Because Mr. Frank Allen of Lebanon was kind enough to take new pictures on 26 December 2005 for me of the finished area. I replaced the old pictures of an unfinished trail with Frank's new ones. 

05 December 2005

• Lebanon Countryside Trail Completed -  Yes. I know. This trail was dedicated on 1 October 2005. So what's the big deal? Answer. When the trail was dedicated it was not yet complete. There was a bridge over Tuttle Creek South of the YMCA and about one mile of trail South of the unfinished bridge that was just a dirt track. I was informed recently that the bridge and trail is now completely complete and now you can ride from South Street in downtown Lebanon South 8.2 miles to connect to the Little Miami Scenic Trail North of Loveland. 
  
  
• Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) Closed  -  The Ohio Department of Transportation closed the trail where it goes under Interstate 70 in Huber Heights at Taylorsville MetroPark on 28 November 2005. It will be closed 540 days until the I-70 bridges are widened to three lanes in both direction. 

26 November 2005

• Trail South of Middletown Completed: That's right. The four mile segment of trail South of Middletown from State Route 122 to Old State Route 73 was completed Fall 2005. Dedication is planned for Spring 2006. I have added a new page for this trail segment and will have new pictures of it up on the website as soon as we have a good day. 

29 October 2005

• Beavercreek Trail Connector Dedicated  Today another milestone in the Miami Valley. The Beavercreek Trail Connector, Trail 2A was dedicated at Community Park in Beavercreek.  This .75 mile bicycle spur connects the Creekside Trail  North from the park to Dayton-Xenia Road. After crossing the road at a new signal light installed especially for trail users, the trail continues East to Rotary Park. Phase II of the construction will add trail from Rotary Park North to the Hunter's Ridge development in Beavercreek. This trail spur connects the City of Beavercreek and the Township to the Miami Valley Trails System. 

Dedication of Beavercreek Trail Connector Phase 1 29 October 2005

21 October 2005

• Digest of Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws - I have added a webpage that quotes the motor vehicle law for Ohio with regard to cyclists. It is also connected to the newly revised Trail Etiquette & Safety page. I am trying to help educate cyclists on their rights and responsibilities as safe and courteous users of trails and shared roads. 

18 October 2005

• Middletown Trail Nears Completion -  The 4 mile trail section from Middletown South from State Route 123 along the Great Miami River to Old State Route 73 is close to completion. It can be ridden now and all that needs to be accomplished is the addition of some fence. I do not have a dedication date nor do I have pictures of this new trail section. This is a part of the Great Miami River Recreation Tail in Warren and Butler Counties.
  
  
• New Miami To Miami Trail Page  – I have added a new page to the website accessible from the leftmost drop down menu. It’s under “Trails in Warren County ” in the drop down menu. The new 84 mile trail, when completed, will run East and West from the Little Miami Scenic Trail North of Loveland to Hamilton on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail currently being built in sections. I have been attempted to contact the organizations that are building this trail but have not been able to find the primary group to get updates for you.  From this page you can get copies of the 2002 study from the City of Fairfield homepage. The basic study is 88 pages (8Mb) and you can get the maps (128Mb) as well as the other appendixes. I will be putting a smaller version of the maps on this webpage.
  
  
• Trail Etiquette and Safety Page - I have added more safety information to my Trail Etiquette and Safety Page. As you may know we’ve had several cyclist fatalities in the Miami Valley this cycling season. I’m adding tips for cyclists and I plan to add the section on Bicycles from the “Digest of Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws” to the page.
  
  
• Milford to Lunken Airport Page – I have added material to this page which is the most Southern Section of the Little Miami Scenic Trail. I have new pictures to show construction work and have a new map from the Hamilton County Parks District. It shows all of the sections of the 8.8 miles of trail that will be built from Milford which is the current end of trail South to the existing trail around Lunken Airport .

02 October 2005

• Milford to Lunken Airport Page  Updates- I have added new pictures and new descriptions to the 8.8 miles extension of the Little Miami Scenic Trail that will extend the trail from Milford to the Lunken Airport. Included in the update is a new map from the Hamilton County Park District that shows the status of every section of the trail that will be built. I have added descriptions of all construction from the map on the page. 
  
  
• Lebanon Countryside Trail Nears Completion – This trail is almost finished and was dedicated 1 October, 2005. We rode the trail on 9/28/05 and took lots of new pictures. The webpage has been revised with the new pictures and descriptions of the trail. Unfortunately a one mile section of the trail South of Tuttle Road and the bridge over Tuttle Creek is not finished as of this writing. I'll let you know when the trail can be ridden.
  

15 September 2005

• The Great Connection changes name. I was informed recently by the Miami Conservancy District that “The Great Connection” as a title for the 28 miles of trail being developed South of Crains Run MetroPark (since renamed to Crains Run Nature Park - Miami Township Parks) has been changed to “The Great Miami River Trail in Warren and Butler Counties”. I have changed the title on all of the most important places on the website. However, you may see the old term in old newsletters, etc.
  
  

• Lebanon Countryside Trail Nears Completion – We rode this new trail on 28 September 2005, hoping that we could get pictures of an almost finished and usable trail. We found after riding a short distance that they were still paving West of the Government Center near Harmon Park. I updated the web page with some new pictures and will ride this trail again for your benefit. What remains to be done for the trail completion include fencing, signage, and seeding. I am informed that the ribbon cutting/grand opening ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, October 1st from 3:00-6:00 p.m. at the Countryside YMCA (north parking lot). 

14 August 2005

• Tipp City Trail Construction - Tipp City has completed a one mile trail extension from Canal Lock Park North to City Park on North 3rd Street. The trail joins the approximately 1 mile of trail that goes through City Park past the new Aquatic Center, past the baseball diamonds to the Tipp City Parks Nature Center. 
  
  
• Trail Construction in Taylorsville MetroPark – Five Rivers MetroParks has finished paving the 1.4 mile extension from the town of Tadmor in the Park North to Old Springfield Street. The trail now is 7.0 miles long from Old Springfield Street on the North boundary of the Park to Wagner Ford Road in Huber Heights.
  

12 August 2005

• Trail Etiquette -  Or The "Rules Of The Trail"  - I have added a page that explains how to behave while on the trail. What you should do and expect of the other trail users. 

   

17 July 2005

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail  Section 2 (Miami County) is finished. The trail is complete and was dedicated 21 July 2005. I have replaced all construction pictures with a completed trail. 

05 July 2005

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail [Dayton] (Update) I have finished re-photographing and re-writing these pages. The pages that describe the Great Miami River Recreation Trail in downtown Dayton consist of four web pages as follows:
  
  • Great Miami River Recreation Trail  (GMRRT) page - This is the "home page" for the trail. There are links to the other sections. 
  • GMRRT  Sinclair Park to Island MetroPark 3.8 Miles - This section is only on the East side of the river. 
  • GMRRT  Island MetroPark to Stewart Street Bridge 3.9 miles -   This trail is on both sides of the river
  • GMRRT Stewart Street Bridge South To Crains Run Nature Park 11.0 miles - This section is on the East bank only.  
    
    
• Website Statistics - I have decided to provide for my users the numbers of hits and calls for web pages by month that this site is experiencing. I must be doing something right because the hits and page counts continue to climb. As of June 2005 this website exceeded 750,000 hits for the month. 

   

29 June 2005

• Accommodations, Hotels, Motels, B&Bs & Campgrounds  in the Miami Valley RailTrails Area (Revised) - I have started a major renovation of this page. I am doing a lot of research to find the accommodations near our trails for your use. The accommodations I recommend will be close to the trails 

27 June 2005

• Simon Kenton Trail Phase IV - Recently I put up a new webpage with photos of the new trail that extends about 2 miles from the Buck Creek Trail South to downtown Springfield. Unfortunately when I put up the new page I missed about 100 yards of the trail. So I re-photographed it this last weekend, added six new photos and a new map. It seems that the new trail connects with an existing stub that will be improved so that there is a dedicated trail all the way South from Springfield to the current end of the Little Miami Scenic Trail at I-70 South of Springfield. 

26 June 2005

• Navigate Miami Valley RailTrail website via maps  - I have added five new maps to the website with hotspots so that you can navigate around the trails in the Miami Valley using either maps or you can use the Trails in Miami Valley  page with counties and trails within them. 
  • The primary map is the South West Ohio Trails Map  Then by click on a quadrant of the map you are taken to a quarter of it
  • North West Trails is the quadrant with the most trails on it. Then there are:
  • North East Trails Trails in the North Eastern part of the Miami Valley
  • South East Trails - Trail is the South Eastern portion of the Valley
  • South West Trails - Trails in the South Western part of the Miami Valley

22 June 2005

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail [Dayton] (Update) I am in the process of re-photographing and re-writing these pages. I have updated on this date the Crains Run Nature Park to Miamisburg section of the trail. 

13 June 2005

• Buck Creek Trail (revised) I have removed all of the construction pictures from 2004 and replaced them with the finished 5.76 mile trail from the Springfield Museum of Art in downtown Springfield East to Buck Creek State Park. 

11 June 2005

• Beavercreek Trail Connector - I've ridden and taken the pictures of the new spur from the Creekside Trail in Beavercreek North about 3/4 mile to Rotary Park. This spur connects much of the City of Beavercreek to the entire trail system by making it unnecessary to ride down Factory Road to get to the trail at Beavercreek Community Park. The trail will be extended another 3/4 miles this Summer (2005) in order to connect the Hunter's Ridge neighborhood of Beavercreek to the trail. 

09 June 2005

• Simon Kenton Trail Phase IV - I've taken pictures of the newly constructed trail from Buck Creek Trail to downtown Springfield, Ohio. This 2 mile trail section will allow the Simon Kenton Trail to connect to the Little Miami Scenic Trail where it currently ends at I-70. 

05 June 2005

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail webpage (updated) I've updated this page by adding newer photos and descriptions to the page. See 5 April below. I took the basic page for the trail in downtown Dayton and broke it into three. Now I have updated two completely with new pictures and descriptions and have started updating Stewart Street to Crains Run Nature Park. 

30 May 2005

• Xenia - Jamestown Connector Completed - The 7.7 miles of Phase I construction from Jamestown (US-72) to Jasper Road near US-35 is completed. The webpage has been completely revised with new pictures. 

29 May 2005

• Mad River Recreation Trail North Bank -   I have revised the Mad River Recreation Trail page to include information about the new .5 mile trail spur on the North bank of the river that starts from Dayton's Point Park at Valley and Keowee Streets. It follows the river and levee to cross Webster Street at the bridge and enter Deed's Park at Deed's Park Drive. This trail spur connects North Dayton to RiverScape MetroPark and the trail system. 

27 May 2005

• Island MetroPark to Stewart Street Bridge on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail Updated - I've completely updated the page with about 35 new pictures, new descriptions and a map. I am re-doing all of the pages of the Great Miami River Recreation Trail in downtown Dayton, Ohio 

29 April 2005

• Updated Milford to Lunken Airport Page  - The Hamilton County Park District has updated their status of the completion of this trail segment that is under construction. So I updated the page with new links.  

20 April 2005

• Iron Horse Trail revised  - I have taken new photographs of the Iron Horse Trail and rewritten the descriptions of the trail. 

13 April 2005

• New Carlisle Trail Funded - The trail planned for downtown New Carlisle has been funded. I have added a new webpage that shows the route of this new two mile trail. Construction of this trail will start in July 2006. 

10 April 2005

• Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Miami County)  Revision -  I have been revising my pages for the trails in Miami County. 
  • Section 2  -  Recently I took pictures of Section 2  of the trail which is being built and will be open 1 July 2005. It connects at its South end to Section 1 which was opened in 2003.  
    See the Miami County Trail Map to understand all the trail construction in Miami County
    
  • Troy Trails Revised - I also took new pictures of the trails in Troy on the same trip. I've updated the page with new photos and new descriptions of the trails completed in the City of Troy and a description of the new work to be accomplished. 

05 April 2005

• Mad River Recreation Trail Construction. Today I added photos to this page to show you the construction at where the Findlay Street Bridge used to be. There are supposed to be detour signs but I didn't see any. The photos will show you how to get around the construction . 
  
  
• Great Miami River Recreation Trail - This trail is in downtown Dayton on the Stillwater and Great Miami Rivers. I've started to revise the original one page into several. There are new pages for:
  • Sinclair Park South to Island Nature Park  (new pictures and descriptions)
  • Island MetroPark South to Stewart Street Bridge (nothing new yet)
  • Stewart Street Bridge South to Crains Run Nature Park (Not written yet) See Gmiami3.htm
    I'm working on this and it will take a while to get new descriptions and pictures to update the page. Please bear with me. 

I'm revising the links so that it is more clear that the Great Miami River Recreation Trail will extend into Miami County to the North and Warren and Butler Counties to the South.
To the North the trail is now called Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) in Montgomery County and Great Miami River Recreation Trail  (Miami County) 
To the South the trail is now called The Great Miami River Recreation Trail [GMRRT] in Warren & Butler Counties  to Hamilton, Ohio about 27 miles. 

22 March 2005 

• Alphabetical List of Trails in Ohio - This webpage is the alphabetical list of every  rail-trail, towpath trail and levee trail in Ohio. I try to have the name of every trail listed and a little bit of information. Most importantly, I try to have a link to the trail webpage itself or to the park district that manages it. I have been updating it to give you more up to date information on all of the trails in Ohio.
• RailTrails, Towpaths and other Trails in Ohio (Indexed by County) with maps. This is the same information as in the list above but its provided in a different format to make it easier to find a trail. There is a map of Ohio. You click on the region of Ohio that you are interested in such as Northeast, Central, Northwest, Southwest and Southeast. That takes you to a map of the region. You then click on the County you're interested in and you'll be taken to a list of trails in that County. I have been updating these as well as the master alphabetical list. 

06 March 2005

• Pedalopolis I added a link to this site on my Hot List of Links page. . Pedalopolis is a free, member-driven online community for those who enjoy cycling in Southwest Ohio. This site features Trail Watch, a way to track condition of the cycling trails and report this to other readers.
• Mad River Recreation Trail - I added a map that shows the North Findlay Street bridge crossing the trail and the Mad River. I added the detour information that the bridge will be out from January 2005 to June 2006 but that there is a detour. 

15 February 2005

• New Sponsors Page -  I used to have the sponsors of my website mentioned at the bottom of the Home Page. But lately I've been adding to them so now they have their own page. 

09 February 2005

• Iron Horse Trail  (New Page) The 3.7 mile trail from the Creekside Recreation Trail (west end) to Kettering was completed late 2004. I have build a new page with photos. 
• Prairie Grass Trail pages Update - I've completely revised this area of the website. I have separated the pages so that each section of the trail has its' own page with new photos and descriptions as follows:
  • Xenia to Cedarville Section  This page is the basic page for the entire trail so there is additional information at the top of this page about the entire trail which is now open from Xenia Station to London, Ohio.
  • Cedarville to South Charleston Section - Revised with new pictures and descriptions. 
  • South Charleston to London Section - Revised with some new pictures.
  • Central State Connector - I've removed this section from the first page and given it its' own page with new pictures and descriptions. 

  I have also added a table at the top of each of the four pages that tells you what page you are on and how to get to the other pages. 

04 February 2005 

• Yellow Springs to Springfield Section of Little Miami Scenic Trail (Updated) I added new text descriptions and a lot of new pictures to this trail segment. I hope you enjoy them!

03 February 2005

• Updated Tables on certain pages.  For some time when I have updated a page, I have put all the information about the location of parking, water and restrooms available on that trail was all in one convenient table. Where possible have added links to any restaurant or bicycle shop that had facilities you could use. I updated the:
• Creekside Trail
• Creekside Recreation Trail
• Ohio to Erie Trail in London 
• Loveland to Milford Section of the Little Miami Scenic Trail
• Morrow to Loveland Section of the Little Miami Scenic Trail 
• Ohio To Erie Trail (Prairie Grass Trail) 
• Spring Valley to Corwin Section of the Little Miami Scenic Trail 
• Xenia to Spring Valley on the Little Miami Scenic Trail
• Xenia to Yellow Springs on the Little Miami Scenic Trail 

28 January 2005

• January 2005 Newsletter is posted to website.  
  • New Ohio License Plates for your car that aid cycling.
  • New construction on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) 1.4 miles
  • Construction of a new bridge at Findlay Street will cause a detour on the 
    Mad River Recreation Trail
  • Simon Kenton Trail Phase IV Construction Starts  
  • Iron Horse Trail - 2 mile extension. Now 3.7 miles long
  • Miami Valley RailTrails ScreenSaver (Free) - Free for you 

  These are the highlights of the January 2005 Newsletter. Read all of it to learn what is happening in our Great (and growing) trail system. 

09 December 2004

• Loveland to Milford Section - I've updated this page with new pictures and descriptions. 

22 November 2004 

•  New look to Home Page. I've revised the navigation on the website's Home Page with drop down menus. There is also a link to the old Home Page for those who wish to use it for site navigation.

17 November 2004

• Xenia-Jamestown Connector  I've revised the page and added a lot of new pictures! The trail will be finished from Jamestown to Jasper Road a distance of 6.5 miles before Winter 2004

13 November 2004

• Miami County Trails - Page updated. I was able to travel to Miami County and see the entire trail plan with Mr. Bob Shook the Chairman of the Miami County BikeWay Task Force. I've added a description of all 10 sections of trail to be built in Miami County and will be adding photos soon. I've already added a printable map of the entire trail.
  • Tipp City Trails (part of the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Miami County). I revised the page.
  • Great Miami River Recreation Trail Section 1 (Miami County) - I revised the page. This trail section is complete.
  • Great Miami River Recreation Trail Section 2 (Miami County) - I've added a new page for this trail section North of Section 1 and connecting to the City of Troy Section. 
    
• Xenia-Jamestown Connector - Page updated. I've started to update this page. I was able to see the entire trail with the assistance of Mr. Jim Schneider of Greene County Recreation, Parks and Cultural Arts Department. I'll be adding new pictures to this trail soon. I've already added a printable map of the entire trail. 

04 November 2004

• Buck Creek Trail  I've updated the webpage for the Buck Creek Trail. I've added new pictures of the additional 2.66 miles that are being added from Old Reid Park where the trail ended to the parking lot for the Beach at the Buck Creek State Park. The trail will be finished before Winter 2004
  
• Lebanon Countryside Trail  I've updated this page as well. I've rewritten the copy and have added some great pictures and maps for you use. This trail is being built by the City of Lebanon and will run from Lebanon 8.2 miles to intersect with the Little Miami Scenic Trail just South of South Lebanon. 
  
• Creekside Trail Update  I've told you before that the Beavercreek Township was building a trail spur North from Beavercreek Community Park in Beavercreek to cross Dayton-Xenia Drive and end in Veteran's Park. I am informed that this trail spur will be complete by Winter 2004. I was also told that a traffic light will be installed where the trail crosses Dayton-Xenia Drive so that trail users can get across the street safely.    

01 November 2004

• New Buck Creek Trail Construction Pictures  Yes. I've been able to start adding pictures to the Buck Creek Trail page that show the construction of the additional 2.66 miles of trail to East that will take the trail into Buck Creek State Park. The trail will be finished before Winter. You might be able to ride it this year!

27 October 2004

• New Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletter - Do you remember back in April 2004 that I told you the trails building plans of all the local counties for this year? Well in this month's newsletter I'll tell you how far they got this year. I've added a FREE Miami Valley RailTrails ScreenSaver to the site for your use. Please download it!

23 October 2004

• New Buck Creek Trail Construction. I was given a guided tour yesterday 22 October 2004 by Mr. Jim Campbell the Open Space Manager of Clark County of the new trail construction being built to the East of the current trail's end in Old Reid Park. I'll be adding new pictures to the Buck Creek Trail webpage. 

13 October 2004

• The Simon Kenton Trail is to be dedicated on Sunday 17 October 2004 at Urbana Station. I have updated the website by adding a Simon Kenton Trail Page 3 that adds photos and descriptions from State Route 55 to the Urbana YMCA the trail's end. 

24 September 2004

• September MVRT Newsletter is out. 
  New information on the "GMRRT", new pictures on the website of the new bridge at Wesleyan MetroPark in Dayton, more updates to the master list of trails in Ohio. I got some nice publicity in Midwest Bike Magazine and  I finally got to meet my friend who writes columns for me; Mr. Glenn Oster. See my September 2004 newsletter about what is happening on the trails in Miami Valley. If you like what you see subscribe to the newsletter and you'll get an email monthly. 

10 September 2004 

• Ohio Trail's List -  (Alphabetical List) I've updated the list again by adding the Phoebe Snow Trail  and the CD&M Trail (Columbus, Delaware and Marion Interurban RR) both in Marion County. I update the master list of trails (alphabetical) as well as Trails List By County with Maps as often as I get new information. The two new trails are in planning by the Marion County Parks District. 

26 August 2004 

• Wesleyan MetroPark Bridge - The new $500,000 bridge and trail that connects the two parts of Wesleyan MetroPark opened in August. The construction is a part of the continued development of the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail that when finished in 2008 will run from downtown Dayton and the Great Miami River Recreation Trail  via the Wolf Creek to Trotwood, Brookville and Verona.

23 August 2004

• Middletown Trail (not official name) I've finally gotten down to Middletown to get pictures of the first section on The Great Connection. Eventually the Great Connection will run 28 miles from Crains Run Nature Park in Montgomery County to Hamilton in Butler County. 

20 August 2004 

• Little Miami Scenic Trail - I have updated the pictures of construction South of Milford thanks to Dave Dumbacher. See his new photos and the new press release from the Hamilton County Parks District. 
  
• New Bridge at Wesleyan MetroPark Five Rivers MetroParks added a $500,000 dollar bridge to connect the two parts of Wesleyan MetroPark together and continue development of the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail. See August 2004 MVRT Newsletter for more information. 
  
• August 2004 MVRT Newsletter is on the website! More information about website updates, new bridge at Wesleyan MetroPark, new Lebanon Countryside Trail being built from the Little Miami Scenic Trail near Loveland to Lebanon and information about a new website that is about the history of the Little Miami Scenic Trail. 

15 August 2004

• Little Miami Scenic Trail   I've been making updates to these web pages. I have completely re-done the trail sections of the following segments of the Little Miami Scenic Trail. Lots of new pictures and descriptions of this oldest and some think prettiest trail in the Miami Valley
  • Xenia to Spring Valley and Corwin
  • Corwin to Morrow
  • Morrow to Oregonia and Loveland
  • Xenia to Yellow Springs 

25 July 2004

• The July 2004 MVRT Newsletter  is on the website. New information about the Simon Kenton Trail in Champaign County. Also the Siebenthaler Bridge in Montgomery County is finally open and I talk about the 2004 Tour de France which Lance Armstrong won for the sixth time! More importantly I tell you about his Lance Armstrong Foundation. 

30 June 2004 

• The June 2004 MVRT Newsletter is on the website. More new information about trails in SouthWest Ohio. 

28 June 2004 

• I am updating the website as follows:
  • More information on parking, restrooms and water. I have been asked to provide more information about this important services on our trails. I am rewriting each trail's description and I am adding a table that shows all of the locations for services on that trail. 
  • Xenia Station to Yellow Springs trail section - I have completely revised this trail's descriptions and added many new pictures. 
  • Creekside Trail - I have added new pictures and restroom information to this trail and to the trail it connects to 
  • Creekside Recreation Trail - New pictures and restroom information as mentioned above. 

30 May 2004

• More news on trail construction 
  • Trail Dedication! Saturday 24 June the Ohio To Erie Trail reaches London!
  • May 2004 Newsletter - Is on the website. More information about trail happenings. 
  • Contract to be let to build trail from Crains Run MetroPark to South of Franklin. 
  • T-Connector News - News about construction of the T-Connector in Greene County.

21 April 2004 The Miami Valley received funding to close gaps in some trails and to extend others as follows:

• Montgomery County - Five Rivers MetroParks received a total of $4.9 million in Congestion Mitigation/Air Quality (CMAQ) funds to accomplish the following:
  • Wolf Creek Recreation Trail  - Fill the 2.5 mile gap between the trail in downtown Dayton where it ends at Wesleyan MetroPark to Trotwood. When completed in 2008 the trail will run from downtown Dayton to Trotwood, Brookville and Verona. 
  • Great Miami River Recreation Trail -  Add 7.5 miles of trail to connect the trail in downtown Dayton at Triangle Park with the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) which now ends at Rip Rap Road. 
  • Mad River Recreation Trail - Extend the trail 2.5 miles from its current end at Eastwood MetroPark Northeast along a Norfolk Southern right of way to Huffman MetroPark to connect with the T-Connector. The T-Connector will connect the Mad River Recreation Trail to the existing Wright Brothers Bikeway that extends into Fairborn along Kaufmann Avenue. 
• Miami County - The Miami County Bikeway Task Force received  $2,2 million to add to the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Miami County). The trail will be extended in Monroe Twp. North and South of Tipp City. Tipp City will build a trail segment from Kyle Park to Canal Lock Park. Funds received last year will connect Phase I of the Great Miami River Recreation Trail from it's current end in Concord Twp South to Troy. 
• Clark County - Clark County is planned to extend three trails this year as follows:
  • Buck Creek Scenic Trail - East about 2 miles from Pumphouse Road through Old Reid Park across Croft Road to Robert Eastman Road then it follows the foot of the dam to the Buck Creek State Park beach parking lot.
  • Simon Kenton Trail Phase IV - The trail will be extended South 2 miles from the trail's current end following the old railroad right of way  at the Buck Creek Scenic Trail to connect to the Little Miami Scenic Trail .
  • Prairie Grass Trail (Part of the Ohio To Erie Trail) - The trail will be extended from South Charleston to London . Four miles of the trail extension will be in Clark County and 7 miles in Madison County. This will place the Ohio To Erie Trail almost to the city of Columbus.
• Champaign County 
  • Simon Kenton Trail Phase III - The trail will be extended North 5.2 miles from State Route 55 to end in the city of Urbana. The Simon Kenton Trail will be then be complete. 
• Greene County
  • Ohio To Erie Trail  (my name) The trail from South Charleston to London is being managed by the Greene County Park District. The name of the 7 mile segment in Madison County has not been decided.
  • Xenia-Jamestown Connector - Construction of the bridges is going on now and the trail from Frank Seaman Park in Jamestown to at least Jasper Road will be built this summer. It should be open late autumn.

13 April 2004 

• Horseback riding on trails in the Miami Valley  I was asked recently about using our trails in the Miami Valley for riding. I have added a page to the site and I'll update it with more information as I get it for you. Tell your "horsy" friends about the new web page! 

13 March 2004

• New Newsletter for March - I've added a new newsletter for this month to the website. 
  • Centerville-Washington Park District seeks input from citizens on building trails 
  • South Charleston to London Trail will be constructed this year!
  • Inappropriate Posts on Our Bulletin Board on the MSN website. 

13 February 2004

• Bicycling Events in the Miami Valley - I've added a new page to the site. This page will provide information on upcoming bicycling events in the Miami Valley. 
• This website moved! Yes. I had to move the website from the old server and the old URL which was "http://www.intellweb.com/trails"  to my own domain name and new URL which is:
  http://www.miamivalleytrails.org I hope you find the new URL easy to find. Now I have to inform everyone who has a link to the old address to change the links to the new one. 

10 January 2004

• New newsletter for January 2004. A little of this and that to cheer you up during Winter
• Revised navigation of site. - I revised my "footer" page. That is the page you see at the bottom of all the pages to make it easier to get around the website. 

24 October 2003

• New newsletter for October 2003  -  I've added a newsletter for October 2003 that summarizes the new constructions to our trail system this Fall as well as telling you about all the grants that the local governments and parks organizations received this month that will go into more new trails new year!

18 October 2003 

• New Pictures on Mad River Recreation Trail -  I added some new pictures of downtown Dayton and Riverscape to show how the Mad River and the trail connect to the Great Miami River Recreation Trail in downtown Dayton.
  
• New Pictures on the Great Miami River Recreation Trail  - I have added the same pictures to this web-page to better explain downtown and show the new bridge to Deeds Point from the South side of the trail. 

12 October 2003

• Piqua Closes the Loop! With the dedication of the The River's Edge of the Piqua Linear Park, Piqua has accomplished their long held plan to build a trail around Piqua. "The Loop" as they call it consists of:
  • Piqua Linear Park (5.5 mi) Troy Sydney Road to Spiker Road, East to West.
  • Canal Run (2.2 mi) North from French Park on the Linear Park to Water Plant on Route 66.
  • The River's Edge (3.6 mi) from Lock 9 Park downtown Piqua on the Linear Park to connect with the Canal Run at Roadside Park and the Water Plant. 
• I have put up a web-page for the last section the Canal's Edge Section with pictures and description and have linked the three pages together for your use. Thanks Piqua!
  
• Great Miami River Recreational Trail Section 1 -The 1.6 mile trail segment was dedicated this Summer. I've just seen this beautiful trail along the Miami & Erie Canal Towpath in Miami County and put pictures and trail description on its' own webpage.  

2 October 2003

• The River's Edge of Piqua Linear Park The new 4.5 mile section of trail from downtown Piqua to connect with the end of the Canal Run was  dedicated Sunday 5 October 2003. See Piqua Linear Park

21 September 2003 

• New Newsletter for Sept. 2003  New trails;  Great Miami River Trail in Miami County, newly finished Simon Kenton Trail in Clark and Champaign County, a new section of the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail  and construction on the Great Connection in Middletown. See the newsletter for details. 

08 September 2003

• Simon Kenton Trail has completed Phase II.  This means the trail starts at Buck Creek Trail in Springfield and runs to State Route 55 in Champaign County near Urbana a total of 9.4 miles! I'm putting lots of new pictures and trail description on my Simon Kenton Trail page. 
  
• Great Connection construction   I'm informed that a 2.3 mile section of this trail planned to be built from Crain's Run Metro Park south to Hamilton, is being finished in Middletown. See the page for more information. 

01 September 2003

• Great Miami River Trail Section 1  - I've added a new page to the website for the Great Miami River Trail in Miami County. The page has description and new photos of the Phase I Trail. 
  
• New Construction on the Little Miami Scenic Trail south of Milford  - I've been telling you about the construction that will extend the trail south towards Cincinnati and I wanted to you to read the statement made by the Hamilton County Parks District from their website. 

24 August 2003

• Wolf Creek Recreation Trail  - New trail segment in downtown Dayton. See my new pictures and trail description. 

19 August 2003

• New Newsletter for August 2003.  New trail being constructed between Simon Kenton Trail in Clark County and the Simon Kenton Trail in Champaign County. They will join at the Cedar Bog this Fall!  I've added new pictures to the website and I'm providing information about Ohio Senate Bill 80 that I'd like all trail users support on. 

03 August 2003

• Updates to website.
  • I updated the Great Miami River Recreation Trail with new text and new pictures. 
  • I added new pictures to the Mad River Recreation Trail. 
  • Recently I completely reworked the Little Miami Scenic Trail  changing it from one very large page to a series of trail segment pages. There is a table on the page that links you to all of the other sections of the Little Miami Scenic Trail. This weekend I added more pictures to the pages.
  • I revised the Xenia Station  page adding new pictures. I also added a table to the page that has links and mileage to all of the trails that connect to the Xenia Station.
  • Glenn Oster  a cyclist who rides some of America's most interesting trails has provided to me another one of his excellent trail reviews. This time Glenn rode the "Nifty Natchez Trace" trail in Mississippi. 

27 July 2003

• New Newsletter for July 2003 - Check for information on new trails such as:
  • Piqua is extending the Linear Park north along the Miami River levee and
  • Miami River trail (Miami County) starting to take shape.

29 June 2003 

• New Newsletter for June 2003 - Check the newsletter to see what is happening in the area. I will summarize the news below. 
  • Ohio Department of Natural Resources made a 2003 Nature Works grant to Madison County for the Prairie Path Preserve in London. This trail segment is a part of the Ohio To Erie Trail that, when completed, will run from Cincinnati 325 miles to Cleveland. The money will fund a shelter, a picnic area, water fountain and bike spur and to install utilities. The trail section from Xenia to Cedarville and to South Charleston is finished and the link from South Charleston to London may be complete this year. 
  • Because the trail is growing more businesses are interested in locating on or near the bicycle trails. In South Charleston "Surfn' Cycle" opened at the trail bike staging area in March. In the North of Springfield at Villa Road "Pedal Power" had it's grant opening recently. It is at the end of the Simon Kenton Trail in Clark County. The trail currently ends at Villa Road but plans are in place to extend the trail North to the Greene/Champaign County line to connect with the Simon Kenton Trail in Champaign County.
  • In Montgomery County Five Rivers MetroParks opened in June another segment of the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail. The Wolf Creek Recreation Trail until recently ran from Englewood Northeast through Brookville to its end at Verona. Five Rivers MetroParks has had as a goal the extension of the trail Southeast to downtown Dayton where the Mad River empties into the Great Miami River. MetroParks opened "Sunrise Park" at the junction of the Mad and Great Miami Rivers and a one mile trail that reaches from the River to the Wright-Dunbar neighborhood, just West of downtown, where the Wrights Brothers had their first bicycle shop. Hopefully Five Rivers MetroParks will be able to connect this new trail segment to the trail that now ends in downtown Englewood. 
  • The RiverScape Bridge from the bicycle trail to Deeds Point is open for pedestrians and cyclists. Deeds Point will be the site of much of the festivities celebrating the 100 years anniversary of the Wright Brother's first flight. 
  • In Miami County a dedication was held on the first 1 mile segment of the trail that when completed will run through the entire Miami County North from Taylorsville MetroPark in Montgomery County through Tipp City, Troy, Piqua and Sidney. 

22 April 2003

• New Newsletter for April 2003 - Check my monthly newsletter to find out what's going on in the Miami Valley. Please see my April 2003 Newsletter. If you like what you see subscribe to my newsletters and I'll send you a copy monthly. 
  
  
• New Construction on the Little Miami Scenic Trail South from Milford   Yes! Finally the trail will no longer end at Milford.  The trail is expected to be open to Clear Creek Park in Anderson Township by 2005. The Hamilton County Park District has not acquired all of the land necessary to get from Clear Creek Park to Lunken Airport so a scheduled date cannot be forecast. After the trail reaches Lunken Airport the trail will have to be built South from there to the Ohio River and Cincinnati. Great News! See my new photos of the construction.
  
  

• Dedication of Miami County Recreational Trail Bikeway- There will be a dedication of a portion of the Miami County Recreational Trail Bikeway at Dye Mill Road in Concord Township on Thursday 12 June 2003 at 11:00 AM. For more information call, 339-2637. The dedication is on the Towpath
   at Lock 13. See more on Miami Valley Trails.

06 April 2003

• I've added links to three more trails in Ohio. They are:
  • Holmes County Trail  (Holmes County)
  • National Road Bikeway  (Belmont County) and 
  • Conotton Creek Trail (Harrison County) 

  Enjoy all of them!

02 April 2003

• I've made revisions to my:
  • Rail Trails ,Towpaths And Other Trails In Ohio (Indexed by County) and
  • Rail Trails ,Towpaths And Other Trails In Ohio (Alphabetical List)

  Both web pages have information about all the trails in Ohio. I've added links to new websites that have been established for some of these trails. The first list has maps and you can find trails by County. The second list is an alphabetical list of every trail in Ohio (that I know about).

27 March 2003

• See my new MVRT Newsletter for March 2003. There you'll find information about the new bridge downtown to Deeds Point and that a part of Wright Patterson Air Force Base is open to the public. Its the area that was the Wright Brother's Flying Field from 1904. Construction on trails is starting from Xenia to Jamestown and from South Charleston to London in Madison County on the Ohio to Erie Trail. Read all about it. 

27 December 2002 

• See my new MVRT Newsletter for December 2002  More information about what is going on with trails in this area.
  
• Simon Kenton Trail in Clark County  I've added a new page (with great photos) for the trail that starts at Buck Creek Trail and will continue North until it reaches the Simon Kenton Trail in Champaign County. Eventually the two trails will merge and continue to Urbana, Ohio. 

17 November 2002

• The Kauffman Avenue Bikeway aka Huffman Prairie Overlook Trail has been renamed by the Fairborn Park and Recreation Advisory Board to become the Wright Brothers' Bikeway. This name change was approved by the Fairborn City Council, Apparently this name change has to do with the upcoming (in 2003) celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers First Flight in 1903. Remember the Wright Brothers were Dayton boys. 

22 October 2002

• Hydraulic Canal Path competed!   The City of Piqua has opened its extension of the Piqua Linear Park north from French Park North 2.2 miles to Swift Run Lake. If you are looking for a little bit of paradise; this is it! A beautiful addition by Piqua Parks & Recreation! Check it out. 

22 September 2002

• Creekside Trail - I've added new pictures on this page. 
  
  
• Creekside Recreation Trail - I've added new pictures that show the new safer way to cross the intersection of Springfield Street and Smithville Road on the trail just outside Eastwood MetroPark. 
  
  
• Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) - This trail has added about a mile of new trail and connected the trail from the Huber Heights Soccer Fields south to Rip Rap Road near Birch Drive. I've added a number of new pictures to this web page. 
  
  
• About Bicycle Trail Names - I've added a new page to try to end the confusion about changing trail names. I am also in the process of changing trail names to the new, correct trail name. If you see an old trail name on a page, it's because I haven't updated that page. 

13 August 2002

• Creekside Recreation Trail  Yes? The trail segment from the County Line to Eastwood MetroPark has been renamed "The Mad River Recreation Trail" 
  
  
• New extension to Piqua Linear Park Under Construction  The City of Piqua is adding a 2.2 mile extension North from French Park past Frantz Pond, Fountain Park, Echo Lake and ending at Swift Run Lake off State Route 66. The new section of the trail is planned to open 19 August 2002. 
  
  
• Wright Brothers Flying Field to Open to the Public The National Park Service and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base have reached agreement how a portion of the base including the Wright Brothers Flying Field, the Wright Brothers Memorial and the newly built Interpretive Center will all come under the management of the Parks Service. Those portions of the base will become open to the public as of 17 December 2002. 
  
  
• Wright Brother Interpretive Center to open     As part of the agreement above the Interpretive Center is complete and is on the grounds of the Wright Brothers Memorial. When all the work is finished a major portion of the base will be open to the public and many historic features of the base that were not available to the public will now be. 

27 July 2002

• I've added more pictures  and descriptions to the Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) web page. Five Rivers MetroParks are continuing construction of the trail South from the Huber Height Soccer Fields the current Southern terminus of the trail.
  
• I've decided to move the older information from the bottom of this page  from 2001 back to the beginning in 1998 to another page; Older What's New . That way I save the historical record of what happened when and if you're interested in seeing the month by month, year by year development of trails in the Miami Valley you can go take a look. All I can see is: "We've come a Long Way Baby!"

26 June 2002

• I've added my monthly newsletters to my Join Our Mailing List web-page. I've had the page for some time but I've been adding the newsletters as I send them out to my subscribers. Take a look and see if you want to have the trail news and the changes to this website sent to you on a monthly basis?

22 May 2002

• Hoosier Rails To Trails   is a new website for Indiana's efforts at being one of the United States most aware bicycle trail states. Take a look at their trails and trail maps!

05 May 2002

• Englewood Bike Path (dedicated) This week the trail was dedicated. I took pictures last week and have the new web-page on the website. It's not finished but you'll get the idea.

01 May 2002

• New Trail from South Charleston to London, Ohio  I was in London last weekend to see where the new trail from South Charleston on the Ohio to Erie Trail will look like when it reaches London. From what I have been told, funding is available and if the small lawsuit is settled, then requests for construction bids can go out this Summer. With luck construction will start either late this year or early in 2003. We might have a trail to London by Summer 2003. The new web-page is on the site. 
  
• Englewood Bike Path  I also walked and took pictures of the new Englewood Bike Path. It starts at the Englewood MetroPark and follows the Stillwater River south about 2.5 miles to Jake Grossnickle Park in Englewood. I took pictures and will be adding a page to the site soon to describe and show it to you. 

14 April 2002

• Trail Construction Information - Provided by Miami Conservancy District and Five Rivers MetroParks. New information for you so that you'll know the way to get around construction on the Montgomery County trails. 

09 March 2002

• The Miami Conservancy District website has been completely revised. They have added a lot of information about the multi-use trails they maintain and have added a "sneak preview" of the bicycle trail map that they and Five Rivers Metroparks are jointly developing. See their Bike Trails web page The map should be available this month but you can look at it now and download it. The trails in Montgomery will be remarked with a state-wide system of route numbers. For example "The Great Miami River Recreation Trail" is to be marked "Route 25" 

01 March 2002

• The Huron River Greenway trail project won a big one in court recently. It seems that the court in Erie County ruled that the Erie County MetroParks had a valid title to the right-of-way and could begin trail construction! This is a huge boost for the people of Erie County, Ohio. The Huron River Greenway folks wants friends of trails in the Miami Valley  to know that volunteer workdays on the Huron River Greenway in Erie County are scheduled for Saturday March 23rd and Saturday, April 20th (weather permitting, time and location TBD). You can help the Huron River Greenway  by volunteering on the Greenway during these sessions, as the effort to open the next link in the trail to the Mason Road trailhead moves forward. Erie MetroParks has struck a winning blow FOR trails in Ohio; it is up to Rails To Trails members and trail advocates throughout Ohio to thank them.
  
  
• If you can't attend a work session you might want to consider a contribution to:
  Erie MetroParks  
  3910 E. Perkins Ave.,
  Huron, OH 44839

24 February 2002

• The Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission is the organization that plans transportation (including bicycle trails) is Montgomery, Greene and Miami County. The updated their long range plan and have all of the plans for bicycle trails in the document. The map below is a good copy that I downsized for your use. You can also order a CD copy of the entire report with all maps and attachments from the MVRPC.

06 February 2002

• Take a look at the Tour de Cure Website. They are associated with the American Diabetes Association. They run cycling events to support Diabetes and provide for an enjoyable outing. For example, they will have a 22 June cycling event in the Dayton area. 

15 January 2002

• Long Hiking Tours in France If you'll be traveling to France you'll want to see this site of trails in France. Just click on the English logo. His International Hiking and Outdoors Websites   (see his drop down list at bottom of page) includes a link to this website among many good US, England and other trails. 

20 November 2001

• New Clark County website called Welcome to National Trail Parks and Recreation Take a look. You'll like it!

18 November 2001

• New Trail Construction in Madison County - I'm told that new trail construction from the new South Charleston Station to London an additional 10 miles of trail should be built next year; 2002. Another 8.9 miles will be built from London to Wilson Road in 2002-2003. As my Friends of Madison County Parks and Trails say;

Next Stop London!

• New Trail Construction in Clark County! A new 2 mile section of trail now called the "Northern Trail" connects the Buck Creek Trail North to Villa Road in Springfield. When complete the trail will continue North for 5 or more miles to connect to the Simon Kenton Trail which is partially constructed from the Cedar Bog to State Route 55, The entire trail will go from the Buck Creek Trail in Springfield to Urbana, Ohio. 

7 November 2001

• Cedarville Trail is Open to South Charleston  ( photos) The trail is now open for use. The dedication was held 17 November near Chillicothe Pike at US Route 42.  For more information about this trail write Friends of Madison County Parks and Trails .
  
• New Photos on Stewart Street Trail page. Yes. I have added several pictures and descriptions to the Stewart Street Trail, the 0.5 mile spur that connects the University of Dayton in downtown to the Great Miami River Recreation Trail on the Great Miami River. Check them out!
  
• Spinning Road Bridge on Creekside Recreation Trail Complete!  Finally the bridge over Spinning Road in Beavercreek on the Creekside Recreation Trail in Montgomery County has been completed! See the new pictures of the bridge!

09 October 2001

• I recently got new information about the  Western Reserve Greenway  It's in Turnbull and Ashtabula counties and will start paving 13 miles of trail next July 1. They also have a new website and I've placed it on both my  Rail Trails ,Towpaths And Other Trails In Ohio (Alphabetical List) as well as my Rail Trails ,Towpaths And Other Trails In Ohio (Indexed by County) (with maps). 

Older material from this page has been moved to its own page.
Older What's New Page 

For more information on each Web Page or Trail click on its name.

HOME PAGE 

Clark County Trails  |  Buck Creek Trail | Simon Kenton Trail | Prairie Grass Trail | 
 | The Tecumseh Trail |

Greene County Trails   Creekside Trail  | Prairie Grass Trail |  Little Miami Scenic Trail | T-Connector  |   
| Wright Brothers' Bikeway  | Xenia-Jamestown Connector |  Xenia Station | I-675 Crossing | 

Montgomery County Trails  Creekside Recreation Trail  | Great Miami River Recreation Trail |
  Great Miami River Recreation Trail (Northern Segment) | Mad River Recreation Trail | 
| Stillwater River Recreation Trail | Stewart St. Bikeway  | Iron Horse Trail | 
|  The Great Miami River Recreation Trail [GMRRT] in Warren & Butler Counties  | 
| Wolf Creek Recreation Trail  |  

 Miami County Trails  Trails in Miami County |Section 1 | Section 2 | Piqua Activities Trail For Health  |
|  Canal Run | The River's Edge North |The River's Edge South | Troy Bike Trail | Section 5 | Tipp City Trail

 Warren County Trails| Lebanon Countryside Trail |
|  The Great Miami River Recreation Trail (GMRRT in Warren & Butler Counties  |  Little Miami Scenic Trail |

Resources | Complete Ohio Trails List (Alphabetical) | Ohio Trails List (By County with Maps) | 
 | Hotels, Motels & Campgrounds near Trails | About Trail Names & Route Numbers |
| Free Screen-Saver for Download | Monthly Newsletters | Search This Website | Website Statistics |
| Trail Etiquette & Safety Rules  | Funded Multi-Use Trail Projects |  Emergency Telephone Numbers |

  Other Links | Home Page  | Bicycle Trails in Ohio | Hot-List | Join Our Mailing List |  
   | Maps | Search Website | Site Map (Contents)  | Glenn Oster's Trail Reviews |  What's New | 
 | Hotels, Motels, B&Bs and Campgrounds | Horseback Riding  | Trail Etiquette & Safety |  
 | Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws for Cyclists | Website Statistics| Information For Advertisers | Trail Usage Statistics |
| Trail Construction History |

Copyright © 1997 - 2009  Thomas J. Recktenwalt All rights reserved.