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‘It Was a Choice’: Columbus, Ohio Allocates $250 Million to Build 150 Miles of Biking, Walking Trails

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“It was a choice” by Columbus, Ohio leaders and residents to make greenspace and trails alongside the Scioto River © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

“It was a choice,” Eric Oberg, Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Senior Director of Programs, says of Columbus, Ohio’s decision to spend $250 million over the next five years to build 150 miles of bikeways, walkways and trails.

In November 2024, voters in Central Ohio approved Issue 47, a sales tax levy to fund the LinkUS mobility initiative. The initiative specifies that 27.5% of the new COTA sales tax revenue (roughly $50 million a year) must be spent on “transit-supportive infrastructure” – that is new trails, sidewalks and bikeways. While the initial five-year phase targets building 150 miles of sidewalks, trails, and bikeways by 2030, the permanent levy is designed to ultimately create over 500 miles of paths across the region by 2050.

“It will be transformational for the region. It will benefit the 2.1 million people who live within a mile of bus service.” said Brian Ashworth Transportation Planning Manager City of Columbus, who is developing new bus routes (with bike racks) to connect to the trails. Brian’s Bike Plus Plan provides for 500 miles of bikeways. “LinkUS is a model for other places.”

Passing the ballot initiative “showed who we are and what we want to be,” he added.

“It was a choice” by Columbus leaders and residents to make greenspace and trails alongside the Scioto River © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Fifteen years ago, Columbus’ city leaders’ choice to remove dams, its Scioto riverfront from a muddy, stagnant river and turning it into a glorious linear park, Scioto Riverfront.

“When the city decided to take down the dams, they created acres of greenspace of the most valuable real estate in America’s14th largest city, resisting pressure to build commercial buildings,” Melinda Vonstein, Greenways Planning Studio Lead for the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission.

A protected bike lane along Columbus’ busy Broad Street has decreased the number of car accidents and dramatically reduced speeding. Columbus, a growing city, is investing $250 million to support safe biking and walking. “Can you imagine 1 million more cars?”  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

They also took away one lane on each side of a busy seven-lane Broad Street – a major roadway that dates back to 1797 and stretches 25.1 miles across the county – to create a protected bike lane which has made the road safer, reducing excessive speeding by 90% (drivers were going 55 mph on the 35 mph road) and reducing crashes by 50 percent.

“What happens when a city as large as Columbus chooses to prioritize trails, walking, biking and greenspace. These were active choices by the city – over 25-30 years, lots of choices – but there are lots of examples of cities choosing differently,” Oberg declared.

The choices that Columbus made were motivated by the change in culture over the past 30 years. Indeed, the cities ranked best for “livability” and “quality of life” are all places where bikeways and greenways are no longer treated as optional, recreational perks but are core economic and public health infrastructure that directly drive a city’s growth and livability, and ability to attract talent.

Not coincidentally, Columbus, the 14th largest city in the country is countering the trend of the rest of the Midwest and growing in population. It is forecast to grow by one million by 2030.

That is because “green mobility” act as a catalyst to growth because it acts as a “talent magnet” attracting Millennials and GenZ who want to live where they don’t have to own a car to buy groceries or get to work; they allow cities to grow in population without paralyzing traffic; and property values increase, while foot/bike traffic boosts local retail sales in a way that drivers whizzing by in cars cannot.

“Can you imagine adding 1 million more cars?” Vonstein posed, who, as Greenways Planning Studio Lead has been working to develop safe multi-use and leisure trails throughout the region.

Mural along the Alum Creek Trail: “Create Your Own Path.” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The demand and the desire to turn abandoned rail lines, canalways, and industrial complexes into greenways and byways may come from the grassroots, but it is the officials and leadership who hold the power and purse to make such projects a reality.

We come into Columbus at the end of a 50-mile bike ride on the Ohio-Erie Trail from Mount Vernon and our final day touring the Great American Rail-Trail as it is unfolding in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. We get to see the progress in building the connectors that will ultimately link 3,700 miles of protected multi-use byways from Washington DC to Washington State. Columbus is the largest city on the Great American Rail-trail.

Going from farmland into the city on the Heart of Ohio Trail, on the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We have seen along the way how small villages and towns which saw their economy and prosperity deteriorate along with abandoned rail lines and factories, are being revitalized with the repurposing into rail-trails, and how the Columbus municipality has created a Trail Towns program to support these towns, building connections from the trail to their town centers. The first five towns have come aboard, Mount Vernon and Centerburg among them, where we start out our final day.

Finding tranquility on the Alum Creek Trail in Columbus, Ohio © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

This day’s ride is a sequence of smaller named trails that are all part of the 326-mile-long Ohio to Erie Trail from Cincinnati to Cleveland, which is one of more than 150 trails nationwide that will form the Great American Rail-Trail (https://www.traillink.com/trail/ohio-to-erie-trail/).

We go from villages and towns like Mount Vernon into Centerburg, through farm land and countryside before connecting onto the scenic Alum Creek Trail, a 24.5-mile paved multi-use greenway that takes us into downtown Columbus.

You would hardly realize you are already in the city of Columbus as you bike the Alum Creek Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The Alum Creek Trail is wonderfully green, secluded, especially when you consider there are houses, malls, busy commercial streets just beyond, and even houses along the trail on one side, the creek on the other (getting the right of way in front of the houses was a major hurdle to creating the trail).

You would hardly realize you are already in the city of Columbus as you bike the Alum Creek Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We come to a historic marker, “The Underground Railroad” and learn “The Underground Railroad was neither underground nor a railroad, but a system of loosely connected safe havens where those escaping the brutal conditions of slavery were sheltered, fed, clothed, nursed, concealed, disguised and instructed during their journey to freedom. Although this movement was one of America’s great social, moral and humanitarian endeavors, the details about it were often cloaked in secrecy to protect those involved from the retribution of civil law and slave-catchers. Ohio’s history has been permanently shaped by the thousands of runaway slaves passing through or finding permanent residence in this state.” The marker was sponsored by the Friends of Freedom Society, Inc. and the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department. It is truly a “teachable moment” and a revelation to learn that very near here are some homes that were known to have provided refuge.

Here, Brian Ashworth, Transportation Planning Manager for the City of Columbus, leads us from the present trail that would take us to Broad Street, Columbus’ busy main street and off some side trails that he hopes to make the official route on the Great American Rail-Trail.

“It will be transformational for the region. It will benefit the 2.1 million people who live within a mile of bus service.” said Brian Ashworth Transportation Planning Manager City of Columbus, who is developing new bus routes (with bike racks) to connect to the trails. Brian’s Bike Plus Plan provides for 500 miles of bikeways. “LinkUS is a model for other places.” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Where we come onto Broad Street is now a protected bikeway, created by taking a lane from each side of the seven-lane thoroughfare.  “It’s reduced crashes by 50% and reduced excessive speeding by 90% (drivers were going 55 mph on the 35 mph road),” noted Kelly Scocco, Director of Columbus’ Department of Public Service. The goal is to create an urban trail so it passes museums and the Conservatory.

“It will offer more scenery, a better connection, and revitalize the downtown,” she said. “This community put our money where we value.”

William Murdock, Executive Director Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, said that the plan is to use the Great American Rail-Trail as a backbone, connect the downtown and neighborhoods to the trail and knit the entire region together. Within a 50 mile-radius around Columbus are 1000 miles of greenway trails. The plan calls for creating curated routes, connections, and loops, and boosting the economic base for small towns. The first five towns have joined the Trail Towns program; 20 are waiting.

“All the communities see the value of becoming a Trail Town for their economic development and quality of life. People think about a future where they are not having to drive everywhere and can feel safe,” said Vonstein.

“We’ve set the standard for USA,” says Murdock. “We now have funding to make progress at an unfathomable speed. What takes 30 years elsewhere, we have plans for 81 projects in the first five years.”

The iconic Le Vaque Tower dominates Columbus’ skyline, complementing the gorgeous Scioto Riverpark greenway and trails that now line both sides of the river © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We stay the night at a hotel contained within the Le Vaque Tower, a stunning iconic landmark right on Broad Street. Standing 555 1/2 feet high, it was built to be exactly one half-foot taller than the Washington Monument and was the fifth tallest in the world when it opened in 1927, and today is a multi-use building that houses the hotel and offices and is a block away from the State Capital building.

Biking brought me to Columbus, Ohio, and now I have much of the morning to explore and discover.

It is thrilling to have a train pass right over your head as you walk along the Scioto Riverpark greenway © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

I set out from the Le Vaque hotel for the gorgeous Scioto Riverpark greenway and trails that now line both sides of the river, with stunning bridges. It is early and the paths are already well used with runners, walkers, bikers, strollers. At one end, I get really close to the railroad tracks (rather exciting to have a train go right over your head as you walk under the railroad bridge) before winding my way to the Scioto Audubon Metro Park, a picturesque refuge where several artists have set up their easels and there is and delightful playground where a father is helping his daughter climb “rock” walls (ropes and lines set out) that look like actual cliffs.

Artists set up their easels inthe Scioto Audubon Metro Park © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

I walk across the bridge to the other side of the river, where important city institutions are located, including COSI: Center of Science and Industry (cosi.org), a science museum and research center is housed in what used to be the high school, wishing I had more time to visit.

Walking back up Broad Street, I come to the state capital building, where a bridal couple is posing for photos.

For more information on the Great American Rail-Trail, visit: https://www.railstotrails.org/site/greatamericanrailtrail/

Rails to Trails Conservancy on a Mission

On this tour of the Great American Rail-Trail and how it is unfolding 3,700-miles across the country, from Washington DC to Washington State, we have been able to see first-hand how Rails to Trails Conservancy acts on its mission “to build a nation connected by trails, reimagining public spaces to create safe ways for everyone to walk, bike and be active outdoors.”

A few of the Rails to Trails Conservancy staff working to create the Great American Rail-Trai which when completed, will connect 3,700 miles of bike and leisure trails across the country, from Washington DC to Washington State. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“Since 1986, Rails to Trails Conservancy has stood at the forefront of America’s efforts to make it safer and easier to walk, bike and be active outside—in every state, in every county and in every neighborhood. With more than 42,500 miles of multiuse trails on the ground nationwide, and more than 150 trail networks in development reaching into every single state, people in all types of communities now rely on this infrastructure. Trails create space for us to move our bodies, build economic opportunity and navigate our communities. They’re essential for our health, transportation choice and quality of life.”

These goals are all the more important in light of an epidemic of adults and children being obsessed with sedentary activities revolving around screens and technology and a decline in availability of health care, even as medical technology can extend our lifespans. Wellness and prevention become a necessity for quality of life but also to economic productivity.

Its flagship initiative, TrailNation™  includes 10 regional projects plus the cross-country Great American Rail-Trail® connecting nearly 12,000 miles of trails across neighborhood, city, county and state lines. Ultimately, these regional projects will serve 35 million people living within 2 miles of a network, and the Great American will serve an estimated 50 million people within 50 miles of the route.

RTC recognized early in the trails movement that success hinged on local leadership and public investment. RTC was a leading advocate for Congress to pass the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 which unlocked federal transportation investment in trails, walking and biking and has led to today’s robust strategy to direct dedicated public funds at the local, state and federal levels to create, connect and maintain the nation’s trails. Since ISTEA was introduced in 1991, more than $25 billion in federal funding via the legacy Transportation Alternatives (TA) program and Recreational Trails Program (RTP) has been provided to the states to build trails and other walking and biking infrastructure. These programs have supported more than 43,000 projects.

RTC has distributed more than $3.7 million in grants since 2008, helping communities in nearly every state address missing links in their trail networks and maximize their impact. So far, more than 280 organizations—including local and national nonprofits and public agencies—have benefited from the program.

In 2025, RTC awarded $398,000 in funding to 40 community organizations and public agencies working to increase connectivity and access in rural, suburban and urban communities—creating more safe access to more trails for more people in America.

However, the Trump Administration has proved hostile to the Transportation Alternatives and Recreational Trails programs, creating new threats and challenges to Rails to Trails’ ability to fulfill its mission, and making it more important for local grassroots efforts to step up.

RTC has led a 40-year effort to shape the nation’s legal framework around rail-trails and defend them in the courts. Since 1986, RTC has been involved in 60+ legal cases, including landmark state and federal cases that have laid the groundwork for the movement—with a focus on establishing and protecting the legal and policy framework facilitating rail-trail conversions, particularly the federal railbanking law. The statute since 1983 has helped build an estimated 273 rail-trails totaling nearly 4,800 miles of railbanked trail possible.

More information at www.railstotrails.org. Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Traillink.com site provides all the information you need to enjoy the trails.

See also:

Imagine Biking 3,700 Miles Across the USA on The Great American Rail-Trail

Grassroots Volunteerism Builds the Great American Rail-Trail

‘One Mile at a Time.’ New Trails Are Links in Building the 3,700-Mile Great American Rail-Trail

Railtowns, Canaltowns, Rivertowns, GhostTowns – Now Trail Towns

__________________

© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Biking Tours, Outdoors Adventures, Sustainable Travel, US Destinations

Railtowns, Canaltowns, Rivertowns, GhostTowns – Now Trail Towns

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One of the most scenic sections of the Ohio-Erie Trail: a horsedrawn Amish carriage approaches the Bridge of Dreams © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

There are railtowns, canaltowns, rivertowns, and to avoid the fate of becoming ghosttowns with the loss of railroads, canal and riverboats, and factories, many of these places are looking to become Trail Towns, serving the thousands streaming by on the leisure trails that have replaced the rail lines and towpaths.

The trails are what bring people to these towns, revitalizing their economy and community, as our Rails to Trails Conservancy group of media people reporting on the progress of the 3,700-mile-long Great American Rail-Trail discover.

As we set out on a newly repaved portion of the Ohio-Erie trail, we meet a couple from Wallisburg, Ontario, Canada. They spark our attention considering the plummeting (as much as 25%) in Canadian visits to the USA. What brought them, we ask. “Biking.” Why here? “Well, we did the Erie Canalway [353 miles from Buffalo to Albany, New York], and the Pittsburgh to DC [350 miles on the Great Allegheny Passage and C&O, the most complete stage of the Great American Rail-Trail so far], so this was next,” said the couple who, we learn, got engaged on a bike trip.

A couple from Ontario, Canada on a six-day trip biking 326 miles from Cleveland to Columbus on the Ohio to Erie Trail. “We don’t have a plan. It’s easy to get services.” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

They never book a hotel more than four hours in advance (and estimate they are spending $200/day), but check out their app to see what is convenient to where they are on the trail. “We don’t have a plan,” Mike said. “It’s easy to get services.” In Columbus, they stayed in a Rooms Plus just off the Ohio-Erie trail and close to the stadium where they took in a Blue Jackets baseball game. They also remarked that in contrast to the hostility shown by their homeland by the White House, they find “the people of America are wonderful,” adding they frequently are offered free beer and pop when locals learn they have come from Canada. “People are good.”

They are taking six days to bike the Ohio to Erie Trail, that connects the Ohio River to Lake Erie, 326 miles from Cleveland to Columbus to Cincinnati.

We set out on the newly repaved section of the Ohio-to-Erie Trail, one of more than 150 trails that are part of the Great American Rail-Trail that will connect Washington DC to Washington State © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“Our mission is to build, maintain, and promote this world-class trail corridor, encouraging outdoor recreation, healthy lifestyles, sustainable transportation, and a deeper appreciation for Ohio’s people, history, and natural beauty,” the website exclaims (https://www.ohiotoerietrail.org/).

The trail – one of more than 150 trails that are being linked together to create the Great American Rail-Trail from Washington DC to Washington State – is 245 miles paved, 49 crushed stone, 20 miles on-road and 10-miles on street. Where we start our ride and meet this couple has been newly repaved, and just behind us, we see where a new section of the trail is being laid, replacing having to go on-road.

Sharing the Ohio to Erie Trail with an Amish carriage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Soon we come to a most scenic and interesting section: it goes through an Amish community and we find ourselves sharing the path with horse-drawn carriages (the trail was purposely made wide enough to accommodate the carriages). Our rest stop is just before a marvelously named “Bridge of Dreams” covered bridge, where Raymond Weaver treats us to freshly baked and utterly divine pretzels from his family’s Weaver’s Farm & Pretzel shop. (“Better than New York’s,” I tell him to his delight.)

The Bridge of Dreams on the Ohio to Erie Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

At Gambier, on the Kokosing Gap Trail, we come to an absolutely magnificent steam locomotive, train and red caboose (a volunteer repaints it every summer). I feel like a giddy kid climbing up into the cab and ringing the brass bell.

Such fun to climb into the cab of a steam locomotive in Gambier, on the Kokosing Gap Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

I have been thinking that the creation of these rail-trails that connect and build communities reminds me of how “Johnny Appleseed” went from town to town planting apple seeds, and, amazingly, as we enter Mount Vernon, I see a historic marker that notes Johnny “Appleseed” Chapman had property and apple orchards in this very place.

A historic steam train is now an attraction at Gambier, on the Kokosing Gap Trail, part of the Ohio to Erie Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

I am so intrigued, I learn from the Knox County Historical Society, that “as a young man, Johnny traveled through New York and Pennsylvania in the late 1700’s, coming into Ohio during the early 1800’s. He made it his life’s work to plant apple trees so that the soon-to-arrive pioneers would have a plentiful supply of apples at their new home. He set up his nurseries at strategic spots so that he could sell or trade his young trees to the newcomers and then move on to new unsettled areas. Many of these orchards were established throughout central Ohio, especially around Mount Vernon, Coshocton, Mansfield, Ashland and Wooster.

“He is said to have voted in Mount Vernon’s first election about 1806. Until 1828 he owned the lot now occupied by the tire store at 401 South Main St., as well as the adjacent lot toward the Kokosing River. When he needed a new supply of apple seeds, he would walk from Mount Vernon to Pittsburgh, then fill several canoes with sacks of seeds, lash the canoes together, then travel down the Ohio River to Marietta, up the Muskingum River to Zanesville, then up the Walhonding and Kokosing back to Mount Vernon – quite a trip, indeed!” 

The story touches me greatly – his life was about community and sustainability, lessons that we can certainly apply today.

It is fun to discover Mount Vernon, one of the first five Trail Towns designated by Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission.

In Mount Vernon, one of Ohio’s first trail towns, we visit the Woodward Opera House, built in 1851, the  “oldest authentic operating opera house in the country” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We are entranced by how charming Mount Vernon is and visit the Woodward Opera House, the “oldest authentic operating opera house in the country” (built in 1851, the balcony added in the 1880s, restored in 1997 and opened 2019, it has a certain percentage of original architecture to qualify), where a history lecture is going on. We overnight in an authentically reconstructed Grand Hotel, owned by Nazarene University.

A lecture at the Woodward Opera House, Mount Vernon © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It’s about repurposing not just obsolete railroads, canalways, depots and ports, but the buildings and structures, factories and warehouses – that instead of demolishing decaying wrecks are being reclaimed, repurposed and rebranded so they benefit the community, and in the process, build community.

A chimney stack in a former glass factory has been repurposed into the Rastin Observation Tower at Ariel Foundation Park, Mount Vernon, alongside the Heart of Ohio Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

So just as we head out from Mount Vernon on the Heart of Ohio trail (a16.9-mile segment of the Ohio-Erie Trail), bound for Columbus (a 50-mile ride on trails that are part of the Ohio to Erie Trail), we come to Ariel Foundation Park, a trailside park developed from an old glass factory that manufactured car windshields. The 280-ft. tall chimney stack that served PPG from 1951 until it closed in 1976 has been repurposed instead of being demolished, and turned into a marvelous attraction, the Rastin Observation Tower.

The view from 280-ft. above the Heart of Ohio trail at Ariel Foundation Park, developed from a former glass factory © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

You climb a protected spiral staircase, 224 steps up to the deck 140 ft. above ground (boy do you feel it), for an incredible view of the countryside. There is an impressive entranceway constructed that prevents children from accessing on their own. It is truly an experience.

A chimney stack in a former glass factory has been repurposed into the Rastin Observation Tower at Ariel Foundation Park, Mount Vernon, alongside the Heart of Ohio Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

A marker notes that the Heart of Ohio Trail was built on the CANC railroad line that ran from Cleveland to Columbus through Mt. Vernon, the TNOC railroad that ran from Toledo to central Ohio. The Centerburg train station was finished in 1873, connecting the two rail lines.  Use of the tracks ended between 1960-1970. The A trail committee began purchasing the railroad line in 2000 and finally acquired it in 2005.

“It’s all downhill from here! The high point on the Heart of Ohio trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We come to a monument that marks the highpoint of the Heart of Ohio Trail, at 1,285 ft. (they joke that it is all downhill from here and that is more or less the case). Soon after, we come to Centerburg, where a sign on the trail marks the mid-point of the 326-mile-long Ohio-Erie Trail.

Coming into Centerburg on the Heart of Ohio Trail, one of Ohio’s first Trail Towns. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We are greeted by many of the activists who are turning Centerburg into one of Ohio’s first five “Trail Towns.” Centerburg received a $1 million Transportation Alternatives Grant that will pay for a short connector into its town center so that cyclists (some 40,000 pass this point, which they know because of counters in the pavement) who might otherwise just pose for a photo, will spend time and money in the shops and services catering to the visitors.

Cyclists love to take a photo at the Centerburg marker of the mid-point of the Ohio to Erie Trail, now a Trail Town, cyclists have an incentive to go into the downtown to dine and shop © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Melinda Vonstein, Greenways Planning Studio Lead for the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, has been instrumental in creating Ohio’s Trail Towns program, that launched this year with the first five towns and next year will add five more.

She tells us that several towns came to the Commission to ask to develop Trail Towns program.

Coming into Centerburg on the Heart of Ohio Trail, one of Ohio’s first Trail Towns. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Columbus’ Trail Towns program was modeled after the Great Allegheny Passage’s created by The Progress Fund  (https://www.trailtowns.org/guide/). The group worked for four years to come up with a framework that would suit Ohio.

The Trail Town Program® was created by The Progress Fund more than 17 years ago and was the first to test and prove the idea of multiplying the economic impact along trails like the C&O and Great Allegheny Passage. Visitors are an economic engine: every $1 spent by a visitor has a $3 impact on the local economy.

“It starts by thinking regionally: a world-class trail needs amenities along its entire stretch, and towns working together can create a much broader impact. Not every project looks the same. Every region has its own strengths and challenges. But we share the insights and lessons we’ve learned along the way in our free Trail Town guide” (www.trailtowns.org/guide).

[Indeed, even the ghost towns are getting a new lease on life because of rail trails. There is a Ghost Town Tour Trail – 54 miles long featuring a 32-mile continuous loop  from Blacklick, PA to Ebensburg, PA, and 20-mile C and I Extension – where a new Creekside Cabin opened in Strongstown, assisted by Pennsylvania’s The Progress Fund, which is now boosted by AirBnB tours and can be booked through www.airbnb.com/h/creeksidecabinsgtt (https://www.cambriaconservationrecreation.com/ghost-town-trail/)]

The Ohio to Erie Trail is one of more than 150 trails that when connected, will form the 3,700-mile long Great American Rail-Trail, from Washington DC to Washington State © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Ohio’s first Trail Towns are in the outskirts of Columbus, the 14th largest city in the US and the largest city on the Great American Rail-Trail. The city is working to create links and connections to the trails, including adding bus services with bike racks so people can shuttle to and from the trails instead of doubling back and a new bike trail map has curated routes accessed on Linkus through the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA).

They are working to create their own Trail Towns site but for now, information is available on CentralOhioGreenways.com.

For more information on the Great American Rail-Trail, visit: https://www.railstotrails.org/site/greatamericanrailtrail/

Next: ‘It Was a Choice’: Columbus, Ohio Allocates $250 Million to Build 150 Miles of Biking, Walking Trails

See also:

Imagine Biking 3,700 Miles Across the USA on The Great American Rail-Trail

Grassroots Volunteerism Builds the Great American Rail-Trail

‘One Mile at a Time.’ New Trails Are Links in Building the 3,700-Mile Great American Rail-Trail

__________________

© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Biking Tours, Nature and Wildlife, Outdoors Adventures, See America, US Destinations

‘One Mile at a Time.’ New Trails Are Links in Building the 3,700-Mile Great American Rail-Trail

Aaron Dodds, program manager for Jefferson Soil Water Conservation District points to Hellbender Preserve’s “Ghost Wall” where Irish immigrant and freed Black Americans tunnel workers would carve their initials into rock, that mysteriously appear and disappear © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarnandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Within this one mile that cuts through Ohio forest, there are stories: reclusive Hellbender salamanders that grow to 28 inches long; a bridge where Abraham Lincoln nearly lost his life on the way to his inauguration; a rail tunnel, slightly askew, built by warring groups of Irish immigrants; a Ghost Wall, where they carved their initials that today appear, disappear and new initials reveal themselves.

It’s only a mile long now slicing through Hellbender Preserve, but it is the first new mile of multi-use trail in Jefferson County; four more miles will soon be added. Ultimately, it will be part of a 15-mile connector along the Great American Rail-Trail, a 3,700-mile network of biking/walking trails across America, from Washington DC to Washington State.

Even the story about how the Hellbender trail was re-discovered is worthy of a novel.

This was the Old Panhandler Rail Line, but after they built a new route and bypassed this one, the 273 acre-property was abandoned in 1949 and taken over by forest.

Hellbender Preserve is only one year old – it opened on National Trails Day 2025 – and within the first six months after opening, 30,000 visited.

The “Ghost Wall” in Hellbender Preserve, where the first new mile of multi-use trail in Ohio’s Jefferson County has just opened and eventually will connect to the Great American Rail-Trail, 3,700-miles across the USA from Washington DC to Washington State © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarnandnear.com

“The trail builds community, provides an opportunity to meet, get out. We’re in the Rust Belt where healthcare isn’t a priority. This is passive way to get out, get fit,” Aaron Dodds, program manager for Jefferson Soil Water Conservation District, tells us as we walk through.  “It’s great for conservation and railroad history.”

“The railroad hired Irish workers to build it because they were cheap and expendable. They came for the American Dream and carved their names and initials in the rock walls.” When they expanded the railroad from single to double track, they brought freed slaves who also carved their names. Depending on the light, you can see the names, which later disappear and other names emerge. The names come and go. They have identified 80 different names so far. That’s why they call it the Ghost Wall.

Initials in the “Ghost Wall” in Hellbender Preserve, where the first new mile of multi-use trail in Ohio’s Jefferson County has just opened and eventually will connect to the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarnandnear.com

“The Irish were cheap, expendable. They first used old canal diggers from County Cork (Corkonians) and then Far Downers (from farther down Ireland). They hated each other.” They lived in separate camps and worked different sides of the tunnel. But when they came together, they found they were four feet off.

“A war broke out. They went at each other with pick axes. The Corkonians raided Far Downers, chased them to the hillsides, then throw them off.”

The tunnel which triggered a war between factions of Irish railroad workers is now part of the trail through Hellbender Preserve © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarnandnear.com

Far Downers broke into the Steubenville Armory and rolled out a cannon to Market Street, and fired on the Corkonians. The governor called in the state militia – it took four days to quell the violence. In the end, they figured out how to link up the tunnel (it is only slightly askew today). “It wasn’t worth a war.” Dodds wears a t-shirt with the newspaper clipping printed on the back,

We come to the Lincoln Bridge and Dodds tells of a critical historical event that was almost lost to history – how Abraham Lincoln, traveling by rail to his inauguration, got stuck in a severe rainstorm that damaged this bridge and the passengers were told to walk over in case the train would have caused it to collapse; he nearly lost his life as he walked, holding his sons’ hands when he fell and was nearly swept into the water.

“Lincoln Bridge,” on the former railroad line, where the president-elect nearly lost his life and rebuilt to serve Union troops during the Civil War © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarnandnear.com

Lincoln made it to Fort Steuben in Steubenville where he gave a speech on the train platform – the first time against a backdrop of seven states succeeding from the union in reaction to his election.

“Now Steubenville didn’t love Lincoln,” Dodds related. “He was described as ugly and an awful speaker (with a high-pitched voice). That is what was reported when in fact, he was ‘workshopping’ his inaugural address,” considered one of his most important, in which he set the Constitutional and moral framework for keeping the Union together.

Remarkably, Lincoln’s speech was forgotten until they began searching for the provenance of the land to acquire the preserve. “This event was lost to history, but a railroad vice president had collected newspaper clippings” which reported the event “and a railroad engineer atlas verified it.”

The Steubenville Herald reported on the four-day riot by Irish tunnel workers, now part of the trail through Hellbender Preserve © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarnandnear.com

After the Battle of Fort Sumter in April 1861, Lincoln remembered the bridge. The Battle of Bull Run was looming. Lincoln knew he needed to get Union troops to the east, so he directed that the bridge where he almost lost his life be rebuilt. It took just eight months with a massive workforce and now named for him.

The bridge is just before we enter the 970-foot long, double track tunnel. Just feet beyond the tunnel is where the trail ends for now.

This one-mile is in the middle of what will be a 15-mile-long trail; so far, they have three miles and are working to open five more.

The State of Ohio owned the land – acquired from ConRail – but was inaccessible to the public for all this time. The state didn’t even realize it owned it until 2015 when the commission did a title search in order to acquire it (and uncovered the Lincoln story). The state willingly donated the land to the commission for a multi-use trail, but it still took five more years.

Good neighbor Mike Ruthen sets out bikes for visitors to Hellbender Preserve to use and is one of the volunteers who help maintain the rail-trail which will ultimately connect to the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Mike Ruthen, whose gorgeous property along the creek is immediately adjacent to the property, puts bikes out for visitors to use and volunteers to help maintain the trail. “He saw the joy on people’s faces when they come,” Dodds said.

“One mile at a time. The trail builds community,” he said.

Hellbender Trail, https://www.traillink.com/trail/hellbender-preserve-trail/  

Ribbon Cutting in Orrville 

As we drive into Orrville, Ohio, we see Amish driving horse-drawn carriages, pass a Lehman’s store (everything you ever needed to buy is at Lehman’s), and the headquarters for The J.M. Smucker Company (Smucker’s!), where you see railroad tracks that come right up to the entrance.

We have come to Orrville to celebrate with Rails to Trails of Wayne County the ribbon cutting for 2.7 new miles of the Heartland Trail, a connector to the Great American Rail-Trail.

Don Noble of Rails to Trails Allegheny, with state and local leaders and Brandi Horton, Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Vice President, Communications, cut the ribbon celebrating the opening of 2.7 new miles of Ohio’s Heartland Trail which will ultimately connect to the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The new section begins at the downtown trailhead, just 3 blocks from the Orrville Historical Museum and Orville Railroad Heritage Society on Depot Street. The trail then threads northward through the downtown business district and Orrville Dog Park before connecting to the former Cleveland, Akron, and Columbus (CA&C) rail corridor near Little Chippewa Creek, then continues along the former railbed to Marshallville, terminating at Coal Bank Road.

Don Noble, Board President Rails to Trails of Wayne County, noted that along the trail in Marshallville, there is an unusual “geologic unconformity” dating from the Carboniferous Period (360–299 million years ago) when erosion removed older (Mississippian) rocks before younger (Pennsylvanian) rocks were deposited. The rare geologic feature was revealed during the construction of the railroad. 

Victor Schantz of Orrville, takes a ride on the new section of Ohio’s Heartland Trail, one of more than 150 trails that will connect 3,700 miles of the Great American Rail-Trail, from Washington DC to Washington state © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Rails to Trails of Wayne County put in an application to Ohio Department of Transportation in 2020 and received $1.33 million – 58% of the total cost – but the city and donors had to come up with the rest – Ohio Clean put up $200,000; the City of Orrville, $238,000, and a foundation gave $535,000,

The group has managed to complete two sections in one year (1.7 and 1.1 miles each), from downtown Orrville north of Marshallville – a total of 7 miles in order to eventually connect to the Great American Rail-Trail.

Rails to Trails of Wayne County hopes to complete another extension of the trail that will connect it to Clinton where it will connect to the Ohio & Erie Towpath Trail, which spans 80 miles from Cleveland to Bolivar.

“This is a great day for Orrville,” Mayor Matt Plybon said. “Years ago, people saw the old railroad bed and saw what could become. This moves Orrville closer to becoming true trail town, neighbors and beyond…We welcome people who come- shop, eat, experience community, meet people. Trails may connect place but their best value is when they connect people.”

Don Noble of Rails to Trails Allegheny and Kevin Belle, Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Project Director, celebrate the opening of 2.7 new miles of the Heartland Trail, a connector to the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

As we sit together for lunch with many of the Rails to Trails of Wayne County volunteers and officials it becomes clear:  It may take years before all 3,700 miles of the Great American Rail-Trail across America are connected, but every foot and every mile of trail impacts people today in tangible ways – those who live in community and those who come to visit – economically, health and wellness, building community and social connections, and pride.

Leaving Orrville, Kevin Belle, who has spent 10 years as Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Project Director for the Great American Rail-Trail, reflected that they have successfully closed 10 gaps in less than 10 years.

“They are coming more frequently now,” he said, with the pride of a new father or more accurately, a midwife who has helped in the birth of a baby. “Close the gap. Open the trail.”

The Great American Rail-Trail will extend 3,700 miles across the USA, enabling biking, walking, hiking from Washington DC to Washington State. “This is the most ambitious public lands project in generations, but unlike other projects, this is the result of the determination of regular people, groups, private donations, working in conjunction with local, state and federal government, reflected Brandi Horton, Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Vice President, Communications.

Heartland Trail, https://www.traillink.com/trail/heartland-trail-/

For more information on the Great American Rail-Trail, visit: https://www.railstotrails.org/site/greatamericanrailtrail/

Next: Railtowns, Canaltowns, Rivertowns, GhostTowns – Now Trail Towns

See also:

Imagine Biking 3,700 Miles Across the USA on The Great American Rail-Trail

Grassroots Volunteerism Builds the Great American Rail-Trail

__________________

© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Biking Tours, Outdoors Adventures, See America, US Destinations

Grassroots, Volunteerism Builds the Great American Rail-Trail

The repurposed McDonald viaduct, built in 1913, is one of the highlights of biking the Montour Trail, one of more than 150 trails that will make up the 3,700-mile Great American Rail-Trail, from Washington DC to Washington State © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Unlike the Interstate Highway, the Intercontinental Railway or the Erie Canal, the Great American Rail-Trail is being created by hundreds of local communities, organizations, agencies and volunteers, who appreciate what such recreational trails mean for quality of life, health and wellness and economic vitality.

When completed, the Great American Rail-Trail will provide 3,700 miles, from Washington DC to Washington State, of connected multiuse trails and byways for biking and walking,

More than half of the route – over 150 existing railtrails, canalways, bikeways and greenways across 12 states totaling 2100 miles – is completed, the most complete stage letting you ride 350 miles from Washington DC to Cumberland Md. on the C&O canalway, connecting to the Great Allegheny Passage from Cumberland into Pittsburgh.

Now the task falls to connect more than 80 gaps, totaling 1,600 miles, with trails.

And that’s where we start our tour with Rails to Trails Conservancy, the stewards leading some 150 partners in the project, to see for ourselves how the Great American Rail-Trail is unfolding, what is happening to bring this 40-year vision of Rails to Trails’ co-founder David Burwell to reality.

Point State Park is where the longest completed segment of the Great American Rail-Trail, 350 miles from Washington DC to Pittsburgh on the C&O Canalway and the Great Allegheny Passage ends and there is a 9.8-mile gap to get to the Montour Trail  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

At Pittsburgh’s Point State Park we come to the place where the Great Allegheny Passage ends and the first significant gap looms:  9.8-miles along the heavily trafficked West Carson Street, sandwiched between high stone walls and rail lines hugging the riverfront, posing the problem that even if there is a will, it is hard to find a way with such constricted space.

Our Rails to Trails Conservancy group shuttles by van to the next trail on the Great American Rail-Trail (GART), the Montour, stretching 63-miles to form a necklace around the south Greater Pittsburgh Area. Julian Wolfe, Board President of Montour Trail Council, boasts that the private, nonprofit, “100 percent volunteer” trail, supported by some 1,300 dues-paying members, is the longest suburban trail in the nation.  

Montour Trail volunteers take justified pride in the legacy they have created © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Here we meet a dozen of the more than 50 volunteers who give of their time (22,000 hours a year!), expertise and money to maintain and improve the trail and close a remaining four-mile gap. To create the Montour, they had to repurpose bridges, trestles, viaducts and tunnels, and create the connector to the Panhandle Trail that provides the next stage of the GART linking Pennsylvania to West Virginia.

We meet three of the original founders who got the idea 37 years ago for the trail and acquired the abandoned rail line from the railroad in 1991. Now they are faced with new challenges: raising $3 million to repair a 1913 tunnel at mile 25 which has been closed for 10 months after the ceiling collapsed, filling a four-mile gap on the existing trail, and most challenging of all, creating that 9.8-mile connector from the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) in downtown Pittsburgh to the Montour trailhead. Once that gap is filled, it will be possible to bike all the way from Washington DC to West Virginia and the next significant gap.

The McDonald viaduct, built in 1913, on the Montour Trail. The Montour Trail Council raised $2.3 million to renovate it. Montour Trail Council President Julian Wolfe shows us a photo of the bridge, built in 1913, as it was in 1915 with a steam train going over it. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

These volunteers and advocates recognize that bikeways and greenways bring so much benefit to local communities – quality of life, health and wellness, and economic development, even increasing property values. But they also build community.

Each project has had its challenges – to pave or put down a surface; rebuild a bridge, a trestle, a tunnel; acquire land or easements; create the infrastructure of parking lots, restrooms, signage and safe crossings.

Biking through tunnels on the Montour Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

What we see in the volunteers and officials and organizers is the pure joy and pride in creating these trails that have such impact on their neighbors today and for generations to come, and the satisfaction that comes knowing this is their legacy.

We bike the Montour Trail from mile zero to mile 16.6 where we will take the connector to the Panhandle Trail. But first, we ride just beyond the connector to the McDonald viaduct, a key attraction on the trail and point of considerable pride for the Montour Trail Council. The council raised $2.3 million to renovate it. Wolfe shows us a photo of the viaduct, built in 1913, as it was in 1915 with a steam train going over it (www.traillink.com/trail/montour-trail).

The repurposed McDonald viaduct, built in 1913, is one of the highlights of biking the Montour Trail, one of more than 150 trails that will make up the 3,700-mile Great American Rail-Trail, from Washington DC to Washington State © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“When trails were first proposed, a lot of people say it will be a nuisance and don’t want it in my backyard. But when it is done, they see their property values increase with the development that comes with the trail, because people love the amenities,” Dave Borrebach, a long-serving board member and volunteer leader for the Montour Trail Council, tells us as we tour the McDonald viaduct. “Coraopolis is deprived of greenspace, so the trail gives the community the opportunity to get to nature. Trails represent making connection – municipalities, private, contractors – all elements brought together, carefully, blended. Continuity of organization is key – putting the pieces together takes a tremendous amount of time.”

The Montour Trail, he said, is the culmination of “37 years of effort, little by little, persistence and luck…The Founding Fathers [of Montour] organized quickly, made the right decisions of time, funding, legal counsel (an expert in rail law). It all had to come together.”

We take the Panhandle Connector and drop down from the Montour Trail, passing under the viaduct for a great view onto the Panhandle Trail.

Bikers stop for lunch at Paradise on Panhandle, in a repurposed train depot on the Panhandle Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We stop at the Paradise on Panhandle for lunch, in the repurposed train depot beside the trail.

There is a historic marker – one of 20 put up by Trails Across America, another project of Rails to Trails Conservancy – that notes, “Coal Mining. As early as 1903, bituminous coal from local mines shipped from here on Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway.”

Biking the Panhandle Trail, from Pennsylvania to West Virginia © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Fortified by a delightful lunch (and delicious ice cream), we go back on the trail and find ourselves at a marker between Pennsylvania and West Virginia, where we continue on for four miles before we come to the Panhandle Trail’s end (www.traillink.com/trail/panhandle-trail).

Crossing from Pennsylvania to West Virginia on the Panhandle Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We soon face another critical gap: the Market Street Bridge linking Weirton, West Virginia, and Steubenville, Ohio, which carried bikes and walkers in addition to four lanes of cars. It was closed indefinitely on December 21, 2023 after routine inspections revealed broken strands and significant deterioration in the 1906 steel suspension bridge’s cable anchoring system.

The bridge is a case in point of the challenge faced in building the Great American Rail-Trail.

Closing of the 1906 steel suspension Market Street bridge, linking West Virginia and Ohio is a significant impediment to bikers and walkers but also to finishing the 3,700-mile Great American Rail-Trail  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It will cost about $200 million to replace and though the Biden Administration already approved $87.5 million, West Virginia, which owns the bridge, must come up with the rest by September 30, 2027 or lose the federal funding.

Now the task is to try to get extra money from the Surface Transportation Fund, which funds Active Transportation Infrastructure Projects. But this requires support from West Virginia’s Senator Shelley Wellons Moore Capito who sits on the Surface Transportation committee and she works closely with House Transportation Chair Representative Sam Graves (R-MO), who has vowed to cut all federal funding for walking and biking paths. 

At a reception in Steubenville for Rails to Trails Conservancy at historic Fort Steuben next to the Market Street Bridge, the mayors of Weirton WV and Steubenville OH expressed support for rebuilding the bridge.

“This bridge is vital to revitalization and community,” said Ralph Petrella Mayor City of Steubenville, OH. “People want to go outside. They don’t want malls, they want nature. This is an opportunity for national entity to help give those experiences.”

“We see the importance of the trail – exercise, meeting people (socialization) – important to Weirton,” said Dean Harris Mayor City of Weirton, WV. “Bridge needs to have pathway for walkers, bikers across Ohio River (great Divide). The economic development of our area depends on this bridge. We need to get the link completed and join our two cities – for the economic prosperity of area.”

Eric Oberg, Rail to Trails Conservancy’s Senior Director of Programs, Dean Harris Mayor City of Weirton, WV., Ralph Petrella Mayor City of Steubenville, OH are united in calling for the rebuilding of the Market Street Bridge. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“We need to work with you to achieve this vision of a safe, accessible way to help people walk or bike across country. We want to be partner, to tell the story of a beautiful part of the country,” said Eric Oberg, Rail to Trails Conservancy’s Senior Director of Programs. “People want to see, experience, visit places like this, the Industrial Heartland.”

He took strong exception to the notion it could take 20 years to rebuild the bridge.

“Our message: speed up, prioritize. Just because historically took 20 years doesn’t mean it has to now. Communities fall into the trap that it costs too much money and takes obscene amount of time.” (You only have to look at the pace of data center construction, which blights, rather than benefits local communities.)

Oberg pointed to how fast the Interstate 35W Bridge in Minneapolis was rebuilt after it collapsed, the speed in rebuilding the Key Bridge in Baltimore (at a cost of $5 billion) and how the I-95 interstate in Philadelphia was reopened in 12 days and fully repaired in less than a year.

“The narrative that it takes 20 years shouldn’t be acceptable. We shouldn’t allow public leadership and agencies to take 20 years to develop critical infrastructure.”

These bike trails are an investment in infrastructure that benefits locals as much as visitors (think of overtourism, and how this spreads visitors and economic development around to the villages, towns they would never know to visit or be inspired to visit and not in the far future but today.

The trail brought us to Steubenville, which we learn, is the birth place of Dean Martin, who is featured in an important attraction, Historic Fort Steuben, and was the birthplace of Edwin M. Stanton, Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of War and a strong abolitionist who backed Emancipation; Lincoln’s telegrapher, David Homer Bates; and Moses Fleetwood Walker, the first Black man to play in Major League Baseball, breaking the sport’s color barrier 63 years before Jackie Robinson.

Steubenville hosts Free Fridays events every month and an important Nutcracker Village Christmas festival (Nov.24-Jan. 8), displaying 230 life-sized carved Nutcrackers as the centerpiece of a free Christmas-market that now draws 40,000-50,000 people (www.SteubenvilleNutcrackerVillage.com).

For more information on the Great American Rail-Trail, visit: https://www.railstotrails.org/site/greatamericanrailtrail/

Next: ‘One Mile at a Time.’ New Trails Are Links in Building the 3,700-Mile Great American Rail-Trail

See also: Imagine Biking 3,700 Miles Across the USA on The Great American Rail-Trail

__________________

© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Biking Tours, Outdoors Adventures, See America

Imagine Biking 3,700 Miles Across the USA on The Great American Rail-Trail

A vision for a 3,700 mile-long Great American Rail-Trail linking Washington DC to Washington State is becoming reality (map: Rails to Trails Conservancy)

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Imagine being able to bike 3,700 miles across the United States, from Washington DC to Washington State, on a network of connected, protected trails, the way people hike the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail and the Appalachian Trail. This is the vision for the Great American Rail-Trail, and I didn’t have to imagine, because I was able to bike newly made trail connections bringing the GART to reality.

The trail now consists of more than 150 existing railtrails, canalways, bikeways and multi-use trails – 2100 miles through 12 states and DC – totaling 56% of the 3,700 miles when complete. These include some of America’s most famous and popular rail trails like the C&O Canalway from DC to Cumberland Md., where it connects to the Great Allegheny Passage (the GAP) railtrail to Pittsburgh, PA, which together form the longest (and most well used) completed stage, 350 miles long.

Biking the popular Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) trail, 150 miles from Cumberland, Md. To Pittsburgh, PA, one of the key sections of the 3,700-mile long Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It would be the largest, most ambitious public transport endeavor since the Interstate Highway and the Intercontinental Railroad, and longer than the longest Interstate Highway, Interstate 90 (I-90), 3,020 miles from Seattle, Washington, to Boston, Massachusetts, and longer than the Intercontinental Railroad project, 1,911 miles.

But unlike the Interstate Highway or the Transcontinental Railroad, the Great American Rail Trail is an enterprise of the local people who want to transform abandoned byways into leisure trails and greenways that can be enjoyed by residents and visitors alike, contributing to health and wellness (when being healthy is also key to financial health, productivity and prosperity), quality of life and economic vitality, instead of federal government exerting its eminent domain power or corporations blighting the environment in the name of “commerce,” reclaiming commercial and industrial land for public use. And it is about transport – accessibility, mobility for those who prefer to travel safely by foot or on two wheels.

“The Great American Rail-Trail is the most ambitious [public lands project] to connect East and West Coasts,” said Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Kevin Belle, Project Director, Great American Rail-Trail. The Great American Rail-Trail brings the promise of a new American experience – comparable to Route 66. 50 million people live within 50 miles of the route.

GART was the dream 40 years ago of Rails to Trails Conservancy co-founder David Burwell, who had the vision of converting disused rail corridors into a continuous, cross-country trail network. “He believed trails connect the country,“ said Eric Oberg, R2T’s Senior Director of Programs. “Every trail head feels like that – a cross section of the place we live. Trails are where community happens now – the new Main Street.”

Rails to Trails Conservancy, which is stewarding the Great American Rail-Trail project and leading a coalition of more than 150 partners, announced it six years ago, when half of the 3,700 miles were in place. It took two years to devise the route. (See a map, list).

The task now is to fill some 80 gaps – 1,600 miles – which is what brings R2T project managers and developers around the country, working with local groups.

The states and agencies and organizations for the more than 150 trails that form the backbone were eager to become a part of the Great American Rail-Trail, fully appreciating the enormous benefits that railtrails, canalways, bikeways and greenways bring to cities, towns and rural villages, and what being identified with a national network would mean. Eric Oberg, R2T’s Senior Director of Programs, explained.

An economic impact study projects GART investments could generate more than $229.4 million in visitor spending, 2,500 new jobs and $104 million in labor income, and $22.8 million in new tax revenue.

The GAP, for example, cost about $1 billion to build but brings 1 million users (they know because they have sensors under the trail that count), who spend $120 million a year,. In addition to the benefits to locals – health and wellness, outdoor recreation, increased mobility and safety away from dangerous road traffic, higher property values – the people who are drawn from around the country and the world spend money on hotels, restaurants, gear – $30 million worth in Pittsburgh alone; some even find a new place to set up a business and raise a family.

You would have a network of outfitters and bike tour operators at the ready to provide rental bikes, shuttle service, book lodging or direct you to campgrounds or trailside hostels, who can assist you in doing stages – as many as you want linked together, or come back and do new sections. (Many of these services for the existing trails are also easily found on Great American Rail-Trail’s website, and R2T’s TrailLink and mobile app, www.traillink.com, which details 40,000 miles of trails nationwide, and several tour operators like Wilderness Voyageurs and Discovery Bicycle Tours already feature these trails.)

We have been invited by Rails to Trails Conservancy, to bike trails from Pittsburgh to Columbus and see the vision of the GART unfold, what has already been achieved, and the task ahead in filling the gaps.

We meet Kelly Pack, the Trail Nation Accelerator Program Director, who counsels communities in eight states (WA, MT, AZ, MO, AK, IA, VA, TN), which are just starting development of a vision for a trail network. “We hope to provide the initial start of planning process – mapping support, bringing stakeholders together, to understand the importance [and benefits] of trails.” She explains how R2T can organize virtual workshops and create a “learning cohort” with communities that have had success creating trails.

“Every place is different but the challenges and strategies may be similar.”

We start our ride towards the end of the famous and popular Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) trail, to see a success story: a gap 8.2 miles long from Homestead along the Monongahela River, crossing near the Hot Metal Bridge, into Point State Park in downtown Pittsburgh, where the GAP ends. It took 20 years and $80 million (and a change of mayors) to finally complete the gap in 2013.

Volunteers help maintain it, forging community and pride. The trail contributes to public health, wellness and quality of life, and property values increase in communities along the trail, especially by repurposing aging, decaying abandoned rail lines, bridges and trestles and waterfront.

The historic site of the 1892 Homestead Steel Strike along the Monongahela River in Homestead(near Pittsburgh), where the massive Carnegie Steel Works once stood and on On July 6, 1892, striking steelworkers battled 300 armed private guards from the Pinkerton National Detective Agency who arrived on river barges to break a lockout orchestrated by plant manager Henry Clay Frick, one of the interesting places along the Great Allegheny Passage. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Along the trail, you see purposely left remnants of steel plants as a tribute and continuity of heritage and history and a source of interest. We come to the pump plant where steel workers attempting to unionize were rebuffed by Pinkertons summoned by the governor when they attempted to strike for better wages and conditions.

The trail passes by the NFL Steelers training center. “When they built the stadium, Mayor Tom Murphy, asked Steelers owner Art Rooney to move the stadium back so the trail could come through, reclaiming what was taken from the public by and for industry,” said Bryan Perry, Executive Director of the Great Allegheny Passage Conservancy.

The repurposed bridge that connects Homestead to the end of the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) in Pittsburgh on the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We cross a bridge that used to be used to carry buckets of molten steel over the river, now repurposed to carry cars, bikes and walkers. Those steel plants and coal depots are gone now, instead, from the repurposed bridge you can see tech company buildings on one side, and hotels, housing, retail stores and a marina lining the other side, revitalizing the economy and the environment.

Showing off the repurposed bridge that connects Homestead to the end of the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) in Pittsburgh on the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Indeed, Pittsburgh has been transformed from a carbon-choked polluted city to this glorious, wonderfully liveable, sustainable city. Not coincidentally, it is called “the City of Trails,” where six national and regional trails originate and three rivers converge, their riverfronts reclaimed for public space (GAP, Three Rivers Heritage Trail, Erie to Pittsburgh Trail, Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg Main Line Canal Greenway, Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, and Industrial Heartland Trails Coalition (IHTC) Network). and Great American Rail-Trail.

Pittsburgh is a “City of Trails”. At Point State Park, the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) connects with the Three Rivers Heritage Trail© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

And so we come to where the Great Allegheny Passage ends at Pittsburgh’s Point State Park where we encounter the first significant gap, a 9.8 mile section along a highly trafficked West Carson street, before reaching the next trail on the Great American Rail-Trail route, the Montour, which the Pittsburgh coalition has been working for two decades to connect.

It is not just for the benefit of long-haul, out-of-town users. “Solving the problem of West Carson would make Pittsburgh safer, better for pedestrians, bikers – cars, trucks pass at high speed, there is no dedicated space for bikes,” said Scott Bricker, co-founder and Executive Director of Bike Pittsburgh (BikePGH), a bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organization.  He noted that one-third of Pittsburgh residents do not drive.

West Carson in Pittsburgh poses a significant challenge to connecting the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) trail to the Montour Trail on the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“The trail system is only as strong as its links. Missing links deprive communities of the benefit of trail – economically, socially, quality of life and health,” said Kelsey Ripper, Executive Director Friends of the Riverfront.

“The key to the project is every single foot in every connection. There are 150 trails today – every foot took hard effort of all the people. Every one worth it,” said Belle, who has spent the past 10 years helping develop those links and connections.

Explore Route Assessment Report

View Economic Impact Report

Learn more about the preferred route, (www.railstotrails.org/site/greatamericanrailtrail/content/route)

States on Route

Route Through Washington, D.C.

Route Through Maryland

Route Through Pennsylvania

The extremely popular Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) forms one of the most complete stages of the Great American Rail-Trail, 150-miles to Pittsburgh from where it connects with the  C& O in Cumberland, Md., and crosses the Eastern Continental Divide  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Route Through West Virginia

Route Through Ohio

Ohio to Erie Trail takes us through Ohio’s Trail Towns like Gambier and into Columbus, the biggest city on the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Route Through Indiana

Route Through Illinois

Route Through Iowa

Route Through Nebraska

Route Through Wyoming

Route Through Montana

Route Through Idaho

Idaho’s Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes is part of the Great American Rail-Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Route Through Washington

For more information on the Great American Rail-Trail, visit: https://www.railstotrails.org/site/greatamericanrailtrail/

Next: The Great American Rail-Trail Comes Together with Grassroots Support, Volunteers

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© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Fall Foliage Getaways, Festivals and Events, Outdoors Adventures

Tips to Catch the Best of New England’s Fall Foliage, Festivals

The Berkshires of Massachusetts. Timing the peak fall foliage takes planning, but scenes are gorgeous even if not at peak. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

New England is famous for fall foliage and festivals. To catch the peak of color and festivities, the trick is to zero in where and when.

Peak foliage typically begins in northern Maine and the White Mountains in mid-September before moving southward through October. Coastal Connecticut and Rhode Island often peak in late October to early November (see: newengland.com/foliage/foliage/peak-fall-foliage-map).

Vermont

Vermont’s Green Mountains rank among best places in the country for fall foliage with peak viewing typically moving from north to south between mid-September and mid-October.  Among the best foliage locations:

Route 100: A scenic 200-mile highway passing through the heart of the state with mountain vistas and quiet villages.

Manchester: A historic southern Vermont village offering stunning views near Mount Equinox.

Stowe: A famous mountain town known for brilliant autumn palettes and top-tier hiking trails.

The Stowe-liage Foliage Package at Topnotch Resort includes a $100 nightly resort credit to use at the Topnotch Spa, Tennis Center or dining at the resort’s two restaurants. Rates start at $324/night. Available for travel through Nov. 30 (www.topnotchresort.com/packages-specials).

Okemo Valley Fall Foliage Train & Pop‑Up Fall Festival, Oct. 3-4: Step into Vermont’s most enchanting season aboard a vintage foliagetrain, where nearly an hour of scenic mountain views, brilliant color, and old‑fashioned rail charm create an unforgettable autumn adventure. (https://www.yourplaceinvermont.com/foliage-train/)

Get driving itineraries, lodging ideas at vermontvacation.com and the fall foliage report at https://vermontvacation.com/vermont-seasons/fall/fall-foliage-report/

Massachusetts

The Berkshires of Massachusetts. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Massachusetts’ Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR)’s Interactive Fall Foliage Map  provides updates and forecasts on peak foliage conditions at DCR properties across the state. You can select calendar dates to see which sections of the state and specific DCR properties will experience peak fall colors. Most of the state peaks by mid-October; the higher elevations in the Berkshires start showing vibrant color by early October.   

Here are some of the best foliage destinations:

The Berkshires features mountainous views. Key spots include Mount Greylock (the state’s highest peak) and the scenic towns of Lenox and North Adams.

The Mohawk Trail: Known as Route 2, this historic byway takes you through dramatic mountain passes, state forests, and small towns like Shelburne Falls.

Pioneer Valley: Running along the Connecticut River Scenic Byway, this area offers rolling farmlands, orchards, and historic Deerfield.

Lexington and Concord: Located in the Greater Merrimack Valley, these Revolutionary War towns pair vibrant autumn leaves with iconic American history during America’s 250th.

The Ashuwillticook Rail Trail in the Berkshires of Massachusetts is a stunning trail for biking and walking © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Ashuwillticook Rail Trail  is a 12.7 mile long biking and walking trail that runs through Cheshire, Lanesborough and Adams, with spots along Cheshire Reservoir and Hoosic River providing excellent views.

Pittsfield State Forest, 1041 Cascade St., Pittsfield, offers an extensive hiking trail network, including the Taconic Crest Trail.  

Nickerson State Park, 3488 Main St., Brewster,Cape Cod): Enjoy an easy 1.7-mile hike on the loop around Little Cliff Pond, a long and narrow 33-acre natural kettlehole pond, where the shoreline is largely wooded with pitch pines and scrub oaks, with occasional sandy beaches. Cape Cod also affords an outstanding network of biking trails, including the Shining Sea and Cape Cod Canal.

DCR’s Fall Foliage webpage also highlights 17 recommended foliage viewing spots in the state park system, along with hiking trails, picnic areas, and scenic overlooks at the locations (www.mass.gov/info-details/fall-foliage-season-in-the-parks).

One of the notable festivals: Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield, Sept.18 – Oct. 4, is the third largest agricultural fair in the U.S., with a mind-boggling array of food (BBQ brisket sundae, anyone?), midway rides, big-name music acts, a farmers’ market, and those amazing butter sculptures. The horse, dog, and farm animal shows draw competitors from all over (thebige.com)

Planning tips at VisitMA.com

Connecticut

Biking the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail, Connecticut © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Connecticut’s Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) interactive fall foliage report map  forecasts the progression of color across the state. Peak foliage is predicted to arrive in the northeast and northwest corners of the state around Columbus Day and extend to the lower Connecticut River Valley and shoreline through early November (https://ctvisit.com/articles/connecticut-fall-foliage-report).

Peak foliage runs for several weeks in Connecticut due to diversified terrain and variety of trees, offering more opportunities to experience the autumn beauty. The Connecticut River, starting at the mouth of the Long Island Sound (between Old Saybrook and Old Lyme) and going up toward East Haddam, changes color last – into the first week of November.

A great way to enjoy the fall foliage is biking or hiking. The Farmington Canal Heritage Trail (FCHT), a partially paved trail running from New Haven CT north into Massachusetts. Historic buildings, canal locks, the remains of canal aqueducts and other landmarks are evident as the trail meanders along abandoned rail corridors and canal tow paths. The 56 miles of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail (FCHT) and the 18 miles of the Farmington River Trail constitute the most picturesque and historic greenways in New England.

Ride the rails: Essex Steam Train & Riverboat showcase the Connecticut River Valley (essexsteamtrain.com/train-boat); Naugatuck Railroad‘s Autumn Colors Limitedshowcases Litchfield Hills (www.rmne.org/excursions/autumn-colors-limited)

Durham Fair, Durham, Sept. 24-27: Connecticut’s largest agricultural fair combines the harvest season’s abundance of fruit and vegetables with livestock competitions, arts and crafts exhibits, live music, and food, games and rides along the midway. There’s a monster truck rally and a lumberjack show durhamfair.com

Apple Harvest Festival, Southington, Oct. 2-4 & 9-11, on the Town Green features rides, a crafts show, music, and food, with apples making their appearance in pies, fritters, slushies. Evenings are capped with fireworks, and a parade along a one-mile route highlights the opening weekend southington.org

Trip planning help at ctvisit.com

Rhode Island

Rhode Island shows its brightest colors in the heavily wooded western and northern regions in October.

Among the best locales: Blackstone Valley region (Slater Mill is the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in America; the Blackstone Valley Explorer riverboat offers cruises into mid-October); Roger Williams Park and Zoo in Providence; and at Blithewold Mansion & Gardens in Bristol. In South County, Route 1 and 1A from Westerly to Wickford is a great scenic drive.

Bike the 14.5 mile East Bay Bike Path from India Point Park in Providence to Independence Park in Bristol, passing many state and local parks and recreation areas.

Harvest Fair, Middletown, Oct. 3-4: 70 of the region’s finest crafters and artisans gather at the 325-acre Norman Bird Sanctuary. Pony rides, midway games, and a mud pit. Bands, food trucks, and beer garden (normanbirdsanctuary.org/events/harvest-fair) 

Autumnfest, Woonsocket, Oct. 9-12: Rhode Island’s biggest fall festival features rides, food court, continuous performances by local and top-name bands, comedians, crafts displays and marketplace, classic and muscle car shows, a wine garden; and on Monday, a Columbus Day parade (autumnfest.org). 

Driving routes and planning info at www.visitri.com/state/foliage.

Maine

Northern Maine & Aroostook County: Peak arrives in late September to early October. Baxter State Park has great vistas.

Western Mountains (Rangeley & Bethel): Peak arrives in early to mid-October. Drive the Route 17 scenic byway and stop at the Height of Land overlook for stunning lake vistas.

Midcoast Maine (Camden & Rockland): Peak arrives in mid-October. Hike Mount Battie in Camden Hills State Park for views of color rolling down to Penobscot Bay.

Acadia National Park is one of the best places in Maine to immerse in fall © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Acadia National Park & Bar Harbor: Peak arrives in mid-October. Combine ocean views with brilliant autumn leaves along the Park Loop Road or from Cadillac Mountain.

Southern Maine & Portland: Peak arrives in mid-to-late October, featuring vibrant oaks and coastal back roads.

The Maine Fall Foliage Map has weekly state updates and live reports, www.maine.gov/dacf/mfs/projects/fall_foliage/whenandwhere

Cumberland County Fair, Cumberland, Sept. 27 – Oct. 3: Southern Maine’s biggest fall festival packs in events as diverse as truck and tractor pulls, rodeo, demolition derby, nightly fireworks and 10 live-music acts spanning blues to bluegrass (cumberlandfair.com).

Fryeburg Fair, Fryeburg, Oct. 4-11. Since it began in 1851, western Maine’s harvest fest has grown into an eight-day celebration of the region’s farms, gardens, foods, and crafts. Midway rides and oxen pulls, calf and pig “scrambles,” an anvil-throwing contest, midway rides and a farm museum.  Woodsmen’s Field Day draws loggers from across the U.S. to test their mettle  (fryeburgfair.org)

Fall Foliage Festival, Boothbay, Oct. 10-11, takes place on a handsome four-acre town green, done up as a “vintage village” featuring art exhibits, food trucks, booths selling local crafts, live music, and children’s corner. Take a ride on a steam-powered train at Boothbay Railway Village, and visit the adjacent antique car museum (railwayvillage.org; boothbay.org).

The Stephen Taber, one of the historic Maine Windjammer Fleet. Fall cruises are scheduled through mid October © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Take advantage of fall cruises – the last of the year – aboard one of the historic Maine Windjammers fleet: Windjammer Angelique, Schooner American Eagle, Schooner Grace Bailey, Schooner Heritage, Schooner J. & E. Riggin, Schooner Ladona, Schooner Lewis R French, Schooner Mary Day. Schooner Stephen Taber (mainewindjammerfleet.com).

Trip planning at the Maine Office of Tourism, visitmaine.com

New Hampshire

Peak colors usually arrive from late September through mid-to-late October. The best place to see fall foliage in New Hampshire is the White Mountains region (visitwhitemountains.com).

Kancamagus Highway (Route 112), Highway 3. This 34.5-mile scenic byway runs between Lincoln and North Conway, offering continuous mountain views, bright red and gold trees, and easy stops like Sabbaday Falls and Rocky Gorge Scenic Area.

Mount Washington Auto Road. This steep, scenic drive climbs to the highest peak in the Northeast for panoramic views of fiery autumn forests.

Mount Washington Cog Railway: An amazing way to experience Mount Washington. The three-hour round trip Includes a one-hour layover at the top (www.thecog.com)

Franconia Notch State Park, Lincoln: Located in a deep mountain pass, this park features stunning foliage, the Flume Gorge, and the popular Artist’s Bluff hike

Crawford Notch State Park, Hart’s Location: Route 302 winds through this park past dramatic cliffs, towering trees, and roadside waterfalls.

Castle in the Clouds, Moultonborough, NH: This mountaintop estate looks out over Lake Winnipesaukee and colorful surrounding forests.

Trip planning help at www.visitnh.gov.

Find seasonal lodging offers at New England Inns & Resorts

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© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Fall Foliage Getaways, Festivals and Events, New York State travel, Outdoors Adventures

Fall Foliage, Festivals, Spirits of the Season Underway in New York State

Enjoying the dramatic scenes and fall foliage colors on a hike in New York’s Adirondacks. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Thanks to one of the longest and most colorful foliage seasons in America, autumn is traditionally one of New York’s most popular for travel, attracting visitors from around the world to its 11 diverse and picturesque vacation regions. 

“Foliage watching complements hiking, cycling and paddling in the great outdoors, apple and pumpkin picking, visits to wineries and craft beverage makers, spooky Halloween activities and special Path Through History Weekend events at museums and historic sites, ESD Vice President and Executive Director of Tourism Ross D. Levi said.

Best Fall Foliage Places

Enjoying the dramatic scenes and fall foliage colors on a hike in New York’s Adirondacks. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Adirondack Mountains: Peak viewing happens early to mid-October, featuring stunning high peaks, mirrored lakes, and towns like Lake Placid. Take in the changing leaves during a scenic boat cruise on Lake Placid or venture out to more than 2,000 miles of nearby hiking trails. Popular spots include High Falls Gorge, Whiteface Landing, Catamount Mountain and Whiteface Mountain, which offers Cloudsplitter Gondola rides. Gore Mountain offers scenic skyrides, hiking and biking. Check out the Mirror Lake Inn and the Whiteface Lodge, an all-suite MICHELIN One Key and AAA Four-Diamond-rated resort with world-class spa tucked into the woodlands.

Hiking the Kaaterskill Falls trail on the Hudson River School Trail in the Catskills © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Catskill Mountains: Colors reach their height early to mid-October. Enjoy scenic drives, cascading waterfalls and vibrant hiking trails. At Belleayre Mountain, new mountain bike trail connections link the mountain, Belleayre Beach and the Shandaken Wild Forest. Check out the Deer Mountain Inn.

Gorgeous falls flow through the gorge at Letchworth State Park in the Finger Lakes © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Finger Lakes: Best colors show from mid- to late October, highlighted by dramatic gorges at Letchworth State Park, Watkins Glen State Park and Taughannock Falls State Park. The Lake House on Canandaigua launched The Collector’s Getaway, a stay designed around its Finger Lakes Antiquing Trail, a curated field guide mapping 13 stops across Canandaigua, Farmington, Bloomfield, Geneva and Rochester; The package includes: deluxe accommodations (two-night minimum stay); two complimentary cocktails at Library Bar; Lake House tote bag; curated map and field guide to local antique and vintage shops.. (Promo code VINTAGE, visit https://lakehousecanandaigua.com/packages/the-collectors-getaway/)

Dramatic scenes hiking Watkins Glen State Park © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Hudson Valley & Capital Region: Peak foliage arrives by late October, showcasing historic Hudson River vistas and state parks like Minnewaska and North-South Lake Campground. Among the marvelous places to stay, the historic Gideon Putnam Resort and Spa, Mohonk Mountain Houseand Rocking Horse Ranch, an all-inclusive kid-focused dude ranch.

Enjoy the fall colors while biking Long Island’s longest traffic free, paved bike path, the scenic 13-mile Bethpage Bikeway © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Long Island/NYC: Feel like you have gone for a true getaway escape in Shelter Island where you can take in the fall colors in Mashomack Preserve; a great place to stay is Shelter Island House. Enjoy the fall colors while biking Long Island’s longest traffic free, paved bike path, the 13-mile Bethpage Bikeway, a scenic trail that goes through 2 state parks, 2 wetland preserves and 2 town parks. In New York City, you can’t beat the scenes in Central Park and Prospect Park.

A tranquil country scene right in the heart of New York City in Central Park © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Timing the foliage for the best possible colors and scenes is the trick.

The I LOVE NY weekly foliage reports launching September 16, updated every Wednesday throughout the season, showcases the progression of seasonal colors across the state.New York State’s tourism office, An interactive foliage map complements reports on the I LOVE NY website, tracking weekly changes and progression throughout the season. The map offers recommended viewing locations, examples of peak foliage in certain areas, and travel information about popular local attractions.

An interactive foliage map complements the reports on the I LOVE NY website, tracking weekly changes and progression throughout the season. The map offers recommended viewing locations, examples of peak foliage in certain areas, and travel information about popular local attractions © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

This year, 100 volunteers are tracking changes and providing on-location accounts for the upcoming weekend that detail prevailing leaf colors, percentage of total transition, and progression relative to peak conditions, considered the best that the foliage will look. Historically, foliage reaches its peak between late September and mid-November, depending on the location within the State.

Travelers are encouraged to share their best foliage photos from around New York State on social media using the #NYLovesFall hashtag for a chance to be featured on the I LOVE NY website and official social media accounts, including Instagram, Facebook, X and Threads, which collectively reach more than two million followers.

Reports are available online at iloveny.com/foliage, or 800-CALL-NYS (800-225-5697).

Westchester: Foliage, Flavors & Festivities

Westchester County’s fall calendar is packed with standout experiences, from continued America 250 celebrations to iconic Halloween traditions and seasonal festivals. Experience the best of the season with apple picking, scenic foliage, local dining and fall getaways across the County.

Halloween happenings are already underway at Historic Hudson Valley: 

The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze is already underway at Van Cortlandt Manor © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze returns to Van Cortlandt Manor, Sept. 18-Nov. 8, with a longer path and even more displays. Visitors can wander through an 18th-century landscape illuminated by more than 7,000 hand-carved jack o’lanterns, complete with synchronized lighting, an original soundtrack, movie monsters, storybook characters and a pumpkin dance party.

Master Storyteller Jonathan Kruk delivers a dramatic retelling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow at Washington Irving’s home, Sunnyside © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Washington Irving’s classic tale comes to life at Irving’s Legend, held Oct. 2-31 at the author’s Sunnyside home in Irvington. Master Storyteller Jonathan Kruk delivers a dramatic retelling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow outdoors under the stars, accompanied by live music and sound effects. During the day, take one of the kid-friendly literary-themed Legendary Tours complete with lawn games, crafts and a shadow puppet show. 

Halloween goes Hollywood at Philipsburg, in Historic Hudson Valley, the locale for Washington Irving’s “Legend of Sleepy Hallow,” where you very well may encounter the Headless Horseman himself. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Expanded for 2026, Twilight Village at Sleepy Hollow returns to Philipsburg Manor Fridays through Sundays through October, with live storytellers, fire performers, an evening market, an appearance by the Headless Horseman and more. Visitors can also investigate Ichabod Crane’s disappearance during the Headless Horseman Files, an interactive 18th-century whodunit, or experience the magical illusions of The Spirits of Sleepy Hollow Country. 

(Visit Historic Hudson Valley, 639 Bedford Road, Pocantico Hills, NY 10591, Tel 914-366-6900; tickets at https://tickets.hudsonvalley.org/events)

Ghost stories descend upon Armour-Stiner Octagon House in Irvington this fall. ’Tis the Wind and Nothing More, Oct. 2-11, features a dramatic reading of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven, while The Lady in White, taking place Oct. 16-Nov. 1, draws inspiration from a 1956 ghost story set at the house. 

Artists, designers and craftspeople will gather at Lyndhurst Mansion for the Fall Craft Show, Sept. 18-20, featuring jewelry, fine art, ceramics, home décor and more. As Halloween approaches, the historic estate shifts into the spirit with seasonal tours, performances of The Masque of the Red Death, Gothic Market Weekend and a special Dark Shadows Halloween celebration.

Master Storyteller Jonathan Kruk leads Ghost Tours of the Tarrytown Music Hall, Oct. 3-18, sharing fascinating tales of the theater’s history, legends and mysterious happenings.

Mystic Moon returns to Harvest Moon Farm & Orchard in North Salem, inviting visitors to follow the mischievous adventures of a playful witch through a whimsical lighted path in the woods.

Witches take to the Hudson River at the annual SUP Witches Festival, held Oct. 10 in Sleepy Hollow. Hosted by Rivertowns SUP & Yoga, the fall tradition brings costumed witches and warlocks together for a paddle along the Hudson, while spectators join the fun onshore with live music, vendors, food and seasonal activities.

Leaf Peeping & Fall Fun

500 living historians bring the Revolutionary War to life at REV FEST 250, Oct. 24-25 at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation. The two-day event features authentic Continental and British Army encampments, military demonstrations, live entertainment, family-friendly activities, exhibitors and local food trucks. Watch both armies assemble and march toward the weekend’s signature attraction—the Reenactment of the Battle of White Plains, a large-scale tactical demonstration. 

Apple picking, hayrides, farm markets and seasonal treats draw visitors to Westchester’s farms and orchards. Local favorites include Muscoot Farm in Katonah, Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard in North Salem, Stuart’s Fruit Farm in Granite Springs, Wilkens Fruit & Fir Farm and Hilltop Hanover Farm in Yorktown Heights. At Faraway Farm Alpacas, visitors can reserve a tour to meet alpacas. 

Walk into the depths of a dark forest and discover Fantastic Beasts™ and illuminated wizarding world moments at Harry Potter: A Forbidden Forest Experience, returning to Westchester Oct. 16, in the awe-inspiring woods of Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park in Yorktown Heights. This nighttime trail experience is designed for the whole family and books quickly, reserve your tickets today. 

Autumn Glow Festival lights up Glen Island Park in New Rochelle, Sept. 11-Nov. 1. The immersive nighttime experience features hundreds of handcrafted Chinese lanterns illuminated with LED lights, transforming the park with towering sculptures inspired by folklore, culture and nature, along with food and entertainment. 

Hands-on fall programs return to the Nature Center at Greenburgh this autumn. Apple cidering allows families operate an old-fashioned cider press, turning locally sourced apples into fresh cider to sample and take home. Creepy Crawlers offers another up-close nature experience, introducing visitors to snakes, tarantulas and other creatures while exploring how they survive in their habitats. 

More than 4,300 acres of terrain and 35 miles of wooded trails make Ward Pound Ridge Reservation a standout for fall foliage. Other scenic spots include Teatown Lake Reservation in Ossining, Cranberry Lake Preserve in White Plains, Croton Gorge Park in Croton-on-Hudson, Graham Hills Park in Pleasantville and Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary in Rye. 

Take in the changing leaves from a different perspective with Bicycle Sundays, Sept. 13 through Oct. 4. A nearly 6.5-mile stretch of the Bronx River Parkway closes to cars, giving cyclists, skaters, joggers and walkers the chance to enjoy a traffic-free outing. 

Arts & Culture

One of Westchester County’s most significant revolutionary-era artifacts is on view at the Neuberger Museum of Art in Purchase through Dec. 20. The Declaration Distributed: Westchester County’s Holt Broadside of 1776 is a special exhibition centered around New York State’s historic adoption and distribution of the Declaration of Independence. The exhibit offers visitors a rare opportunity to view this important document and highlights Westchester County’s critical role in the nation’s founding. 

Step back almost 300 years into Yonkers history at the Sherwood House Museum, a pre-Revolutionary War farmhouse built around 1740. The museum is open Sundays from 1-4 p.m. beginning Sept. 13, with free admission.

Celebrating its 15th year, JazzFest White Plains returns Sept. 23-27 with five days of live music at venues throughout downtown White Plains. The festival features 19 performances from legendary artists, contemporary innovators and emerging talent, including five GRAMMY Award winners and nominees.

Two new exhibitions open on Sept. 18 at the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers: Exquisite Creatures and Borinquen Gallo: Jungle Bliss. More cultural stops include the Hudson Valley MOCA in Peekskill, the Katonah Museum of Art and ArtsWestchester in White Plains.

Dining with Atmosphere

Dine your way through the region during Hudson Valley Restaurant Week, returning Nov. 2-16. Participating restaurants throughout Westchester offer special prix-fixe menus. 

New additions are bringing fresh flavors to Westchester’s dining scene. In Bronxville, Cafe Nelo from chef Giuseppe Fanelli blends Italian, American and European influences, while North River Oyster Bar in Sleepy Hollow serves seafood and cocktails on Beekman Avenue.

Cozy up at The Inn at Pound Ridge by Jean-Georges, where seasonal, farm-to-table fare is served in an 1833 inn. With reclaimed wood, rustic details and four working fireplaces, the longtime Westchester favorite offers an inviting setting for a memorable meal. 

Surround yourself in history at Peter Pratt’s Inn, an American fine dining restaurant and bar located in a historic 260 year old farm house bordering a rustic pine forest in Yorktown Heights. 

Sip your way through Westchester with the Westchester Craft Beverage Trail, connecting local breweries, cideries, distilleries and taprooms across the county. The free mobile passport lets visitors check in at participating stops, access special offers and earn points. 

The Sailhouse Oysterfest brings oysters, seasonal food and drinks to the Hudson River waterfront for a lively dining experience. More information to come.

Autumn Getaways

Escape to the countryside at Bedford Post Inn, an intimate eight-room retreat surrounded by 20 wooded acres. Cozy guest rooms feature historic details and luxurious touches, while seasonal dining, daily yoga and outdoor experiences make it an inviting home base for a fall getaway. 

Recently reopened following renovations, The Kittle House Inn in Chappaqua, pairs its 18th-century history with newly refreshed rooms and gathering spaces. Guests can also enjoy fine dining featuring seasonal Hudson Valley ingredients and selections from the property’s award-winning wine cellar.

Set on 26 acres overlooking the Hudson Valley, Tarrytown House Estate pairs charm with modern comforts and on-site dining at Chef Dale Talde’s acclaimed Goosefeather, a modern Cantonese restaurant. This fall, guests can book the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze Experience Package, which includes two tickets to the seasonal attraction and daily breakfast for two.

Perched above the Hudson River in Peekskill, The Abbey Inn & Spa offers a peaceful fall escape in a beautifully restored former convent. Unwind at the full-service spa, explore the scenic grounds and enjoy seasonal, locally inspired dining at Apropos. For an extra dose of relaxation, the Stay, Sip and Spa Package includes overnight accommodations, welcome mimosas and a $200 spa credit.

For more information, visit Westchester County Tourism, www.visitwestchesterny.com, 800-833-9282.

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© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

America's 250th, Biking Tours, Outdoors Adventures, See America

Biking Missouri’s Katy Trail Following Lewis & Clark, Daniel Boone & the Westward Expansion

Missouri Pride and community love of the Katy Trail is on view in art and community projects © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Missouri’s Katy Trail, a Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Famer, is for bikers who want to ride 240 miles with pure abandon, with not much to distract unless you want to be distracted – such as by the historic markers that are fascinating, complete, and an excellent guide to what to look out for what I guarantee you would never have thought to look for.

Day 4 on Wilderness Voyageur’s six-day Katy Trail bike tour is another vigorous ride, 47.8 miles from the Missouri state capital, Jefferson City, to Hermann (elevation plus 772 ft, down 821 ft).

Starting out, though, we go back up that hill that provided such a dramatic view of the Capital Building the day before, back to the bridge over the river, and down the winding ramp (fun!), to the spur that brings us back onto the Katy Trail exactly where we turned off the day before.

Now we are back in Missouri’s farm land and a landscape that seems unchanged in 100 years. We ride passed fields of corn and soy, with the Manitou Bluffs in the distance beyond the plain.

The Katy Trail immerses cyclists in Missouri’s rural heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

What is so impressive all along the Katy Trail is Missouri Pride – it is evident in the meticulously planned rest stops and restored train depots, the historic notes at each one, the placards and markers and stories all along the trail that trigger our imagination as we ride, even on big posters and billboards and signs on buildings and silos. A city kid, I no sooner question in my mind how those grain silos work than we come upon an exhibit that explains the revolutionary invention.

Tiny villages that once were supported by the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad preserve their old-timey ambiance © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

That pride is especially clear here at Tebbets, our first rest stop.

Tebbets is where there is the volunteer-run Turner Katy Trail Shelter, the only bike hostel centrally located on the Katy’s 240 miles (the key hangs on a light pole), which was a home donated by its owner.

The Turner Katy Trail Shelter is a free hostel for cyclists that was donated to the state park © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear

We ride through Rhineland, which I learn was the third largest producer of wine in the world before Prohibition dried it up. This is one of the few places where the Katy Trail follows a different path from the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad (the call sign, K-T). The town was destroyed by the flood of ’93, and moved along the bluff.

We ride along highway Route 93 (not really scary, actually, there is a wide shoulder), and over the bridge (there is a bike path over the bridge but getting there involves doing a clover leaf maneuver) that brings us into the town of Hermann.

Biking from Hermann © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We stay at the Hermann Crown Suites – which sounds like a modern chain hotel but is actually a charming historic hotel. It is a fun place – there is live music in its patio area in the evening, or if it is raining, in their 1837 Cellar Bar – and we are treated to a welcome drink (or ice cream, which I prefer).

We get here early enough to wander around the town checking out a remarkable selection of boutiques and shops before they close, and a beautiful riverside park. We check out the famous Hermann Wurst Haus.

Selection of liquors at Hermann Wurst Haus © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The German-feel to Hermann is not imaginary – the town was founded in 1836 as the “New Fatherland” for German settlers.

We come upon the red brick German School, built in 1871 but incorporated in 1849 by the state legislature to offer classes in German and English. The structure was the only privately owned public school building in the state when it was deeded to historic Hermann Inc in 1955 to be preserved and used for cultural and civic purposes.

Hermann, Missouri, was founded as the “New Fatherland” for German settlers © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

There is a plaque on the Monnig Family General Store which basically epitomizes America’s immigrant experience: Otto Monnig, who migrated with two of his brothers from Rees, Germany to the US in the 1840s, operated his general store from 1870 to 1890. He started with hardware and cutlery and expanded to add clothing, toys, groceries. Otto’s son-in-law, Dr. Gustave Ettmueller opened a drug store and post office in the building. Otto Monnig also founded the Hermann Savings Bank and served as president, 1867-1883.

Hermann’s historic district has many marvelous buildings to explore. They date back to early 19th century, but the vibe is 1940s/1950s – from the signs, the products.  

Signs evoke past times in Hermann, Missouri © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We’ve been riding on what used to be the Missouri-Kansas-Texas rail line but In Hermann, we see an actual Amtrak train pulling out from the station just above the riverbank. 

Dinner is on our own and there are lots of places to choose from, returning to the hotel for the live music on its back patio.

Live music in the evening on the Hermann Crown Suites patio © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Day 5 is a 38 mile ride from Hermann to Augusta, almost entirely flat. We ride back on I-93 and back over the bridge to where we had left the Katy Trail.

The first support stop is at 18.5 miles (versus 9 miles which is more typical) at Treloar – and to get there, we need to make a 3 mile detour on roads because just the prior week, a storm put a tree across the trail (just ahead of the last Wilderness Voyageurs group so our guide James Oerding had to find a way around).

We stop at the Treloar Mercantile building, built around 1896 which served as the dry goods store and post office until closing in 1933. Dan and Connie Burkhardt, who created a foundation to preserve land and historic structures (katylandtrust.org), bought the building in 2018 and donated it to Missouri State Parks in 2024. It is being refurbished, and I chance upon the Burkhardts and the former state Transportation Secretary, David Kelly, who directed the building of the Katy Trail State Park and now is on the board of Magnificent Missouri, overseeing the restoration. There is a marvelous historic exhibition inside.

Connie Burkhardt (left) & Dan Burkhardt with Tammy Leigh, manager of the museum at the Treloar Mercantile building, which the Burkhardt’s donated to Katy Trail State Park, a demonstration of Missouri Pride we feel all along the 240-mile trail  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It is with justified pride that Kelly relates that the last economic impact study showed the Katy Trail generated $18 million for the state – a figure that is much higher after COVID.  “There was a big uptick in users after COVID because people discovered the health benefits, and being outdoors.”

He acknowledges that places like Hartsburg (population 138) and Rotheport (population239) would be ghost towns were it not for Katy Trail and the tourism traffic it brings.

Of Missouri’s 93 state parks, the Katy is the most unique: 100 ft wide and 240 miles long. Missouri is now developing the 144-mile long Rock Island corridor, which opened 2021, of which 47 miles connect to the Katy Trail (so you can ride a loop).

Katy is the longest developed rail trail in US and Rock Island will be 4th largest; when combined with 13 miles in Jackson County, it forms a 445 mile long corridor to Kansas City.

The Katy Trail immerses cyclists in Missouri’s rural heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Katy Trail State Park is built on the corridor of the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas (MKT) Railroad, better known as the Katy. When the railroad ceased operation on its route in Missouri from Machens in St. Charles County to Sedalia in Pettis County in 1986, the right-of-way was secured through funding from the late Edward D. “Ted” Jones Jr. (the son of the founder of Edward Jones Investments) and his wife, Pat. Construction of the Katy Trail began in 1987. The first section of trail at Rocheport was opened in 1990.

The Katy Trail repurposes an abandoned rail line for a recreational trail enjoyed by countless numbers of people © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

In 1991, the Union Pacific Railroad donated 33 miles of rail corridor from Sedalia to east of Clinton. Additional purchases and donations were added over the years, completing the final 240-mile trail with Machens as the eastern terminus and Clinton as the western terminus. The trail’s 25th anniversary was celebrated in 2015.

The Katy Trail repurposes an abandoned rail line for a recreational trail enjoyed by countless numbers of people © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

As we ride the Katy Trail, we are reminded of the trail’s railroad history, passing old telegraph poles, riding over truss and  trestle bridges. Four fully restored historic depots recall the past splendor of passenger service on the MKT, while the stone railroad tunnel at Rocheport displays the ingenuity required to complete the MKT rail line.

The Katy Trail helps preserve Missouri’s farm land and heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Meanwhile, Dan and Connie Burkhardt, retired partners of Edward Jones investment company, continued Jones’ legacy by founding the Katy Land Trust in 2010, which  works cooperatively with landowners along the Katy Trail corridor to preserve farms, forests and Missouri River valley (katylandtrust.org).

The Katy Trail helps preserve Missouri’s farm land and heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Four miles further is the Peers Store, the “Magnificent Missouri” outpost, with a mission to conserve and increase appreciation of the Katy Trail and the last 100 miles of the Missouri River Valley, from Hermann to Confluence. Here, there are live music on the porch from June through August, art, snacks and community (magnificentmissouri.org).

Missouri Pride: The Katy Trail helps preserve Missouri’s farm land and heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We ride through tiny towns that reflect French and Native American influence. The furthest European settlements west of the Mississippi were in this region when Lewis & Clark first passed through in 1804. French fur trappers were prevalent settlers here.

A highlight today, is taking a bit of a detour off the Katy Trail to visit where Daniel Boone and his wife were buried. (They make no bones of the fact their bodies were supposedly moved from here back to Kentucky, but leave a bit of mystery in saying that the wrong bones may have been taken and Daniel may still be buried here after all.)

I first miss the turn but convince our guide, James Oerding, to go back (again, I am last, so the guide rides behind me). And I’m glad I did.

The original burial place of Daniel Boone and his wife, Rebecca Bryan Boone. Still a mystery if his bones were taken to Kentucky or are actually still there © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The small cemetery is very interesting, and is adjacent to his sons’ homestead (Daniel is said to have stayed there for a short time). It is interesting to see how Boone was so revered. (I think I am the only one of our group who did the detour.)

The small cemetery at the Boone homestead is interesting to see © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com
The small cemetery at the Boone homestead is interesting to see © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

A marker at the rest stop relates how Daniel Boone, his sons’ and daughters’ families, other relations, friends and family slaves, came to Missouri in 1799 when Boone was 65 years old and already famous in America and Europe. He had fought in the French and Indian and Revolutionary wars. In between, he explored Kentucky and Tennessee and helped blaze the Wilderness Road over the Appalachian Mountains that settlers followed. In Kentucky, much of Boone’s fame was based on battling the Shawnee Indians who (understandably) resisted American expansion into Kentucky’s “dark and bloody ground.” But Boone “soured” on Kentucky. Spain, which then controlled the Louisiana Territory. was anxious to have settlers come, especially one as respected and influential as Daniel Boone, so Spain “recruited” Daniel Boone to come to Missouri, appointing him “syndic” (a justice of the peace) and militia leader. (I hadn’t realized until I visited the Gateway Arch National Monument in St. Louis that the Louisiana Territory went back and forth from France which claimed it in 1682, to Spain in 1762 through a secret Treaty of Fontainebleau, then (secretly) back to France in1800, before France sold the Louisiana Territory to the US in 1803. The whiplash!

A cabin on the Boone family’s homestead © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We ride through Marthasville (named for Martha Washington) and end today’s ride at Augusta where we are shuttled (the only time we are taken by the van to our hotel) into the charming town of Washington, where we first have lunch at a fun spot, John G’s Beir Deck (delicious bratwurst and coleslaw). We walk off lunch to where we overnight, Elijah McClean’s, a wonderful inn attached to a mansion, now a restaurant where we will have a grand dinner.

Washington, Missouri, is a slice of mid-America © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Along the way, we pass by the Meerschaum’s Corn Cob Pipe factory, the only corncob pipe factory still operating in the world (James tells us) – unfortunately, it is already closed so we can’t visit.

What may be the last Meerschaum Corn Cob Pipe factory in the world is in Washington, Missouri © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com
 

After settling into my hotel room, I walk back to Main Street and come upon a community concert at the Farmer’s Market, held weekly on Thursdays, 5-8 pm (for future Katy Trail riders). It is wonderful, especially when people start line dancing.

A band concert at the Farmers Market in Washington, Missouri © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Our last dinner together is a fabulous one, at Mangia Bella, the fine dining restaurant at Elijah Mclean’s,

Elijah Mclean’s, Washington, Missouri, where we spend our last night of the six-day Wilderness Voyageurs Katy Trail bike tour © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com
Enjoying our last dinner together at Mangia Bella, the fine dining restaurant at Elijah Mclean’s © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

On Day 6, our last day, I have my only regret of the trip: I forget to stay for James’ whiteboard talk that would have told me to look for the spur marked “Klondike Park” just 2.5 miles from where we start, to a steep asphalt trail that would have taken me to a white silica sand lake you can ride around. (Only one of our group actually did it). The photos I see at the rest stop look amazing and I’m tempted to ride the four miles back (I was so proud of myself for being first for a change), but I think it would take too much time. People were pretty much hurrying to get to the end of the ride when they would disperse to travel back home and I feel self-conscious if I would hold people up. (Actually, we have lunch at a restaurant at the end of the trail, and people who need to leave early just don’t stay for it so there would have been lots of flexibility).

The tranquility of biking the Katy Trail, a Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Fame trail, 240 miles across Missouri © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com
The Katy Trail repurposes an abandoned rail line for a recreational trail enjoyed by countless numbers of people © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We gather there for a delicious farewell lunch at Hendricks BBQ.

Then we are shuttled back to the St. Charles hotels where people parked. Only two of us are flying (we were advised not to book our flight before 6 pm).

The Katy Trail has been named to the Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Fame © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The Katy Trail bike tour is rated a 3 not because of the trail’s difficulty, which is as easy as any dedicated recreational rail trail 240 miles long and as superbly served and maintained can be, – but because of the daily mileage, between 38 and 50 miles each day, except for the last (vastly easiest), 27 miles level or even with a slight downward slope.

This is my third tour with Wilderness Voyageurs (my first was the Badlands and Mikkelson Trail in South Dakota – I even had James as my guide on that trip – and Wilderness Voyageurs also provided the support for Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Sojourn biking/camping tour on the Great Allegheny Passage which goes passed its headquarters at Ohiopyle, PA.

Wilderness Voyageurs consistently provides sensational support – before the trip (with planning and packing lists, questionnaires) and most especially, during the ride (I love the Ride with GPS, the notes they provide and our daily ride orientation and especially their philosophy, “Ride your own ride.”), they even have on hand cold drinks, ice water, sunscreen, chafing cream, and each day organize two rest stops (great snacks) and a delicious picnic lunch. They also book the absolutely best lodgings and restaurants, like the Schoolhouse BnB and the General Store Restaurant in Rocheport where they arranged a private dinner for us. The guides are excellent and if necessary, can pick you up in the van should the distance or the elevation be uncomfortable. All of this makes what you pay for a guided bike tour well worth it.

Indeed, bike trips are ideal for solo travelers (there are four of us on this trip) – a way to travel on our own, but not alone. 

Wilderness Voyageurs, Ohiopyle, PA, 15470, 800-272-4141, wilderness-voyageurs.com.

See also:

Biking through History on Missouri’s Katy Trail During America’s 250th

Biking the Katy Trail: From Cliffside Pictographs to the Capital’s Stirring ‘Social History of Missouri’ Mural

 __________________

© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Biking Tours, Cultural travel, Historic Places, Outdoors Adventures, Places of History, See America

Biking the Katy Trail: From Cliffside Pictographs to the Capital’s Stirring ‘Social History of Missouri’ Mural

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Ryan Clearwater, chief of staff to Missouri’s Speaker of the House, gives our Wilderness Voyageurs bike group a personal tour of Thomas Hart Benton’s famous mural, “A Social History of the State of Missouri” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Day 3 of our six-day Wilderness Voyageurs Katy Trail bike tour 240-miles across Missouri is the most scenic, most interesting, teasiest ride, and the most dramatic for what we see. The day starts with pictographs left by the Indigenous people who populated this place for centuries before Lewis & Clark or Daniel Boone ever laid their eyes on this land, and ends with a mirror held up to Missourians, at the State Capital building, where we see Thomas Hart Benton’s stirring “Social History of Missouri” mural.

The 38.7 miles we ride from Rocheport to Jefferson City (Missouri’s capital), is almost entirely flat – a mere158 ft rise, 200 ft. decline. It also turns out to be my favorite part of the Katy Trail – much of it with limestone cliffs and forest on one side and views of the Missouri River on the other.

Biking the Katy Trail through Missouri on Day 3, with limestone bluffs and forest on one side and views of the Missouri River on the other © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We set out from the base of the 200-foot high limestone Manitou Bluffs that towers above the bike trail. They were once sacred to Native American tribes and we spot remnants of pictographs.

They are easy to miss, but I am intent to find them (look for the marker that gives the description). Still, I might have missed them were it not for our guide, James Oerding, riding along with me (because I am last – again), who has guided for Wilderness Voyageurs for the past 13 years, pointed them out.

Pictographs that date from at least 1819 on limestone cliffs along the Katy Trail, Missouri © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

What you do see most prominently is the symbol that looks like the Nike swoosh. Then you look to the right and make out others (there is a placard that shows all the figures to look for). They were like billboards of their time (perhaps saying “We are here”?).

The notes say that Lewis and Clark expedition camped below these bluffs just downstream from here on June 6,1804.

President Thomas Jefferson had made it clear the captains should carefully observe Indians and their way of life and though Clark and others in the expedition were conscientious about recording pictographs, there were no mentions of the pictographs we see here. But the Stephen Long Expedition did make note of these Torbett Spring pictographs in 1819. It is suspected that the Sauk and Fox Indians, who lived in the area until around 1814 and likely were the artists, painted the pictographs . after the Lewis and Clark Expedition passed by.

Needless to say, I linger here awhile, reading the notes, taking photos, so am last and James, our guide, hangs with me. (The Wilderness Voyageurs guides tell us at the outset, “This is your vacation. Ride your own ride” – and isn’t normally a problem with the route on our Ride GPS app and because on this trip, for all but the last night’s stay, we are able to bike from inn to inn without needing to gather in the van to shuttle to our lodging.)

Biking the Katy Trail through Missouri on Day 3, with limestone bluffs and forest on one side and views of the Missouri River on the other © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

A short distance further, we veer off the Katy Trail for a quarter of a mile to see The Big McBaine Burr Oak Tree,  that sits all by itself with no other tree for 1000 feet. From a distance, it is just a tree. But as we get closer, I begin to appreciate just how gigantic it is, and why it is recorded in journals: The largest burr oak tree in Missouri, it is 287-inches around, 90 feet tall with a 13-foot spread, and takes a half-dozen people to wrap their arms around the trunk. It has stood strong for nearly 400 years, withstanding storms, droughts, floods, vandalism, and development and would have been formidable even to Lewis & Clark, who would have traveled within sight of the tree, a half-mile from the banks of the Missouri 200 years ago.

The Big McBaine Burr Oak Tree, largest in Missouri, is 350-400 years old © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

At McBlaine, we take a peek at another oddity: “Boathenge” is comprised of 1950s ski boats that were swept here after a flood in 1993.

Biking over railroad trestles is one of the delights of cycling Missouri’s Katy Trail, a Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Famer © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Coming into Jefferson City, we leave the Katy Trail onto a spur and bike up an extraordinary spiraling ramp onto the bridge over the Missouri River (and will return down the ramp the next morning to get back onto the Katy Trail).  Riding over the bridge affords dramatic views of Missouri’s majestic State Capitol.

Jefferson City, population 42,838, is the most urban part of our ride – and having just come from such rural areas on the protected carless rail trail, it is a bit of culture shock to be riding on city streets.

Biking into Jefferson City, after riding the Katy Trail through rural Missouri is a bit of culture shock © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The only tricky part is getting to our hotel (the only “modern” hotel of our stay, Courtyard by Marriott), especially because of construction underway. We come down a steep sloping street, once again providing a dramatic view of the State Capital building set at the end.

Missouri’s majestic capital building in Jefferson City is a “must-see” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Once we are settled into the Marriott Courtyard Hotel (the only chain hotel of our trip), James offers to drive us to the State Capital Building, encouraging us to seek out the Thomas Hart Benton Murals that wrap around the walls of the House Members’ Lounge.

Ryan Clearwater, chief of staff to Missouri’s Speaker of the House, gives our Wilderness Voyageurs bike group a personal tour of Thomas Hart Benton’s famous mural, “A Social History of the State of Missouri” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“A Social History of the State of Missouri,” Thomas Hart Benton’s famous mural, is more of an indictment than a glorification of Missouri’s history. It was 1934, in the midst of the Great Recession, when Benton got the $16,000 commission – “a prince’s ransom” at the time, equivalent to $300,000 today and more money than the governor earned – and a period of heightened racial tension in Missouri. Completed in December 1936, the state legislators immediately regretted having commissioned it and even considered painting over the murals, but feared humiliating defeats if they admitted their “misjudgment.”

Ryan Clearwater, chief of staff to Missouri’s Speaker of the House, gives our Wilderness Voyageurs bike group a personal tour of Thomas Hart Benton’s famous mural, “A Social History of the State of Missouri” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The story of this extraordinary mural is being related to us by the Chief of Staff to the Speaker of the House, Ryan Clearwater, who we chanced to ask if we could visit when we find House Members Lounge locked. He takes us in (through the Speaker’s office, no less), and proceeds to spend an hour with us.  

Huck Finn with the runaway slave Jim, with the Samuel Clemons riverboat, was just one of the controversial scenes in Thomas Hart Benton’s “A Social History of the State of Missouri” mural  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Instead of noble figures, Benton shows ordinary men and women who built Missouri, using real Missourians including his own family, as models for the 200 figures. He also shows its villains.

A white trader gives an Osage Indian whiskey in Thomas Hart Benton’s “A Social History of the State of Missouri” mural. Benton traveled to Oklahoma to find an Osage Indian for his model © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Instead of noble deeds and historic events, it depicts slaves being whipped and auctioned; a trader giving whiskey to an Osage Indian (he went to Oklahoma to find an Osage Indian to model); a Mormon being tarred and feathered (Missouri expelled Mormons and as recently as 1980s, Clearwater tells us, the state had a statute that it was permissible to kill Mormons); a settler being lynched by Civil War guerrillas while his family is turned out of their burning home; Huck Finn and runaway slave Jim on a raft escaping down the Mississippi River, the Samuel Clemons riverboat off to the side; Jesse James and his gang robbing a bank and a train; and Frankie entering the bar to murder Johnny, who did her wrong.

Instead of glorious deeds, Thomas Hart Benton depicted its ignobility in his “A Social History of the State of Missouri” mural.© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com
Instead of glorious deeds, Thomas Hart Benton depicted its ignobility in his “A Social History of the State of Missouri” mural © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com
Frankie murders Johnny in a scene in Thomas Hart Benton’s “A Social History of the State of Missouri” mural © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It depicts Missouri’s transition from frontier to factories, the Civil War to the Great War, people struggling and making due during the Great Depression (a comb with missing teeth as one of the symbols). One section portrays a political rally attended by all but one white man, while a woman on a bench, her back turned away from the rally, changes her baby’s bare bottom (scandalous! Benton’s nephew was the model),

A political rally of all but one white man in Thomas Hart Benton’s “A Social History of the State of Missouri” mural © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The last scene, In the bottom corner, plainly depicts Tom Pendergast, at the time the boss of Missouri politics, who was so powerful, he is said to have elected his candidate governor in just 30 days and get Truman into the US Senate (a figure very much like Truman is seated in front). Then 2 years after the mural was done, Pendergast went to federal prison for corruption. Benton came back and made a couple of changes – he had to touch up where someone drew Pendergast’s prison number on his suit, and to put clothes on the burlesque dancers in the background.

Corrupt political boss Tom Pendergast, instrumental in Harry Truman’s political career, is clearly portrayed by Thomas Hart Benton in his “A Social History of the State of Missouri” mural   © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“Benton put Pendergast in the mural to let every representative and senator and the public know how some got into office,” Clearwater remarks. 

The scene with the political rally depicts a black man, the only black man wearing a suit, leaning against a pole. This figure is Jordan Chambers, who was the Black political boss (“Tom Pendergast”) of St. Louis. Some claim that Jordan Chambers wanted to be in mural, he tells us, despite the association with Pendergast’s corruption.

The mural is shocking to see, even today, and you wonder how Benton was able to get away with it.

“The mural got mixed reviews – slavery, tar and feathering, lynching, murder, robbery,” Clearwater notes with an air of understatement. “They had wanted history. When it was unveiled, they talked about painting it over. But they had spent $16,000 and felt they wouldn’t get reelected, so they said, ‘We should learn from past.’” (I wonder if they also calculated that since the murals were locked away in the House Members’ Lounge, few would actually see it.)

Missouri’s House of Representatives chamber © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It’s 5 pm, when the building normally closes, but Clearwater takes us into the House chambers (he says that because the Senate is still in session trying to complete its business before the term ends, the building isn’t officially closed). It is a stunning, majestic room, with painted glass windows and a stunning mural (the gift of France). Clearwater says they had a $1 million budget for artwork when the building was built (the first two capital buildings burned down; this one is of “Carthage marble” – polished limestone). Missouri has the 4th largest House of Representatives per capita (163 House members and 34 Senate); a part-time position, they meet five months of the year.

I note portraits of Lincoln (“the first Republican,” Clearwater says) and Jefferson (“the first Democrat,” Clearwater says, but Jefferson was actually a Democratic Republican who advocated for states rights, agrarian interests and strict construction of Constitution, so also Republican; Franklin D. Roosevelt is probably the first modern Democrat).

The partisan animosity is practically built into the room. The center aisle is the width of “two swords”; the 7,000-page rule book includes such provisions as the member has to ask permission to speak, no member shall rattle their spittoon while another is talking, no one can intercede the line of debate.

Festooned around the room are the values these legislators are supposed to espouse for the state: Enterprise, Progress, Honor. Truth. Virtue. Temperance. Knowledge. Liberty. Equality. Justice. Fraternity. Education.

The spectacular dome of Missouri’s capital building © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By now, Clearwater, the chief of staff to the Speaker of the House has spent about an hour with us, even though only two of us are actually Missouri constituents. He jokes, “I would rather spend time with the public than lobbyist or legislator,” (though upon leaving, I spot a few of them on the way in, and all around the Capitol building, are offices of various unions and industry and trade associations).

It’s after 5 pm, too late to visit the State Museum contained within the building, but we get a few minutes to admire the stunning lobby and dome, surrounded by engravings extolling the state’s (aspirational?) credos:

The Earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof

Righteousness exalteth a nation

Property is the fruit of labor

Where there is no vision, the people perish

Ideas control the world

Lord God of Hosts be with us yet, lest we forget

Party honesty is party expediency.

The statue of The Corps of Discovery that passed Jefferson City June 4, 1804 © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com
Another mural depicting Missouri’s heritage, just outside the State Capital Building © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We go off to explore Jefferson City and have dinner (one of two evenings where we are on our own for dinner).

Just outside the capital building is a statue of The Corps of Discovery that passed Jefferson City June 4, 1804.

I walk back to the Courtyard Marriott, getting back early enough to enjoy the hotel pool.

Wilderness Voyageurs, Ohiopyle, PA, 15470, 800-272-4141, wilderness-voyageurs.com.

See also: Biking through History on Missouri’s Katy Trail During America’s 250th

See next: Biking Missouri’s Katy Trail Following Lewis & Clark, Daniel Boone & the Westward Expansion

__________________

© 2026 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, longislandpress.com/category/vacation-travel.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near. X: @TravelFeatures Threads: @news_and_photo_features ‘Like’ us atfacebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures. Send comments/questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com.

Biking Tours, Outdoors Adventures, Places of History

Biking through History on Missouri’s Katy Trail During America’s 250th

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Biking the Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Hall of Famer, Katy Trail, a 240-mile-long linear state park, across Missouri is a delight for cyclists © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Biking 240 miles across Missouri on the Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Hall of Fame Katy Trail is more about “being” than “seeing”. That is, the ride itself is glorious free-wheeling cycling, and when you finish being on the day’s ride in one of the charming, historic towns you get to “see”. You experience the towns and ports that grew up with the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad (known as the K-T) and the Missouri River boats, that declined with the drop in rail and river traffic. These places that bring us so much delight today might well be ghost towns except for new life breathed into them by the thousands of cyclists who come through on the Katy Trail, like Rocheport, population 239.

Built between 1987 and 2011, the Katy Trail – actually a linear state park 100 feet wide and 240 miles long – is the longest continuous recreational rail trail in the United States.

It’s estimated the Katy Trail brought $18 million in spending to the area before the COVID pandemic inspired so many to discover the physical and emotional benefits of biking and being outdoors (as I learn after a chance meeting on the trail with the former state Commissioner who presided over its development). Meanwhile, the reputation of the Katy Trail continues to spread.

Starting out on our six-day Wilderness Voyageurs bike tour, 240-miles across Missouri on the Katy Trail, a rail trail built on the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

On our Wilderness Voyageurs Katy Trail bike tour, only one couple is from Missouri (they have done almost all of the trail before), the rest of us have come from Texas (doing this trip for a second time), Alabama, Indiana, California and New York, to enjoy one of the best rail trails in the country. It has the gentle slope of a rail line where there are ups and downs at all, marvelous and well maintained rest stops (every 12 miles) complete with picnic tables, depot-style benches under a canopy, where there are excellent placards describing the history, pointing to the important sites and mile markers on the coming section, and giving clear map and directions. It is such a comfortable trail that this tour is able to go for longer mileage days of 38 to 50 miles (but if you do tire, you can simply hop on the van used each day by one of the guides who sets up snack stops and lunch; e-bikes also available).

Biking 240-miles across Missouri on the Katy Trail, a rail trail built on the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

But it’s not just those of us who come from around the country and world to ride the Katy Trail – the trail is a string that binds and engages community and we can see how locals cherish it (even those who were skeptical at the start).  Along the way, we find a former home that was donated to the trail for use as a hostel (you just find the key and let yourself in), and a historic general store building that was donated to the park and being restored by Dan and Connie Burkhardt who run a foundation to protect and preserve the land. Indeed, the trail began with a generous donation by Edward D. “Ted” Jones Jr. and his wife, to secure the railroad’s right-of-way. All along the way you see signs of “Missouri Pride,” and “Magnificent Missouri.”

Much of the trail follows the route of the Missouri River with the river on one side and towering bluffs on the other, and takes us through forests, wetlands, valleys, remnant prairies, open pastureland and rolling farm fields.

The Katy Trail, a Missouri state park, has some of the best rest stops, with historic placards, and is where you meet interesting people, like Fabio, a real-life Forrest Gump, who has been traveling for 16 years © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We cycle through towns, villages, communities and landscapes we would never otherwise see (and without looking through a glass window), at a pace that is perfect to create an ever-changing scene. You can feel the wind and smell the air, and get off the bike when you want to spend more time, take a photo, read a plaque, have a different or deeper perspective – especially since Wilderness Voyageurs provides us with Ride with GPS so we can go at our own pace.

The gentle rise of the Katy Trail, built on the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The pleasure of riding the Katy Trail is further enhanced this year when the nation is celebrating America’s 250th.

The Katy Trail is steeped in history, much of it following the actual route of Lewis & Clark’s expedition (part of the 4,900-mile Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail) and dotted with markers and panels recalling where they camped or where some incident happened. This place also figured prominently in the Westward expansion, led by figures like Daniel Boone and commemorated with Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis. One of my favorite sections of the trail is where we see pictographs left by the Indigenous peoples who had lived here for centuries before any of them.

Cycling passed farms on the Katy Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We go through towns that look like (should be and have been) film sets from 1930s,1940s and 1950s. I love seeing the vintage posters, paintings, murals, neon signs and shops that still have the proprietor’s family name and the tag, “Since [year]” This is small town America of myth and lore, especially when we come to our last night’s stay in Washington, Missouri, where I happen upon a community weekly concert at the Farmers Market that gets people line-dancing.

Our six-day tour begins with a 6:30 am pick up in St. Charles, so everyone stays over the night before, most in St. Charles. (I stay in St. Louis, about 25 minutes away, at the 21c Museum Hotel, a Historic Hotels of America member, to have a glorious day to explore this important city and immerse myself in history and culture.)

We are picked up at the various hotels and driven from St. Charles, where the trail and our tour ends, to where it begins, in Clinton. It is a 3 ½ hour drive, but will take us six days to bike.

Wilderness Voyageurs guide James Oerding gives us our whiteboard review of the day’s ride on the Katy Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Before we set out each day, our guides, James Oerding (a St. Louis native who has been a Wilderness Voyageurs guide for 13 years and I actually knew from my South Dakota Wilderness Voyageurs tour) and Rob Figulski, review the ride and main points.  I would also recommend reading the day’s itinerary notes that are provided on the Ride with GPS app, which have even more interesting details for people like me who love to immerse in place and time.

Our first day’s ride is 38.4 miles through the Osage Plains with gentle rises and trees on both sides to Sedalia, a town that looks like it was set in a time capsule (and was used as the setting for the 1950s TV show, “Rawhide”).

This day’s ride takes us to the highest point on the trail, at 955 feet above sea level (though not the most elevation of our ride – that will come on day 2).

Sedalia, Missouri is a picturesque, historic town revitalized by the Katy Trail cyclists © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

We finish at the Katy Trail Depot in Sedalia and make our way to the historic Hotel Bothwell, so perfect for this throwback experience. There are such marvelous ole-timey features – a telephone booth, elevator, mail drop, the wooden check-in desk. There are photos of President Harry Truman in the breakfast room, named for Truman, who dined in the hotel’s café in 1962.

The historic Hotel Bothwell, built in 1914, has connections to President Harry Truman, and delightful old-timey features © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

A bronze plaque outside the hotel says that John Bothwell & Community Hotel Company built the hotel in 1927 for $400,000; in 1934, Harry S. Truman was here when he learned that Kansas City political boss Tom Pendergast had selected him as the candidate for US Senate; in 1942, Actress Bette Davis dined in its Palm Room; in 1959, Actors Clint Eastwood and Eric Fleming promoted the TV series Rawhide (which was set in Sedalia). The hotel was converted to senior housing in 1988 by the Westin Financial Group, then restored to a hotel by the Furnell Cos. in 1998.

Vintage poster in Sedalia, Missouri © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Sedalia also has the first Carnegie Grant public library awarded in Missouri; and the Missouri State Fair is located in Sedalia (we pass by the fairgrounds on the trail).

But most interesting is its connection to famed musician Scott Joplin, who came to Sedalia to work on the railroad and made Sedalia his home, earning his living as a piano teacher; today, Sedalia hosts an annual Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival (www.scottjoplin.org)

We have dinner together at The Vault – it’s only our first night together, but the 10 of us have already formed a tight unit. Notably, four of us are traveling solo – bike tours are one of the best ways to travel alone but together.

Biking over trestles is one of the fun features of Missouri’s Katy Trail, a rail trail built on the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Day 2 is the most arduous and the most satisfying. It is our longest, hardest ride, 50.5 miles, from Sedalia to Rocheport with the most ups/downs – 1,100 ft of elevation and 1,395 ft. decline – so today is mostly about the physical experience versus the view. and ends at a place of serenity and contentment. (But you keep reminding yourself: this is a railtrail, so the uphill is very gradual, you barely feel it.)

Biking over trestles is one of the fun features of Missouri’s Katy Trail, a rail trail built on the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

This day’s ride is organized so we have two support stops, 12 miles apart, and a very long uphill before a two-mile downhill into Boonville and our lunch stop at the Boonville Visitor Center and River, Rails & Trails Museum.

Boonville Visitor Center and River, Rails & Trails Museum © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The museum is very interesting, especially the ambiguous way it relates Civil War events – a skirmish early in the war, on July 17, 1861, resulted in Union forces defeating a small, poorly equipped force of Missouri State Guard. (It’s not clear which side the folks were on but probably the Confederate, though Missouri was officially a Union border state).

A half-scale replica of Lewis & Clark’s keelboat at the Boonville River, Rails & Trails Museum © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

All along the Katy Trail there are important markers and references to Lewis & Clark, and here in the museum is a half-scale replica of the famous keelboat they used.

Boonville was named for frontiersman Daniel Boone’s sons, who established a salt business here in the early 1800s. This was the first permanent American settlement west of St. Louis. Its strategic location on the Missouri River and the Santa Fe Trail made it a crucial hub during Westward Expansion.  More than 400 buildings are listed on the National Historic Register, and Boonville has one of four restored train depots along the Katy Trail.

We leave Boonville, crossing over the Missouri River, continuing on the trail, riding over train trestles.

New Franklin, “the crossroads to the West,” is where four major trails meet: the Katy Trail, the Lewis & Clark Trail, the Santa Fe Trail and the Boone’s Lick Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

New Franklin, “the crossroads to the West,” is where four major trails all meet: the Katy Trail, the Lewis & Clark Trail, the Santa Fe Trail and the Boone’s Lick Trail. Here, we see what is left of a KT Roundhouse (there is a campground here today), a train car, and a replica of a Conestoga Wagon such as the pioneers would have used.

We end our ride in Rocheport, a trading post when Lewis and Clark’s expedition came through in 1804. It became a permanent settlement in the early 19th century. Today, the whole town is a historic district, with 239 residents and yet there is a gallery and art studio, and an inn that caters to women recovering from mastectomy.

This has been a really arduous ride, so when we arrive at the School House B’n’B at about 3 pm and congregate in its lush garden to enjoy beer and snacks the guides have purchased for us (based on a questionnaire we filled  out as to our preferences), the most perfect peace washes over us, almost euphoria. Everything about this place evokes a feeling of serenity and sheer contentment.

The Schoolhouse BnB in Rocheport deserves its accolades as the “best traditional bnb in Missouri” © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the School House B’n’B is a restored three-story brick building that was built in 1914 and was a school until 1972 (though a school was on the site for 70 years before that). It was converted to a bed and breakfast in 1988 and expanded and improved by a succession of three owner/operators and now offers 11 accommodations including a bridal suite. (Actually, there are three properties: School House Bed & Breakfast, Clark Street Lodge, and Dormitory House properties).

The Schoolhouse BnB incorporates delightful features of its heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

So charmingly repurposed and furnished, the School House BnB truly deserves its accolades as “best traditional bnb in Missouri”. I especially love how owner/operator Chandrika Hickman preserves the heritage – and the spirit – of a schoolhouse: the names of the rooms are delightful: Dick and Jane (which was occupied by our own Bill & Jill); Schoolmarm (which was occupied by a retired school teacher) and so forth. The parlor has a large chalkboard for guests to doodle on, and there are framed pages from old readers. A painting shows a class taking place in this very room now used as the dining room and lounge.

Schoolhouse BnB guests leave doodles on the chalk board © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

At 5 pm (after we have time to refresh), we are taken for a tasting at the A Frame Wine Garden, scenically set on a high cliff above the Katy Trail affording a stunning view overlooking the Missouri River, with tiers of porches. (We will ride the Katy Trail below us, the next day).

Wilderness Voyageurs arranges a private dinner at the General Store restaurant in Rocheport © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear

This night’s dinner is the best, most special of the entire tour. Wilderness Voyageurs arranges a private dinner at the Rocheport General Store restaurant where Chef Susan Schapira prepares a fantastic meal (the seafood ravioli in a white cream sauce is out of this world; the strawberry and pecan cake, with a perfect texture and sweetness, is beyond delectable).  

Chef Susan Schapira, with assistant Sarah Kendall, prepares a five-star dinner for us at her General Store restaurant © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

After dinner, a new friend joins me on a walk through woods to the river bank to enjoy the last rays of the sun on the river.

A sunset stroll to the Missouri River at Rocheport © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

And then the breakfast at School House bnb! Incredibly scrumptious: croissant strata with bacon and cheese; maple lemon apple and pear salad; white chocolate banana muffin.

The scrumptious breakfast at Schoolhouse BnB fortifies us for the day’s ride on the Katy Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It is no wonder that the School House B’n’B repeatedly is named “Missouri’s #1 traditional B&B” (schoolhousebnb.com).

We set out from Rocheport for Jefferson City, for what proves to be the most scenic and interesting day.

Wilderness Voyageurs, Ohiopyle, PA, 15470, 800-272-4141, wilderness-voyageurs.com.

Next: Indigenous Pictographs & ‘A Social History of Missouri’ Mural

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