Miami Valley RailTrails Newsletter
September 2004

Hello MVRT Members - It's 24 September 2004 and I have  news for you. 

• New Information on "Great Connection"  [ Now called the Great Miami River Recreation Trail [GMRRT] in Warren & Butler Counties) Many of you know about the GMRRT. For those that don't I'll will provide a small summery. The GMRRT was announced by the Miami Conservancy District some 4 or 5 years ago. The trail when finished will start at Crains Run MetroPark in Montgomery County. Crains Run is the farthermost South park managed by Five Rivers MetroParks. The trail will connect the "GMRRT" to the Great Miami River Recreation Trail in downtown Dayton. The GMRRT will follow the river levees along the Great Miami River and the towpath of the Miami and Erie Canal South to Franklin, Middletown and ultimately to Hamilton a total of 28 miles. 
  
  Of the trail segments the Crains Run MetroPark to Franklin section is about ready to start construction. The winning bid should be announced November 2004 and the about 4 miles of trail constructed by Fall 2005. In Middletown a trail segment of 2.3 miles already exists. I have recently added a Middletown Trail Segment  webpage with pictures and maps on this section of the trail. 
  
  

• New Bridge at Wesleyan MetroPark This Summer Five Rivers MetroParks added a bridge over the Mad River and some more trail to the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail near downtown Dayton at Wesleyan MetroPark. The Wolf Creek Recreation Trail when completed is to start in downtown Dayton where the Wolf Creek empties into the Great Miami River and continue Northwest through Dayton to Trotwood, Brookville and Verona. 
  
  Currently there is a 12.6-mile section of the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail   from Trotwood to Verona complete. The downtown section of the trail has been dubbed the Paul Lawrence Dunbar Connector after the poet who was a contemporary of the Wright Brothers and when to high school with them. This section is now 3 miles long from the Great Miami River to Wesleyan MetroPark. The remaining 2.5 mile gap will be closed in the year 2008 by Five Rivers MetroParks. The new bridge and trail section in Wesleyan MetroPark is very picturesque and I have added information to the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail in downtown Dayton page. 
  
  
  

• Updates to Master Ohio Trails List  For all of the seven years that I have maintained and enlarged the Miami Valley RailTrails website I have also tried to keep up my "RailTrails, Towpaths and Other Trails In Ohio" list. I actually have two lists. The first is an alphabetical list of every trail that I know about in the state of Ohio. If they have a website the chances are that I have a link to it. 
  The other list starts with a map of Ohio RailTrails, Towpaths and Other Trails In Ohio" ( list by counties). From there you can pick an area of Ohio. Then you'll see a regional map like "Southwest Ohio" and from it by clicking on the county of interest you'll see every trail in that county. The information on these pages is the same as on the alphabetical listing but is broken out by region and county. 
  
  Anyway. I have continued to update these pages with information that may be of value to you when you plan to bicycle another area of Ohio. Recently I found out that the city of Marion (due North of Columbus) was planning two trails. One is called the Phoebe Snow Trail from Marion Northwest to Lima a total of 41 miles when built. The other will run South from Marion to Columbus and is called the CD&M Trail I spent some time trying to find out what "CD&M" stood for. After many web searches I found that I meant the old high speed trolley line (they were called "Interurbans") from Columbus through Delaware County to Marion; hence CD&M. 
  
  
  

• Publicity for MVRT in Sep. Midwest Bike Magazine   My associates and "Friends of Madison County Parks and Trails" alerted me to an article in Midwest Bike Magazine September 2004 issue that mentioned favorably my website. FMCPT put the article on their website. If you'd like to see the article you can get to it here: http://www.fmcpt.com/04-09-BikeMidwest.html Thanks a Lot FMCPT!
  

  
  

• I Finally get to meet Glenn Oster!  I have a cyclist friend named Mr. Glenn Oster Glenn is a cyclist who has ridden who has ridden many trails in the United States as well as New Zealand and Australia. Over the years he has provided to me reviews of the trails he has ridden. They are on a separate webpage for Glenn's Oster's Trail Reviews.  Recently I got to finally meet Glenn and ride the Prairie Grass Trail from Xenia Station to South Charleston with him. Glenn went on to ride all the way to London (about 60 miles round trip). On the same visit to Miami Valley he rode the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail in downtown Dayton as well as the Trotwood to Verona segment. He returned recently over Labor Day with friends to ride the Little Miami Scenic Trail and provided me with two new great articles that you'll find on Glenn's webpage on my site. The articles You Missed a Great Holiday Biking Weekend (about his Labor Day ride on the Little Miami Scenic Trail) and Western Ohio's Great Rail Trails (his review of the Prairie Grass Trail and the Wolf Creek Recreation Trail). 
  
  

• Information about my website at MSN  Recently some (unfortunate person) posted to my MSN website an advertisement for something or other. I immediately delete such "trash" but since the bulletin board is open to anyone who has a Microsoft Passport (and all of you have them) I can't stop such "defacement" of my bulletin board. As you know I use the MSN website to send you these monthly emails. I am sorry that some of you got that email in you inbox. 
  
  
  Rail Trail Reviews - If any of my readers have ridden a trail not covered on this website and you'd like to write a review for me, I'd be glad to have them.

Regards to all, 

Thomas J. Recktenwalt
Webmaster
Miami Valley RailTrails
http://www.miamivalleytrails.org  

If you find these newsletters and my Miami Valley RailTrails website of use to you, pass the information on to your friends and neighbors who might enjoy our wonderful system of multi-use trails in Southwest Ohio. They are wonderful for walking, running, roller-bladeing, birding and cycling and in some cases horseback riding. You see more wildlife from one of our trails than most anyplace else. All of my newsletters are posted to my website at the same time I send you this text version. The URL for your use is: http://www.miamivalleytrails.org/join_our_mailing_list.htm 

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