North Coast Inland Trail

The North Coast Inland Trail (often abbreviated as NCIT) is a work-in-process multipurpose trail project that currently consists of several separate portions, defined by their counties, in northern Ohio, United States. Affiliates with the trails have high hopes to connect all of these portions and to extend the trails into Indiana and Pennsylvania, two of Ohio's land-bordering states.

Not to be confused with North Coast Trail.
East of Norwalk in Huron County

History

Railroad Beginnings

The North Coast Inland Trail primarily follows a route built by the Toledo, Norwalk, and Cleveland Railroad (TN&C) from 1851-1853. This line was built during an intense competition with the Junction Railroad to be the first to connect Toledo and Cleveland, and ultimately fill the last remaining railroad gap connecting Chicago to Buffalo. Executives of the TN&C made a decision to bypass Woodville and Perrysburg and forge a line straight through the Black Swamp from Fremont to Toledo, saving crucial time and money by shortening the distance by eleven miles. The towns of Lindsey, Elmore, Genoa, and Millbury sprung up along the line as a result of this time-saving decision.

Several mile markers are still visible on the trail with a large "C" or "B," along with a number indicating how many miles remain until Chicago or Buffalo, respectively. The Toledo, Norwalk, and Cleveland Railroad completed their line first, tow

Junction Railroad eventually completed their line, situated along Lake Erie, and in 1853 the two rival companies merged to form the Cleveland & Toledo Railroad. This operation became part of the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway in 1869 and eventually the New York Central Railroad.

The Junction Railroad's line became known as the Northern Division, and the original TN&C's line became known as the Southern Division. The Northern Division gained favor over time due to its shorter distance and the Southern Route was eventually abandoned.

During the 1980s several park districts and counties began an effort to convert the abandoned Southern Division into a multi-use pedestrian path. The North Coast Inland Trail Conservancy was created by supporters in Genoa and Elmore.

In 1992, several park districts agreed to create a series of connecting trails across the state of Ohio.[1] The non-profit organization Firelands Rails to Trails, Inc. gave the project the collective name "North Coast Inland Trail" in 2000.[2]

In 2008, the NCIT was extended from Fremont to Lindsey and Elmore.

In 2021 the latest section of the North Coast Inland Trail was finished, extending the western terminus of the trail from Elmore, Ohio to Genoa, Ohio.

Funding

The North Coast Inland Trail is mostly funded by the federal government, but is also partially funded by private organizations and local governments.[1]

Design

The trails are designed to cover many different landscapes, including farmland, urban areas, and forests.[3] Many of the trails follow railroads. Some of these trails are paved over abandoned railways,[1][4] while others follow alongside active railroads. Because of road obstacles, the trails themselves sometimes cut off before large cities[5] and highways, and signs are placed throughout the open cities or areas,[6] leading the followers to the next segment of the trails, which, in some cases, can be slightly hazardous.

The trails are also designed to "allow people within [counties] to easily move from community to community" and to "connect people and neighborhoods," as stated by Jim Ziemnik, the director of the Lorain County Metro Parks district.[7] The convenience of the trails is also believed to help enhance the real estate appraisal of community homes near the trails.[8]

Portions

Because the North Coast Inland Trail is not yet complete, it is currently separated into several disconnected portions that are generally defined by specific counties. The North Coast Inland Trail also has many small and incomplete segments in many areas of northern Ohio besides in these four counties, such as in Wood County and Lucas County, which are planned to eventually be expanded and connected.[9] The following are the four prominent portions of the project:

Huron County

The Huron County portion of the trails is about 20 miles long and extends from Bellevue, through Monroeville and Norwalk to Collins.[10] This portion is not completely paved; some parts are dirt trails.[11] This portion of the trail is constructed over what were several abandoned railways managed by several defunct railroad companies.[12] The Huron County portion was the first trail to be labeled as a part of the North Coast Inland Trail, and was established by and is maintained by the nonprofit organization Firelands Rails to Trails.[2]

Lorain County

The Lorain County portion of the trails is 13 miles long, is completely paved, and extends from Elyria to Kipton. The entire trail particularly follows several abandoned railways.[1][11][13][14] This portion of the trails was established by and is managed by the park district Lorain County Metro Parks.[1]

Sandusky County

The Sandusky County portion of the trails is 27 miles long, is completely paved, and extends from Bellevue to the Ottawa County city of Genoa. The segment of this trail that extends from Bellevue to Clyde was built in 2012.[11] Part of the Sandusky County trail follows an active railroad, and at one point also runs on a bridge across the Sandusky River in the city of Fremont.[15] This portion of the trails was established by and is managed by the Sandusky County Park District.[16]

Ottawa County

The Ottawa County portion of the NCIT is about 6.5 miles long and extends from the county line through Elmore to Genoa, currently ending at the east side of Genoa's Veterans Park. This portion is completely paved; however about 0.9 miles is a shared path along Martin-Williston Road in Clay Township. The Park District of Ottawa County is working on extending the NCIT to Millbury in Wood County.

Plans of expansion

The project's eventual objective is to connect the state of Indiana to the state of Pennsylvania with a large bike trail, but the project has not at all yet extended to either of these states. However, users of the trails can also connect to one of these states if they take other nearby, unrelated trails.[11]

There are also many improvement and expansion plans for the current Ohio trails. The Lorain County Metro Parks district in Lorain County has done improvements to the Lorain County portion that costed hundreds of thousands of dollars, which Ziemnik said "was not a financial risk for [them]."[17]

An example of a recently added extension of the trails is the Huron County portion's extension, which leads through the entire city of Norwalk in order to eventually connect into a planned trail segment in Erie County.[18][19] This portion is not a paved trail, but leads followers through the city using green-painted curbs, which is unique to any other segment of the project.[6]

The most recent extension to the trail project is a 1.8-mile gravel trail in Lorain County that follows an abandoned railroad, which is planned to later be paved over and connected to the prominent trail in Lorain County.[20]

The Ohio Department of Transportation has proposed that most of the trail be designated as a part of USBR 30, a federal bicycle route that will eventually span much of the Northern United States linking Ohio with the Northwestern United States and New England.

Regulations

The trails are always open, and the trail regulations allow biking, walking, and inline skating. However, they do not allow motor vehicles, with the exception of staff, ranger, and handicap service vehicles. The regulations also do not allow skateboards.[21]

Events

A yearly marathon is held exclusively in Elyria on the North Coast Inland Trail called the Inland Trail Marathon.[22][23] The results of the marathon are split between male and female participants.[24]

In 2006, more than 150 cyclists took a 3-day bicycle trek starting from Williams County, Ohio near the Indiana borderline and ending at Oberlin, Ohio. One of the trails that this trek underwent was the Lorain County portion of the North Coast Inland Trail.[25]

In October 2014, a geocaching event was held in Lorain County. Some of the geocaches were hidden along the North Coast Inland Trail.[26]

See also

References
  1. "North Coast Inland Trail". Lorain County Metro Parks. Archived from the original on 2015-12-24. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  2. "History". Firelands Rails to Trails. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  3. Junkin, Brenda (3 August 2008). "Closer to home: Northern Ohio cycling trails can be a day trip or an overnighter". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  4. "Lowell C. Krumnow [1957-2013]; Elmore mayor leaves legacy". The Blade. 7 October 2013. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  5. Dawson, Ryan (21 September 2010). "You told us what you love about Lorain County: Here it is!". Chronicle-Telegram. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  6. Centers, Joe (26 July 2015). "Why are some curbs painted green in Norwalk?". Norwalk Reflector. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  7. Roberson, Lisa (4 June 2015). "Metro Parks plans trail expansion". Chronicle-Telegram. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  8. Reiter, Mark (6 July 2011). "Land purchase will add 11 miles to multiuse trail". The Blade. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  9. Aspacher, Alex (13 May 2015). "Park district deals with pipelines". Sentinel-Tribune. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  10. "Official Firelands Rails to Trails Brochure and Trail Map" (PDF). Firelands Rails to Trails. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  11. "North Coast Inland Trail". Ohio Bikeways. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  12. Lahmers, Ken (20 November 2012). "KALEIDOSCOPE: FIRELANDS MUSEUM, INLAND TRAIL, BERRY'S EATERY AMONG SOME TREASURES IN NORWALK". Aurora Advocate. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  13. "The North Coast Inland Trail: Lorain County from Elyria, to Oberlin to Kipton, 13 mile Bicycle Ride". IGotABike. 21 August 2012. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  14. Lahmers, Ken (28 August 2013). "KALEIDOSCOPE: OBERLIN, COLLEGE PROVIDE PLACES TO EXPLORE HISTORY". Aurora Advocate. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  15. Smith, Kristina (19 December 2014). "Fremont considers riverfront walk". Fremont News Messenger. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  16. "Business people". Sandusky Register. 11 January 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  17. Henry, Jason (22 March 2012). "Metro Parks work toward North Coast Inland Trail". The Morning Journal. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  18. "North Coast Inland Trail to run through Norwalk". Sandusky Register. 20 April 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  19. "North Coast Inland Trail to expand in Norwalk". Norwalk Reflector. 20 April 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  20. Fogarty, Steve (9 October 2015). "New stretch of trail put into use". Chronicle-Telegram. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  21. King, Dominique (9 January 2014). "Along Ohio's North Coast Inland Trail". Midwest Guest. Retrieved 2016-01-09.
  22. Williams, Paul (3 November 2014). "Inland Trail Marathon: Vermilion's Bennett places second". Chronicle-Telegram. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  23. Heyse, Paul (2 November 2009). "Two for the books: Personal record and course record fall en route to marathon victories". Chronicle-Telegram. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  24. Heyse, Paul (25 October 2010). "Photo gallery: Elyria Inland Trail Marathon". Chronicle-Telegram. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  25. Lund, Eric (11 August 2006). "Cyclists hit the trail for 3-day bike ride: Over 150 to make trek to Oberlin". The Blade. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
  26. Payerchin, Richard (22 September 2014). "New geocache event expected to attract visitors, educate with modern scavenger hunt". The Morning Journal. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
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