By jmcginnis11 on February 05, 2010
The Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail, which is more commonly known by its old name, the North Central Rail Trail, comprises the southern half of the greenway that connects downtown York (and is currently being extended further north to Rudy County Park) to Hunt Valley. Although the tracks that parallel the Heritage Rail Trail end at the Maryland line, old whistle posts, abandoned signal towers and numerous train stations serve as testiments to the trail's railroad heritage. The picturesque combination of lush woodlands, bucolic farms and intimate small towns that makes the Heritage Trail so appealing also dominates the Maryland portion almost to Hunt Valley. Plans to eventually join the trail to the East Coast Greenway and the Jones Falls Trail will ensure its popularity for the foreseeable future.
By Keybord on September 20, 2008
My wife and I have return to our first love--bike riding. We are empty nesters now. We had not realize what this 'Rail to Trail' thing was until this year. We use to ride on the streets of Baltimore. The bike rack stays on the car all summer. We take our bikes to whatever state we travel. This is our favorite trail because we live twenty minutes away from the Ashton trailhead (did'nt even know what a Trailhead was 6 months ago). We're still building up stamina. Today we rode from Ashton to Monkton. I understand thats approximately 71/2 miles. We learn to detect when we were getting near an excess point because the trail became busier with joggers, families etc. We people watched in Monkton. Oh and bike watched because I'm in the market for a new bike now. I was a little surprise when I went into the eatery at Monkton (7 miles works up an appitite) and ask for a large burger and found they only served veggie foods. I tried it but it didn't do well for my hunger. My wife had brought a granola bar with her. Ordinarily I would'nt eat those but----. The trail was great. Temperature was just right today. Came close to being dump by some fast little critters deciding to cross the trail just as I reach that point. All total we spent about 4 hours out. We know we can do 15 to 20 miles easily now. Broke in a new bike and we hate to see winter arrive just when we're starting to have fun. By the way we're seniors so judging by the way we feel we'll be hitting the bed early. "Happy Trails"
By my_bike_08 on February 21, 2008
I've ridden this trail dozens of times from the MD end into PA. The MD side starts fairly flat, then is a moderate but steady incline up to the PA border. In PA the trail is generally downhill for 10-15 miles, but again only moderately. The PA side is very consistent crushed stone, and quite easy to ride on even with a road bike. The terrain on the MD side varies quite a bit, but is generally packed dirt. Some lengths of the trail also have a spattering of crush stone, but nothing consistent like the PA side. The MD side gets quite muddy following any type of rain. The MD side is pretty well shaded, so it is a good ride on hot days. In fall, it tends to be overly cool. The PA side is roughly half shaded. The trail in MD has limited scenery as the trail tends to be more like a hiking trail with woods close by on each side, while PA is more open, allowing some better views. The southern end of the trail in MD can be crowded, esp. on weekends, unless you get there early (the crowd dies down substantially once you get past the range station at mile marker 7). The PA side of the trail seldom is very crowded, so it makes a nice ride. Both sides of the trail have numerous road crossings, with metal gates blocking the trail except for narrow pass thru's, which tend to get a bit annoying for cycling since you are forced to slow down at each one.