At approximately 31 miles of rough gravel terrain, Farmersville to Ladonia represents a good length for an out and back, overnight MTB trip. A riding buddy and I tackled this trip on September 24/25, and enjoyed a generally positive adventure. Highlights included seeing small-town Texas up close (Farmersville, Meritt, Celeste, Wolfe City, and Ladonia), and a strong sense of pioneering, given the relatively overgrown state of much of the trail. Our overnight stay in Ladonia revealed an unexpected gem of a town, with two good restaurants, a great rustic lodge, and even a visit from the Mayor!

During the planning stages, the first question was where to stay in Ladonia. A Google search turned up no nearby hotels, but I came across Rick Barrett (barrett.rick@sbcglobal.net) and his Ladonia Lodge thru a Yahoo users group. This 6-bedroom lodge is located at the edge of "Downtown" Ladonia, and was absolutely perfect for our needs.

The internet also revealed the presence of two restaurants in Ladonia, but I could not have hoped for the quality we experienced. Dinner on Saturday night was at Fat Boy's BBQ (www.fatboysb-b-q.com). We arrived a little beat, but were revived by great ribs, brisket, and pulled pork, as well as the unique treat of fried corn-on-the-cob. But get there early---Fat Boy's closes at 5pm on Saturdays. Breakfast on Sunday was at Gloria's Kitchen, clearly a local institution. Even Ladonia Mayor Jan Cooper showed up---and she had heard a few intrepid cyclists were in town.

Other posters are all too correct----some sections of the trail are woefully unkempt and overgrown. The worst sections were rideable, but barely. And yes, there are clearly man-made obstacles---trenches and mounds that deter use and basic maintenance. However, the locals to whom we spoke along the way were very friendly and enthusiastic, and some (including Mr. Barrett) even pledged to push their localities to improve the upkeep. Bottom line: The more we use the Chaparral Trail, the better it will get!

Today, June 15th, I mountain biked the first 6 miles from Farmersville out through Merit. Trail was pretty open, though narrowed in a few places by vegetation (cedar trees and low hanging elm tree branches and scrub weeds towards Merit). In Merit, the trailhead there looks like a scrapyard but I had no trouble passing through. Talked to some locals sitting out on their porch in Merit, and they were not real happy about the land owners towards Celeste that have made issue of the right-of-way (earthen barricades and such) and were disappointed that the bridge over a major creek/minor river had be removed (not sure where because I returned to Farmersville). Seems like the locals that I talked to like the trail and the folks that use it.

I ran into a couple of spots of trash on the trail including a plastic gas can broken to bits and a couple of car seats. But all in all, things are getting better, it would seem, in policing the trash out there.

One interesting bit was that although it was very windy out (20mph gusts from the south), the trail itself was still and I didn't have to fight the wind coming or going. I would think that would also mean that in the heat of the day in summer, you can forget a breeze to cool you.

I find it interesting that the Federal Government has paid $1.4M for access for trail right-of-way. I expect that anyone who gets harassed on this right-of-way should report it to not only to local law enforcement, but also Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The fact that the Feds have paid for right-of-way means that violation of that agreement is a Federal matter. And impeding a traveler is no less than a violation of civil rights, in my mind (United States v. Wheeler in 1920). That said, there is a bit of a wild feel to this area, and if ever confronted; smile, FULL five finger wave, and have a copy of the settlement to hand them if they'll take it.

Hiked the roughtly 31 mile section from Farmersville to Ladonia a few months ago. My older comments covering the first 7.5 miles east of Farmersville and the section between Ben Franklin and Roxton are at the bottom.

Picking up where I left off at the 7.5 mile mark I encountered a 75-yard long ankle-deep watery mess. I encountered a few more of these usually where the trail crossed a road. I was told by some neighbors of the trail that when the railroad was removed the ballast was sold. In the process of removing the rock some of the earth was scraped away. (These wet areas would likely be dry in summer.) This occured mainly at road crossings since these areas were easier to access.

The trail was hikeable. There were occasional areas of undergrowth but nothing inconvenient. There were some areas that felt pretty wild (the area where the trail crosses the Sulphur river comes to mind).

Passing through the little towns was nice since we were carrying little more than fluids and cash. We were able to time lunch and dinner well and eat in Celeste (convenience store) and Wolfe City (good Mexican food on the town square) respectively. (Ladonia has a store that sells very cold water, mixed with barley and hops, etc.)

No doubt that people continue to use the right of way to dump trash. We encountered the requisite old refrigerator, bags of garbage, etc. In one section just east of Wolfe City we found 5 dead cows that had been dragged (rope or wire still attached to the feet).

There were ATV's and motorcycles but no hikers or bikers.

Just west of Ladonia the trail/road intersections appear to have trenches dug across them. Passage is possible by foot or walking a bike.

Lastly, I found the following link (http://chaparralrailtrailsettlement.com/) that might be helpful in educating everyone on legal issues concerning the right of way.
Stan

8/4/9
Hiked the first 7.5 miles from Farmersville out through Merit to its junction with what google maps calls Mud Road. Trail open though narrowed in a few places by vegetation (specifically poison ivy). In Merit, the trailhead there looks like a scrapyard but we had little trouble passing through.

In March 2008, I mountain biked the section of the trail between Roxton and Ben Franklin. Numerous times I encountered barbed-wire fences, no trespassing signs, giant round haybale storage, etc. Near Ben Franklin the trail was blocked with a gate and cattle occupied the area. In the case of the fences and the gates I was able to lift the bike over and continue. I did not see anyone along the route. The condition of the trail was worse than the description above, much more vegetation in sections that made it uncomfortable but still rideable.

On Friday, November 13, 2009 I drove out to the Chaparral Trail. It was, to say the least, sad. The first 2.5 miles are paved and then it becomes progressively more overgrown. It looks like the only maintenance has been an occasional mowing. Finally, at mile 7 I had to abandon the trail, there was water across the trail which I could not ford or go around. I did pick up the trail again about a mile later, I rode on some county roads, but the same thing happened again within a half mile.

The water on the trail is one thing but the very poor condition of the trail is too bad. I rode this trail in November and can only imagine how bad the flora and fauna is during the spring and summer.

If you still want to ride this trail the GPS numbers sre: 33 09.721 and 096 21.590.

This event was held March 7 2009 to correspond with the local event in downtown Farmersville. This was a Geocaching event called a CITO. (Cache-in-Trash-Out) we picked up trash along the two miles or so of concrete trail running north out of Farmersville. It was a great success and the trail looked great. The newspaper wrote a great article about the event an Geocaching and the Chamber of Commerce donated a booth space for our group.
Prior to the event I mapped the trail from Farmersville to Wolf City. Marking cross roads with GPS coordinates. The following link will take you to the now archived page for the event on Geocaching.com
Just recently the Geocaches now extent all the way to Ladonia so I haven't mapped that far North as of yet. We hope to hold another event next spring. Many of us continue to enjoy and promote the trail.

The towns along the way offer nice rest stops. Farmersville is a great place to eat and plan your hiking, biking or caching trip, Celeste has a quick shop right off the trail and Wolf City has a cafe with great food down town.

Link to maps and other information about the Chaparral Trail
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=e85c9d90-bb7c-4933-baec-73183f404df6

D. Sheppard
South West Arlington Geocachers. (S.W.A.G.)

Hiked the first 7.5 miles from Farmersville out through Merit to its junction with what google maps calls Mud Road. Trail open though narrowed in a few places by vegetation (specifically poison ivy). In Merit, the trailhead there looks like a scrapyard but we had little trouble passing through.

In March 2008, I mountain biked the section of the trail between Roxton and Ben Franklin. Numerous times I encountered barbed-wire fences, no trespassing signs, giant round haybale storage, etc. Near Ben Franklin the trail was blocked with a gate and cattle occupied the area. In the case of the fences and the gates I was able to lift the bike over and continue. I did not see anyone along the route. The condition of the trail was worse than the description above, much more vegetation in sections that made it uncomfortable but still rideable.

I have recently taken advantage of the Chaparral Trail between Merit and Celeste to do some Geocaching and trail riding on my bicycle. I ran into a problem similar to one mentioned below encountered in Delta County on a section between Geocaching waypoints GC19A7N and GC11N9E. At a couple of points along the trail were posted No Trespassing signs clearly in the path of the right of way. On my return trip from Celeste to Merit, I was advised by another group of Geocachers that they were confronted by one of the "landowners" and given instruction as to the routing to take to avoid both him and the adjacent "landowner". Further, the group was advised that the second "landowner" was inclined to take pot shots at persons using the right of way.
This and the description of the trails leading to cattle gates in Delta County begs questions regarding the posession of right of way once a rail line is abandoned. What exactly happens to right of way once it is vacated? Does it remain right of way indefinitely, or does the adjacent landowner have a right to fence it off and restrict access? Perhaps a more interesting way to put it is, does a landowner have a right to post a No Trespassing notice on a street or a road running adjacent to his property? I suspect that right of way remains right of way regardless of whether or not an adjacent landowner desires it.
I did notice a small section of the trail less than 2 miles south of Celeste ran adjacent to dirt roads ending in cattle gates with no signage prohibiting access. Apparently, that landowner has had no problem with those of us who use the trail in the way it is intended.
Aside from the problem mentioned, the trail is quite usable. There are some points where the locals will use their ATVs, but, placement of appropriate barriers and signage would eliminate the problem.

I have some concern with the practice of paving the trail with concrete. While concrete makes for a nice surface for walkers, wheelchairs, and casual bikers, it is a lousy surface for hikers, dirt bikers, and horses. Miles of hard surface is hard on the legs of both hikers and horses, and dirt bikers get their fill of pavement in the cities and towns.

The concrete pavement also creates a weather issue. For every square foot of concrete, each inch of rain adds .62 gallons of water runoff. That might not seem like much, but it means a one mile concrete pathway just four feet wide creates 13,165 gallons for each inch of rain. During the recent 3+ inch rains that added up to about 40,000 gallons of additional water along the side of the paved trail. That is a lot of additional mud and a lot of additional erosion to deal with.

A better choice than concrete is rubber crumb matting. Using rubber crumb mats speeds placement of the paved surface. Less heavy equipment is required to place it, which preserves the natural state of the trails. Both load hauling and surface preparation equipment can travel on the pavement, building ahead and leaving the unpaved section undisturbed. The trail is available immeadiately after the paving is complete - no "curing" delays. Because the rubber crumb creates a porous surface, there is less runoff. As a "softer" surface, it provides an excellent surface for everyone but the dirt bikers. Yet the reduced runoff allows the dirt bikers to make greater use of the unpaved areas with less impact. If the rubber crumb mat is placed on top of the surface, it becomes a terrain following trail that can be enjoyed by almost everyone. The rubber crumb mat also provides a use for old tires with less production pollution than concrete, and adds green jobs to the area.

Just found mention of this trail in a cycling forum where the poster was wondering about progress on the trail.

My wife and I drove out to Farmersville and got there too late for riding more than one hour.
We went out 3.5 miles before having to turn back due to the hour.
We were definitely able to see that the path, though rustic after the first paved 2.5 miles, was clear as far as we could see.

I was riding a Mountain bike with Commuter slick-high pressure tires and they did ok...but, I'll be switching to off road tires next time for added traction.

The Horse rider that we talked to on the way said that it decent at least as far as Merit.
I'll drive to Merit and continue on when I have my next day off, weather permitting.
I'll report my findings and post photo's

I scouted recently the sections that run through Pecan Gap and Ben Franklin in Delta County. At least two sections (a mile or so each) are essentially gravel roads that end at a gate with cattle on the other side. It appears this land is owned/operated by private individuals. I am trying to clarify and will publish the answer.

"Friends who have said they have ridden this trail on horseback must not have done so lately. Trying it out for the first time yesterday, I encountered a ""no equestrian use"" sign no more than a couple of miles north of Farmersville. Ignoring the sign, I determined that this is probably due to the two bridges without side rails. Beyond that stretch there were no signs at all, clearing the way for horses (we presumed); however, not but another couple of miles we ran into two man-made baracades constructed of brush. Becoming uncomfortable about whether we were welcome to ride this trail, we turned back. Unless we learn that things have improved and been opened up to horses, we will not be returning."

"Yes, the city of Farmersville has done a commendable job maintaining the trail head and the first couple of miles. Yes, there is a incredible amount of trash along the trail, mostly north of Merit. Yes, the trail is overgrown and very primitive, with the exception of 2-3 miles out of Farmersville.

My friend and I did this ride on Saturday. Based on the posted description we expected the trail to be open for 12-15 miles. Here is what we found: Concrete or asphalt for the first 2 miles. Then conditions got very primitive very quickly. Trail surface was coarse grave and quite overgrown. At about 4.5 miles there were two brush and earth barricades that were intended to keep all but the most determined from proceeding. North of SH 36 there was an incredible amount of trash - old stoves and washing machines, toilets, furniture - even a fiberglass hot tub! We encountered only one other person along the trail, a guy on a four-wheeler. The only other evidence of use were the tire tracks of vehicles that used the trail as a dump. 8.5 miles was the end of the line. That is where the trail intersects with CR 1101. Not even the most experienced and determined mountain biker would have attempted to keep going.

This trail has great potential. What an incredible ride it would be if the entire length from Farmersville to Paris was open and maintained. However, I do not anticipate a return trip anytime soon.
"

"The person that identified the trail as a ""dump"" must have been dreaming.
The trail is actually a nice quiet trail in which myself & many Farmersville residents enjoy walking, jogging or biking. My house is along the trail and I have never seen old mattresses, trash & have definitely not smelled strong odors.

Kudos to the City of Farmersville and other city entities who have worked really hard in making the Rails to Trails an attraction to Farmersville. "

"Loved the new 5,000 foot concrete extension to the trail."

New pictures are great. Love it.

"The City of Farmersville has made significant improvements to the trail head and first mile of the trail. It is paved, landscaped, lined with streetlights.... And the historic Onion Shed where it begins has been totally restored.
We hold a monthly Farmers & Fleas Market at the Onion Shed on the first Saturday of each month, from 9 am - 4pm--just another reason to come visit!
"

"Having grown up in the north Texas area, I was really looking forward to checking out this trail on a recent visit back to the area. In reality, a ride through the town dump is what I got.

This could be a really great ride, assuming one can overlook the discarded mattresses, sofas, building materials and assorted trash that has been dumped along the right of way. And when it warmed up during the day, a fragrant odor from the moldy mattresses overpowers one's sense of smell.

This is a real shame as this could be a great trail. I just hope the people of Farmersville are proud of themselves. Dont Mess With Texas huh? No need to -- they already will do it for you themselves."

My husband and I tried to ride our bikes but a mile out of Farmersville we encountered an abandoned car in the middle of the trail! We then tried to ride the trail at Merit and it was too overgrown and strewn with trash. We had really wanted to use this trail.