Rode this trail over July 4th weekend. Trail is flat and well shaded, which was helpful on a 90 degree day. Plenty of wildlife and scenery. Trail starts at a nice little park with a bridge over the river. There is a fountain in the river and a stream running to the river. The trail has many park benches and flower beds along the trail. The first mile and a half of the trail had a fresh surface of asphalt. After that the trail was still very smooth. Seen many families with children.
My wife, who is still new to biking and was able to do the complete trail and back without a problem. There are restroom facilities on the trail, but no place to purchase food or drinks. So bring your liquids. I would recommend this to anyone.

Great Trail,Nice Scenery

Been bike riding the trail for two weeks now.
been walking it for a few years now.
just would go from the parking lot on swan creek up to spencer road and turn around.
but now that we are on bikes we have now been going from the begining to the end of the trail.
very enjoyable and the people along the way seem friendly.

This trail is paved, shady, scenic, and not busy. It is a good length--20 miles. The grade is downhill from St. Charles but it's barely detectable.

It is definitely one of the nicer central/SE Michigan Rail Trails.

This trail has inspired me to get out and enjoy the outdoors. I have been biking this trail twice a week. A bike group meets every Thursday in the late evening. I have seen many deer and wild turkey. This is a great trail it ends at the bad river at Lumber Jack Park could not end at a better place. I have heard it will be expanding soon. I can not wait hope to see you there soon..

I'm a new biker - just got my bike out of the shed after it's been there over ten years! I'd been biking on city streets and sidewalks. What a thrill to be on this beautiful trail - smooth, tree-lined, well-marked! I did about half of it starting in Saginaw - can't wait to be able to say I did the whole thing! Soon......and I'll be checking out other rail-trails very soon.

Kudos to all who have worked on this wonderful trail! The first four miles from the St. Charles trailhead were especially sensational with a great deal of attention to plantings, benches, and other special touches. Even the drinking fountain at the trailhead had a basin for dogs (or for really really small children). It was wonderful - even on a hot day as the eastern part of this trail is almost entirely shaded by trees.

Very Enjoyable ride on this well maintained, shady and pictueresque trail...!!!

One of the better trails on this side of the state. Lots of shade and nice town.

"Very nice trail,enjoyed the rivers and creeks,lots of shade.We will ride this trail again."

"I have biked or run on rail trails in Michigan and this is one of the best. Well kept,shaded,scenic,picnic tables and benches available through out, bathrooms and water at various points.
Hopefully some day the trail can be extended into Saginaw through ""Trails with Rails"".
This could be accomplished by using the existing right of way along the Saginaw Bay Southern Railway.
Make good use of this wonderful asset for Saginaw County."

"This is a nice, mostly shaded and relaxing trail that is improving every year. As of early spring 2006 it has been extended to Stroebel Rd. and is now nearly 10 miles from the Stroebel Rd. trailhead to the end in St. Charles. In regards to some of the comments about it not being connected to the city of Saginaw or the surrounding townships, plans are being laid to do just that, but with so much in life it all takes money and does not happen overnight. Bathrooms have been added at the parking area on Van Wormer Rd., and there are many spots with benches where you can pull over and rest. It is a very quiet ride except for a small portion when you get near M-52 in St. Charles. There are what they call ""pocket parks"", spots to stop and look at a wetland with explanatory signage or a forested area that are very nice for families to stop and give the kids a rest and a chance to see wildlife. I have seen turkey and deer on the trail myself. It goes through farmland as well. Hopefully in time it will continue to expand into the adjacent region and city, as well as connect with other rail trails. Until then it is still a very nice rail trail to ride on. "

"This rail-trail is one of the nicest in the state. It's entirely paved with well displayed placards at each road crossing. Mile markers are easily visible to keep track of progress. Ample parking at the Swan Creek and St. Charles trailheads. Numerous benches along the way. What makes this trail even better is that it connects to both the St. Charles Area Park and the Swan Creek TWP park trails. Near mile marker 1, there is a cut-off with a nice one mile loop through the STC park with water, swings, restrooms, etc. This might be good for families with children. At Lakefield road, you can follow the white lines on the side of the road to the Swan Creek TWP park for water, restrooms, swings, etc. The path is well shaded for the most part. This path is also well maintained; There is always someone painting signs, sweeping off branches, or mowing the grass alongside every morning. Traffic on this trail is usually light too."

As an inline skater I appreciate this trail for sure. Watch out for the patches in the asphalt. The patching compound is like skating on ice. Sticks and leaves also aren't cleaned as frequently as we would like.

"If you are handcycle rider this is the trail for you. It's about 13 miles round trip. This trail is new, flat and very level and has lots of shade although it lacks a clean water drinking fountain."

"What a wonderful family type trail! Not too long, but long enough or short enough for all the family to enjoy. It is well maintained and has lots of ""rest areas"". I can hardly wait for this trail to be expanded! Thanks! "

This rail-trail is O.K. for skaters if and only if you watch for sticks. I'll tell you this: There are a lot of sticks that will find their way into your wheels and hitting that pavement from a dead stop of a stick isn't fun. So be careful when you're out there on the trail. Have fun.

"The gravel roads that the trail crosses over were paved last week. Now it's a great trail for skaters, too."

"I rode the trail on horseback on Sept. 1, 2003, from Shields/River Road to the Spencer Road crossing and back. I was a little disappointed at the lack of a bridge at Swan Creek, but I took the traffic bridge and Becket (sp?) Road to get back on the trail.

Although asphalt isn't great for horseback riding, it looks like a very good surface with good quality wooden bridges for walking, biking or jogging."

"The Saginaw Valley Rail-Trail has just been paved a week ago and is open for travel! It 6 miles of paved trail and is mostly shaded by a canopy of trees; sandwiched between farm fields and rural residences. Much of the trail is immediately adjacent to the lightly-used Teft Road and Martin Road, only twice passing near enough to the busy state highway M-52 for noise to be a problem. In several places it passes through woods, and the old railroad mileage marker for 90 miles from Jackson can be found in one of these woods. The hickory nuts are bountiful this time of year, and you can see where blueberries and raspberries may be found at other seasons. Chipmunks, garter snakes, and birds of all sorts are seen along the trail, and a frog or deer if you're lucky. The trail is almost perfectly flat, as is most of the county, and a bonus can be found in that the bridges all still smell of fresh-cut lumber.

There are NO facilities along the trail. But, the village of St. Charles has numerous restaurants (my favorite is Tony's) and convenience stores for supplies and restrooms. There are NO restrooms at the village park on Water Street, where the trail parking lot is located, but about 1 mile north along the trail, just south of the second bridge over a branch of the Bad River, there is a cut-off which leads to another village park which does have restrooms. There is a wildlife viewing platform about 1-1/2 miles north of St. Charles, but the viewing scope is not installed yet. The only restrooms mid-way on the trail are located about ½ mile west of the trail on Lakefield Road, at the Swan Creek Township Park. This is about mid-way on the current 6-mile paved trail. The park also has a drinking fountain and an excellent picnic shelter with tables.

If you want to add some distance, and try to see more wildlife, the Shiawassee State Game Area has viewing areas 1-1/2 miles east on Prior Road, and 2 miles east on Wahl Road. Make sure to check hunting seasons before entering the Game Area! There is NO parking lot at the current north end of the trail, at Benkert Road, just south of Swan Creek Road. However, there is public parking 3-1/2 miles east along Swan Creek Road, at the James Township Hall at the corner of Weigl Road. There is also a convienence store, Things-N-More, on Swan Creek Road, 1 mile west of the township hall.

Enjoy!"