By rmheethyahoo in December, 2011
The Big Cove Greenway Trail is part of the Greenway trail system of the city of Huntsville. It is paved, relatively well maintained and very popular with the locals, especially when the weather is good. The trail has a nice mix of shade and open areas.
The best access for the trail is at the at the south end at the Hays Nature Preserve. From the parking lot, two trails are accessable. The Flint River Greenway heads south over the bridge over the Flint River. The Big Cove Creek Greenway heads north winding through some marshy area and follows Big Cove Creek into the Hampton Cove area of Huntsville.
At the mid-way point in the trail, there is a small park (behind the Publix shopping center) where there is also some parking. The trail then loops up, crosses the creek, then loops back down and around, under the Eastern Bypass (road) and comes back up by the Hampton Cove Elementary School. At this point, the path splits in two. To the east is the Little Cove Road Greenway which follows the Eastern Bypass for about 5 miles. Continuing south, the Big Cove Creek Greenway goes around some fields by the school and goes for another mile or so skirting a sub-division of very nice homes. Currently, the north end of the trail ends at one of the cul-de-sacs of this sub-division. There is trail access here but not really any parking.
Overall, this is a great trail for biking or walking. It is popular with the locals. The only caution I would give is that the trail, especially the southern end around the Hays Preserve and the Flint River is somewhat prone to flooding after very heavy rains