Either there wasn't a sign for Hope Center Trail or I missed it when I crossed W Loudon Ave at the southern end of the Legacy Trail. I probably didn't do enough homework before my trip, and looking at this site almost 3 weeks after I biked it, I now learned that this short trail is named both Legacy Trail and Hope Center Trail. The red marked trail on TrailLink had Legacy Trail end at W Loudon Ave. Maybe there was a sign for Legacy Trail, which might have confused me, since I thought it had ended. Maneuvering through the gates by the railroad tracks was easy. When it T's into Coolavin Trail (which I learned on a map is also called Legacy Trail), the left/east will take you to an endpoint by a port-a-pot, where as the right/west takes you past the Coolavin Park until it ends. Some of the streets have green painted bike lanes, but even though I took a few of them, I really don't know where they go. All 3 trails make up the 12 miles listed under Legacy Trail (which had confused me if you read my review under Legacy Trail).

I enjoyed the trail. Can't avoid the road noise, but looking at the country side, creek and whatever else made up for it. It was hillier than I expected, but manageable. Not just having a straight trail was nice also. I read the signs about the jockeys, horses and farms, which were interesting. I do agree that more signs are needed by the water tower area and the southern end to get to Hope Center Trail and Coolavin Trail. (I'll add a review at those sites). I was confused about the mileage. I parked at the YMCA, and went north until it ended at the gate, came back, went on the Hope Center Trail (both ways), the Coolavin Trail and a few blocks on city streets, and finally came back to my car at the YMCA and got a total of 24 miles, whereas the Legacy Trail was supposed to be 12 one way or 24 round trip on its own. I live in Ohio, so not near this trail, otherwise I would ride it more often.

Interesting old farm remains from about 1800.

Well marked and maintained. Bikers and people afoot share this path. Much to see from horse farms to the city skyline. Out and back trail with several entry points. Nice access from KY Horse Park Campground!

I don’t think you’ll get bored on this ride. Lots of curves and hills. Enjoyed the beautiful views of Kentucky Bluegrass Country. Enjoyed the signs about the history of the area, famous jockeys, and the environment around the creek. I parked at Coldstream Park off of Newtown Pike which is about MileMarker 5. MM6 to 7 was along the freeway and quite noisy. MM7 to 11 was beautiful curvy and hilly riding through fields and pastures. Crossed the creek about 5 times. The last mile from 11 to 12 was along the freeway on one side, but on the other side was the picturesque Kentucky Horse Park pastures. Trail stops abruptly at a pasture gate. Not many large trees so I suspect it’s quite warm in the summer.

The section from about MM5 to 2 becomes more urban. After crossing Newtown Pike, had a nice section along the creek to the Lexmark campus. After the YMHA at about MM3 it becomes on-road. Had a nice wide green painted bike lane on 4th St through Transylvania University. Road riding isn’t my thing so I never made made it to the end.

Great pavement the whole way. Nice brick/stone milemarkers and plastic milemarkers every 2/10s. Needs a sign by the water tank to indicate the trail goes right. The left fork goes to Coldstream Park. Needs another sign after crossing the railroad tracks south of the YMHA. Trail goes right. Left is just a short leg to a street.

Fun ride and got educated too. Can’t beat that....Bikin-Mike Dec 2020

Nice, peaceful, well maintained trail. My only complaint is that there were a handful of spots where riders weren’t given clear directions which way to go.

My husband, boys, and I enjoyed the urban scenery and the horse farms. Very well maintained and populated trail. Our only complaint is that hardly anyone used the courteous term, "passing on your left."

This trail is beautiful. But it's far too short to be it's own trail. It's my favorite way to start on the Legacy Trail. The trail head has easy parking and a little coffee shop. The broke spoke and a distillery are on this trail. The neighborhood around it has a lot to offer. It's just effectively a warm up to the Legacy Trail.

When I first moved to Kentucky, I didn't really like this trail. Compared to others of it's type, it's short, boring, out of the way, and a bit ugly in the way of scenery for most of it's length. But it serves its purpose adequately and is, from what I can tell, a rarity in the area. So it looks really good by comparison.

The pavement is generally well kept, though it is decorated with paintings in a few places (usually in the corners at the bottoms of descents), so cyclists need to watch out.

The path does cross roads and industrial drive ways with an extremely high density in some places, so keep your wits about you.

The southern half largely passes through or along side industrial parks, so you'll spend a lot of time near cars and exposed to wind and sun. The northern half is much prettier and feels more like a multiuse path should: lots of tree cover, nature and farm land and a much quieter experience.

The southern trail head, for all practical purposes, is at the North YMCA. You can find literature that claims it does or will extend into downtown, but if this is the case, it's not practical. Getting to the YMCA by bike is miserable. You have to traverse some of the busier roads in Lexington and the Lexington drivers are the worst towards cyclists I have ever experienced. My wife will only bike Legacy if we drive the mile to it from home.

The trail also lacks access to any sort of attraction other than the horse park. I miss trails that take you places for a coffee/beer stop or a quick lunch. Can't find that here. Not a big complaint, just something I grew accustomed to else where.

The trail does extend past the Iron Works trailhead along side Iron Works Pike for a while, but you're in the sun alongside cars again and the trail dead ends in the middle of nowhere.

Overall, if you want a trail to log miles, this is a passing one, if a bit short. If you are looking for a scenic trip, keep to the north half. The trail is far from the shangri la people view it as. There's just no other workable option for cyclists within a 2 hours drive that's longer than 5 miles.