Started our ride at the Kirk Rd. Parking area. Ended up that the south end was being paved so had to head north. Added on the Niles Greenway, so did get almost 18 miles in. Surface good, some bumps in the pavement, and 2 climbs that were manageable. Nice casual scenic country road ride.

Parked at Kirk road (mile 5) and biked to the end (mile 10.8) and back. The Canfield Fair was getting ready, all set up to begin the next day. Stopped at the Metroparks Farm, across from the Fairgrounds. The sunflower field was absolutely beautiful!
Most of the trail is open as regards to shade but it wasn't a very hot day.
Trail passes near some residential areas as well as commercial business areas.
Biked to Mile 0 at the County line and a little bit on the Niles Greenway Trail.

Great trail, flat and easy. We rode from Main Street in Canfield to Niles and back - 24 miles total. This was our first time on this trail and we will be back in fall to see the changing leaves. Quite a few road crossings so be careful.

August 11 -- arrived at Saylor Park as a morning rain subsided and the humidity rose with temps in the 80s F. The trailhead to Dilltown, near the vault toilet, was not immediately obvious. Be careful not to take the Hoodlebug trail by mistake. Spotting a large black snake was the highlight of our day. Saylor Park has a nice picnic pavilion where we ate lunch after our easy, somewhat downhill return ride from Dilltown. Rain started soon after lunch.
Considering the amount of rain in the days prior to and the morning of our ride, the trail was in excellent condition, even for our road bikes. No serious washouts or mud. Kudos to the trail crews who maintain this section!! A lot of shade made this a great trail to ride on hot summer days.
August 13 -- more rain last night and another day in the 80s F. A moment of confusion when we tried to find trailhead parking at Vintondale/Eliza Station. Trailhead parking is down the street and around the corner from the Eliza Furnace site. Again we were impressed by the excellent trail conditions (more kudos to the trail crews). The Hwy 422 underpass at MM4 (the confluence of the north branch of Blacklick Creek and Elk Creek) is the only tricky portion of the trail. Pay attention to the "Slow Down" signs or you could end up in the creek. The almost 26-mile return ride was our longest so far this year. Our legs were relieved to have a mostly downhill return ride back to Vintondale. There was plenty of shade, great creek views and lots of late summer flowers to add to the joy of riding.

Working on Shenango Trail 2.5 miles south of Kidd's Mill trailhead to alleviate muddy crossing in open field. Biker and 2 hikers encountered on the trail.

Annual Ride. Love this trail, wished had more time to ride several times a year. Always a great ride.
Trail is 10 ish miles in length and asphalt paved in very good condition. Though a few bumpy spots on occasion probably from the brutal Pennsylvania Winters.
Two main trailheads, one at the North end near Drake Well Park on the outskirts of Titusville. The other is at the Southern end next to the state park office in Petroleum Centre.
Also found a remote parking lot at the 5 mile marker at Miller Farm Road. It's several dirt roads to get to it.
Trail goes through the state park and is mostly shaded. It follows Oil Creek. Along the trail it's very quiet and peaceful. Usually see a lot of game but only saw one deer.
At the Northern end you can pick up Queen City trail which is less than 2 miles in length, also paved, and follow it to Titusville for services such as Dollar Stores, food places, etc.

Road this trail from the south end to the north end and back today so shy of 26 miles. Mostly in the shade and the weather was in the low 80s so it was a nice day. Very good trail paved the whole way just a few short stints on the road connecting

I absolutely loved this trail overall! I felt like i was riding through a state forest with nice fresh asphalt pavement.

ITINERARY
I started in Lisbon at the end point. Rode on Maple Ave to the dedicated trailhead. There are at least 12 road crossings!! And at least 2 occasions you ride with traffic on dog legs to get to the trail again. In Leetonia you ride in town to connect to the last leg of the trail which really isn’t worth it.

CONCLUSION
I feel so bad for 3 stars when i loved my time and would absolutely go back but pretty ridiculous for a rail-trail to be so difficult to stay on, they should really invest in a way to separate the trail from the road where the trail dog legs and 12+ road crossings on a 12 mile trail….. Thankfully on a hot and sunny Saturday afternoon traffic wasn’t bad, i only had to stop 2x’s but about half of the road crossings are 55 mph state routes and definitely could be dangerous if you’re not paying attention.

Some minor ups and downs but overall a great loop around the lake.