We rode this trail in March, 2019 and would like to share some observations. The trail has great potential, connecting four state parks. Personally, when I ride it again, I would stick to the western section beginning just east of Grayton Beach SP to Topsail SP. The eastern section has over one hundred driveways and an annoying surface including paver bricks and sidewalk. In addition, the Seaside and Seagrove Beach areas were very congested and I had to walk my bike through crowds of people. To be fair though, it was during spring break.

This is a fine trail. I don’t understand why the other writer rated it so low. The surface is in excellent condition, there appears to be a low threat of any crime, and most of the trail is near woods or fields with no car traffic nearby. The only downside is the hot location in Florida. This is a perfect winter trail.

Gayle's trails is actually four different interconnected trails, each interesting. I suggest that you park in Frank Brown Park, which has bathrooms and water. The park also is the trail head and has a very useful map of the trail system.

This is an easy trail and the town people are friendly. Hurricane Michael devastated this area. Riding this trail will make you realize how powerful a category 4-5 hurricane really is. Blountstown is more than 60 miles from the coast and Michael still landed a major blow here. Hats off to the folks that cleared this trail! Still nice but not as much shade for reasons you will discover!

I use this trail often. It is a nice trail and goes through the backsides of nice neighborhoods. Very safe and 90% of the people walk their dogs on leashes. The trail extends from near the post office to out by the new hospital. Often used by runners, skateboarders and people on golf carts. One can vary the trail and see sites such as the Constitutional Museum or add a leg by riding in the bike lane to access the main "Old Town" shopping area and marina.

If you're training for the Tour d'Anything, this isn't the trail for you. If you want to park your car in one of the towns and use the bikes to Gary around, they're great.

We ride "hybrid" bikes (something in between road bikes and mountain bikes). We found them pretty ideal for this trail.

We parked at Seaside and rode east to Camp Helen State Park. The park itself isn't a bad ride.

Another day, we went west to Grayton Beach. We ran into trail construction there, but we rode south to the beach, and around town. We later found that we probably could have re-entered the trail on the west side of town, and continued westward. The construction looked almost complete, so it is likely to be a non-issue soon after this review is posted.

The trail is ideal for exploring the towns, and goes close to lots of shops and restaurants.

There were a few other trails heading north toward hwy 98 that were in the final stages of construction. These were interesting, and we may explore them next year.

Two days after riding from Rosemary Beach to Seacrest and back (see "Not Close To Its Potential"), we returned and rode the section from Watercolor to Grayson Highlands State Park and back. This section has been significantly improved. Although still too narrow and unlined, the asphalt is smooth and adequately separated from the roadway, with new bridges. Someone needs to pay for similar improvements from Watercolor east. If they do, this would be a 4 or 5 star ride.

We rode 8 miles of this "trail", from the unmarked east end in Rosemary Beach to Seaside Beach, and back. This "trail", for most of the distance we rode, is just a very narrow glorified sidewalk, ill-maintained and in places downright dangerous. Parts of the "trail" are simply road shoulders, with no more than a few feet of separation from opposite direction vehicle traffic. That some vehicles have in the past entered the "trail" was evident from the bent-over rubber posts supposedly delineating the edge of the "trail" / road.

We passed at least a dozen bicycle rental outlets, each with hundreds of bikes. We were told that during peak vacation periods most of those bikes would be out on the "trail", with many very young and at times unsteady riders capable of veering into oncoming bicycle or vehicular traffic. While it was not busy during our ride, we saw no one else wearing helmets.

Between the bicycle concessionaires, the owners of the very valuable adjoining properties, the restaurants and other business profiting from trail users, the municipalities through which 30A passes and the county road commission, sufficient funds should available to (1) widen the trail to a minimum of 10', (2) repave the entire trail, (3) add appropriate paint markings and a center division line, and (4) install guardrails between the highway and the trail where the trail cannot be moved away from the road.

Given its premium location, this "trail" has the potential for perfection. At present, it isn't even close.

I rode this trail the entire length. It is not a bicycle trail for serious bike riders. While it wanders through some beautiful terrain, it is compromised by many driveways and road crossings not to mention the multitude of pedestrians. In Rosemary Beach area it is a concrete sidewalk about 4 feet wide. In many places the trail is very rough with pots and bumps due to the many cuts and patches.
If you are into a slow touring ride you will be OK.