The surface appears to be in good shape but the overgrowth makes this portion of the trail unusable for hiking, biking and equestrian. Bushes and trees enclose portions of the trail, it is barely passable and where there is grass, it is very tall. By far the worst part are the spiders and spider webs, they are EVERYWHERE. I stopped every quarter mile to wipe them off, they were unavoidable. I exited the trail at CR 3675, three miles into the ride from Ladonia. Had one flat tire from the thick spiked vine that were also ever-present on the trail.

Glad for hike and bike trail near my house (no trailering to start) but not fond of the trail paralleling busy roads. I’m in it for the leisure ride, not a road warrior.

Since the gates were put in and surface upgraded there has been an increase in bike and hiking traffic. One group consisted of a Veteran and his sons and friends and I was able to provide them water for their canteens. They were going to camp along the trail and I began thinking that I could develop a camping spot next to the trail if there was interest. I am about halfway between Merit and Celeste, Texas. PLEASE PLEASE take your trash and any other you find as that's my biggest complaint. Most people are very considerate and I do appreciate it.

Rode mountain bike from Farmersville to Ladonia; thru Celeste was a very good ride, just a few wet spots but trail has been maintained recently, in very good shape. Celeste to Wolfe City, lots of standing water for long stretches (walked most of these), overgrown in places and can be pretty rough riding. The four railroad trestles are not for the faint of heart, some have wide tree branches instead of railroad ties and there are gaps that could swallow a bike if you went sideways, do not ride across these. Several wash-outs in the area. No rain in previous 9 days so water problems will be there until the summer. Had 3 flat tires. Wolfe City to Ladonia has many wet spots and is somewhat overgrown but is almost as nice as the trail from Merit to Celeste. Except for the Celeste to Wolfe City stretch, this would be a five star.

Reasonably good road bike and mountain bike route connecting excellent trail segments out of Paris and thru Blossom. Asphalt a little worn but has been maintained recently along with some brush clearing. Shady and quiet.

Started in Farmersville and did the 2 1/2 miles to the crushed stone to the northeast. Frankly even that 2 1/2 mile was a real problem for us. My wife and I are 65+ with health issues that make riding recumbent trikes necessary.
The first issue is with the bollards that are used at each intersection with the crossing streets and roads. While I understand the need for them, they really should be spaced differently. Put the middle bollard a little to one side. That way, cars and other motorized vehicles are still blocked, but we can still get thru. We had some of these that we had about an inch on either side of our wheels requiring us to virtually stop to get thru. At one road, it was just easier to hit the grass and go around, as I saw several bikers doing.
The other issue is the bridge at about the 2 mile mark. The bridge is significantly above the height of the road. There is no gradual incline to the bridge. It's a very short incline with a very severe bump at the top. We barely cleared our frames getting over it.
Finally, the other issue is just the condition of the trail. The concrete sections are in pretty good shape, the asphalt sections are not. Then there is the issue with all of the horse droppings.
Since there are so few trails for non motorized vehicles in this area, we thought we would try this trail out. Frankly, this is the worst trail we've dealt with so far.

Quiet and Serene and peaceful. however for biking very hilly. Maybe not so much for casual older Riders

I took a troop on a hike from Farmersville to Celeste on October 3. The section from Farmersville to Merit is, as mentioned in many reviews below, in excellent shape. From Merit to Celeste is vastly improved from work done over the summer of 2020. There are still large rocks in the gravel, and there are still areas that will probably pose a problem after a rain, but the underbrush has been cleared significantly and the road graded. One critique—the brush has been cut back so much that there is far less shade from Merit to Celeste than from Farmersville to Merit.

A really easy ride through nature, history, and amenities of Allen. Who knew? Allen Heritage Village. Hydrous (wake board training facility). Historic water station, railway, and bridges. Recreational facilities.