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Having just returned from riding the Katy Trail in MO from Clinton to Machens, my buddy (Jim, 67, primarily road cyclist) and I (49, started cycling Fall '21) were still geared up for some bikepacking. Overnight cycle trips of any length without riding highways are difficult to come by in the area. We decided to give this a shot, as we had heard it was a pretty nice trail and we could camp at the state park in Mineral Wells. We are your average, run of the mill riders that aren't in great shape or with super expensive gear. We had no idea how great this would be!
We used the Cartwright trailhead in W'fd, heading West toward Mineral Wells. To say this trail would have been perfect for prepping for the Katy is an understatement. With the exception of a handful of short spots (100 yds or so each), this trail is a fantastic ride. There are some washouts and a few soft gravel/sandy spots that prevent you from riding on mental "auto pilot". Be careful, or you might find yourself spread eagle beneath your rig.
The first four to five miles heading West are very shaded, climbing to the highest point of the ride at 1,263'. After that, it is a lengthy stretch of fast, slight decline riding for what feels like several miles. Just remember what goes downhill must come back uphill :)
12 or so miles in you will pass through Garner. If you need water, soda, beer, or a meal, stop at the Garner Cafe, about 30 yds off the trail. You can't miss it. We ate breakfast here on the return leg, and it was fantastic. And interestingly enough, Garner, Tx is where the domino game of "42" was invented. No joke. So there's a little neat local history of that town...
Four miles west of Garner you will come to the split where you may either continue the mail trail into Mineral Wells or take the state park spur. We initially continued riding the main trail toward the Vietnam Memorial, just beyond the elevated riding bridge over Hwy 80. There are some great view of the Caprock from the riding bridge oddly enough. At any rate, just as we came down the other side of the bridge, we saw the "Bridge Out" sign on the trail. Not being familiar enough to know where the park access road is in relation to the bridge, we opted to bike back over the bridge (ugh) and the to spur (about 1 mile back).
The spur to the state park says "2/3 mile to trail head". This is where it gets good. The majority of that 2/3 mile is a 5% grade up singletrack, switchback with some 6"+ deep washouts and mixture of loose rock, gravel, and sand. We were each carrying about 20# of gear in our pannier/rack. It wasn't hike-a-bike, but it was close. It's a great burn at the end of the ride, and the resulting views from the park are more than worth the work to get there.
You will come out in the amphitheater in the park. When you cycle out of the parking lot, GO LEFT. We added 2 more miles of cycle wandering trying to get out of this back area of the park. Easy riding and we enjoyed it, but the extra ride might not be for everyone after that hill climb :)
Riding through the park you will see the lake, swimming beach, and some great views of town. We camped in the Equestrian part of the park, which ended up being one of the best places we've camped in a long time. Very nice restroom/showers, views, and space. Worth the $14 for sure.
If you are thinking of riding the Katy, this is your training trail. Everything you will experience on the Katy, you will experience here, just for another 240 miles. You could easily ride out and back from Weatherford in a day. Heck, get started by 7am and you could out and back twice with a short break for lunch back in Wfd. That would give you about a 72 mile trip, great prep for Katy.
Enjoy the ride!
Texas loves the crushed yellowish stone for its trails, doesn't compact real well and this trail suffers a bit from that malady. no skinny tires here so on to the thorns since many shrubs trees need to be cut back to not deposit their thorns to my tires! Overall a great ride on a not so hot day, bring water and enjoy the water views!
Started our ride in the State Park, and as warned, the first half mile to the trail was treacherous. Several switchbacks, washouts and rocks made a difficult ride. Once on the trail things were better and well maintained except for a few low hanging trees. I wish I could say the same about the trail in the city of Mineral Wells. We started at the trailhead and rode through the town around many low hanging trees, cracks in the asphalt, and freshly mowed grass that should be baled. When leaving the asphalt we hit the section of trail with large rocks making for a very rough ride, so much so we packed it in and left the area.
My husband and I rode the complete trail this week. It needs a lot of work. Washouts, large areas of large rocks, tree limbs to take your head off, large holes and ditches across the trail we’re very common. Trailhead bathroom closed. I hope the state or Feds can come up with some funds to repair this trail. I could not recommend this trail until improvements are made.
We rode this trail from the state park and from Weatherford. It is in need of major repair. Major washouts, large rock washouts, tree limbs hanging over in the trail. Where I live when the trail is in bad shape the parks Dept places cones where there are dangerous holes and deep Washouts. If you go watch out and carry a spare tube! Hope it can be fixed soon.
I've ridden this trail in both directions, first from Mineral Wells, then from Weatherford. Coming from Mineral Wells there is more of a uphill grade. There are several stops of interest that are good for a rest along the trail. My family and I frequently ride shorter distances on the trail, mostly from the Weatherford trailhead. I highly reccomend visiting the Mineral Wells rail trial.
The large volcanic rock needs to be removed and replaced with something more user friendly for riding on horse or bike.
Very well maintained and a fun ride!! Can be done on a mountain, gravel or a hybrid with fatter tires. Crushed gravel with only a few places that are really loose.HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!
It is well-maintained, well-marked, and not too busy. The last part is a bit tricky to get to the Lost Creek Park picnic and swimming area (take the road to the left from the end of the trail). Not a ton of trees but they are growing back and in a few year should begin to give decent shade.
It was an absolutely beautiful day. Especially with the excitement of being able to explore a new trail. I've been in DFW since 1985 and had no idea this was even here. Plus, to add the "icing" to the "cake", I just bought a new gravel bike. I've been riding it along the Trinity River trail system and while that is fun, it can be dangerous as more people, their strollers, dogs, and Pokemon users (head down and NOT paying attention) are using it.
Enter MWST. This was the most fun I've had in a really long time. Having a nice new ride didn't hurt either. I was treated to 2 snakes, 1 rabbit, a bobcat, 2 farm cats, cattle, horses with people trying to control them, more butterflies than I could count and 2 very eccentric owners of a coffee shop in Mineral Wells. That being said, if you ride the entire 20 miles from Weatherford to MW, you MUST visit the You Maka Me Hot Coffee shop in downtown. It is directly next to the old Baker Hotel. You can sip a much needed coffee and chill out for a bit. This coffee shop is pretty special. They roast their own coffee there and ship it out all over the country. It is truly a small gem in the midst of an otherwise pretty depressing town.
Back to the trail. There is a section from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial into the MW trailhead that uses broken up bricks for the trail. This is a terrible section and is the only part worth avoiding. My butt wishes it had been avoided. I blazed through it and if I hadn't really wanted to visit the coffee shop, I would have turned around. I noticed that certain companies sponsor small sections of the trail. Chicken Express sponsors the section in front of their restaurant. I wondered if Acme Brick sponsored the heavily bricked section. We may never know.
The elevation is mostly flat, but keep in mind if you do the entire 40 miles, you will notice that going back seems to be more climbing. For reference, I started at Weatherford Cartwright park. I was all excited hitting 18-20MPH having a blast, until the return trip. Most avid cyclists won't have an issue. This was the farthest I'd ridden in one day, so it was quite a workout. I will definitely be riding this again. It was not very busy at all. I cannot believe with the gravel grinding crowd out there, that this place wasn't swamped with cyclists.
Thanks again and I hope this helps encourage someone to get out there and RIDE. Enjoy this country while we still can!
Rode the trail this last weekend. Part of the trail from Lake Mineral Wells State Park to Mineral Wells is closed due to flood damage. It's not well marked from the park to Mineral Wells just three orange barrels across part of the trail. No signage saying why the barrels are there. At FM1195 the gate on trail towards the park is closed and locked and it has a sign stating that this section of the trail is closed due to flood damage. Would have been nice if someone from the park when I checked in might mentioned that.
The section from 1195 to Rock Creek mine is very rocky, not the crushed limestone of the rest of the trail, but larger rocks and broken bricks making for a very bumpy ride.
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