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My wife and I parked at the Swamp Branch trailhead and headed Southwest toward Royalton. Our goal was to go all the way to the southern terminus of the trail but had to stop approx. 15 miles out due to a collapsed tunnel. the tunnel near Royalton was fine and a nice break from a rather warm day. but the tunnel 7 miles Southwest of Royalton had collapsed and was blocked. We turned back there giving us a 30 mile day.
The trail goes through some beautiful territory and well worth the trip. Much of the trail does go through and close to private residence. everyone we saw was pleasant with lots of "Good Mornings" and friendly waves. Much of the homes are pre-fab modular or trailers, due to a collapse of the coal industry some 15 years ago. most families took great pride in their property with nice landscaping and freshly manicured yards.
I have given a 4 star due to a lack of bathroom facilities and no water available. The ladies in Royalton at "Reisners gas station" make sandwiches and sell cold drinks. They were great and we stayed awhile and chatted before continuing on our ride.
The trail is finely crushed stone. In my opinion I would not take a bike on this trail with anything smaller than 32mm tires (standard on most Hybrids).
we brought our Mountain bikes and were glad we did. The larger tires helped in some of the loose and wet areas. My wife did get a flat but we carried extra tubes and got her back riding in no time. Be prepared for flats. bring plenty of water, and bring some snack bars. Hope this helps!
Went there with a friend on a perfect fall day & enjoyed it. A bicyclist came upon us fast from behind & nearly ran us over. So be careful.
My wife and I rode this trail May 1st and 2nd on our tandem. Much to our surprise, it provided two days of riding for a total of about 72 miles out and back. This trail is complete end to end, but the Tip Top tunnel is blocked at about mile 25. Someone set a vehicle on fire in the tunnel a couple of years ago. I have my doubts it will be fixed anytime soon. To reach the southern side of the blocked tunnel you have two options. Follow dirt roads to try and find a way around or do what we did. Ride back to the car. Load the bike and follow Rt. 7 south from Royalton to Rt. 542, and follow this road for 7.1 miles to a remote trail head. No markers, bathrooms or much else. Used to be called Evanston. (Town no longer exists and was not on our gps). It's about 9 miles of very remote trail to the tunnel and an additional 1 1/2 miles in the other direction. For some reason this part of the trail was in better shape, and we felt more scenic than the other side of the tunnel. Go figure. Additional note. Beautiful bathrooms off Rt.23 trail head and the Royalton trail head. But they have never been open since construction. We spend two days riding and for the first time ever on a rail trail, did not see a single biker!! Not one. Well worth the visit. Just leave the road bike at home and enjoy. Pa. tandem team.( Marilyn and Roger 68yrs and 71yrs of age)
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We walked it, but consider it suitable for a good bike. I see now where it could serve as an emergency exit from the residential street at one end, as another review mentioned.
It was a really nice scenic walk on a nice fall day.
My first time mountain biking the Dawkins trail and it is a beautiful and fun trail. I passed several walkers, biking groups and a few horse back riders. The scenery is breath taking! I can't say enough good things about this trail or the people I met! I started at the marathon station at Hager hill and rode the entire length 24+ miles and back. Forty nine miles of fun and adventure. There is nothing boring about this trail. The locals have to be very proud of having such a wonderful state trail right in their own backyard.
First time riding a rail trail. I was impressed with the obvious efforts that it must have taken to convert all the various number of bridges to become bicycle friendly. The crushed rock base of the trail wasn't bad at all. We started at midway the trail and headed west to the tunnel. Totally worth seeing!!
just recently rode from royalton to mile 3 in johnson co. the trail is in great shape all the rain has it really smooth dissapointing to see so few riders taking advantage of this trail. really a great place to ride
May 2016 - Wanted to give this trail a try because it is fairly close to home. Was disappointed in the fact it is only 4.1 miles long starting at the Hastings Park. The trail is paved and recently had the edges mowed. You do cross several busy roads so I wouldn't recommend for families with small kids. We rode to the end at Holzer Hospital and turned around and rode back to town, was able to get 13 miles in fairly easy. I would give it a 3.5-4 stars
We have taken portions of this trail on numerous occasions since it first opened. The trail has grown in length on the SW end. Although I don't think the new section it is officially open, you can ride it.
Unfortunately the trail is not maintained well enough for anything but mountain bikes, unless you enjoy giggling your brains out on your hybrids (don't even consider a road bike). The main problem is the horses and the thousands of mini-potholes created by hoof indentations. Don't get me wrong, I don't personally mind the horses on this trail. I have had no issues with horses and their riders, and I don't mind sharing the trail with them, but horses do tear up the trail. Maybe if the maintenance people would drag the trail once a month that would help. But as I understand it, there are only two maintenance people plus some volunteers, so they probably don't have time for this.
Also, we noticed a lot more dogs this last visit. None offered to bite us but came onto the trail and barked at us. My wife is afraid of getting bit, so she was not a happy rider!
Last of all, why don't they open the two bathrooms on the trail? What are they for? They have been there a long time but are never open. Mystery bathrooms... They look good... I guess they must be for the governor or the president when they visit! The maintenance people don't seem to know either.
The Elk River Trail was recently widened to the width of a road due to a landslide at Charleston's Yeager Airport that landed on Keystone Drive. The change provides an emergency exit for residents of Barlow Drive in the case of flooding, or other emergencies.
Some consider it an intrusion into the forest near Coonskin Park, but for bikers and casual hikers, it creates a flat, even walking/riding trail along the Elk River in Charleston, WV.
Here's a link to a recent TV report where you can see some video of the newly widened and gravel covered Elk River Trail:
http://www.wchstv.com/news/features/eyewitness-news/stories/Coonskin-Park-Defending-Decision-To-Widen-Elk-River-Trail-115974.shtml#.VgWpGctViko
Great trail i ride it regularly.I have ridden other trails and this is one of the best.After reading other reviews,I see that people have bad reviews.We need to understand this is not a blacktop trail it,s going to have bumps,gravels. snakes mud etc. this is nature,enjoy it If you can't ride well enough to ride around horse poop you need to ask yourself if bikeing is really for you .If your bike is too rough to ride on the trail maybe you have the wrong type of bike. If you want a smooth ride free of trail obstructions ride on the road.It never fails someone will complain every time.and if all the complaints were fixed people would find something else to complain about.Oh before i forget you who complain I have a solution to all your problems with the trail.Buy an indoor exercise bike so you have control of your environment ,but don't forget to get batteries for your tv changer so you won't have to get off,the bike to change channels
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