Find the top rated running trails in Tignall, whether you're looking for an easy short running trail or a long running trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a running trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Thought I’d provide some clarity here, as the Firefly Trail is pretty disconnected and there are few trail amenities, but it has a lot of potential: Dudley Park near downtown serves as both the trail head of the Athens side and as the nexus for both the Firefly Rail Trail and the North Oconee River Greenway (so you can extend your ride in Athens by adding the Greenway). After parking, follow the trail along the river (or take a shortcut up through the woods) to reach the Firefly Rail Trail. You’ll see a bathroom, water fountain, and picnic pavilion for the park. Just off the trail there’s a bike repair station. Note: restrooms are locked in the evening and the water fountains are winterized in colder months. There’s no lighting on the trail. The Trail Creek aka rebuilt “Murmur” trestle and the bridge over the North Oconee are the highlights here. The Firefly trail is currently in segments spaced far from each other: Athens side - 2.9 miles Winterville - 1.5 miles Maxeys - 1.1 mile Woodville to Union Point - 6.5 miles The shady, three-mile connection between Athens and Winterville should be complete in spring of 2026, provided the final easements can be acquired. None of the other segments have reliable trail amenities and the towns are all very, very small. In Winterville, Pittard Park has bathrooms that may be open. In Woodville, about a mile past the trailhead, there’s public bathroom behind CJ’s BBQ that’s sometimes open. The longest segment of the Firefly Trail is actually from Woodville to Union Point, at just under 7 miles one-way, partially shaded. The Woodville trail head is just a parking lot right now and is easy to miss if you aren’t GPSing it. The trail head at Union Point is pretty but there’s no facilities currently. I recommend a trip into town… “The Point” is a grocery store/restaurant open 7 days a week, even on Easter. For now it’s your best bet for beverages and a snack on this segment. When complete, the Firefly Trail will be about 40 miles from Athens to Union Point. Check back to see the progress.
Closed from savannah rapid to water pumping facility but can be accessed at that point and continue to downtown or access the wooded mountain bike trail at the pumping station.
Could use some police presence. Hardly anyone using the trail. Perhaps due to the number of homeless. Needs advocates to support the trail, add decent connections. We rode canal path to Riverwalk. The city sidewalks between were terribly rough.
Parked by McCormick country club end. Road about .4 miles on the trail, until came to very large trees down from Hurricane Helene. Possibly could have lifted bikes through but wasn’t sure how many more were down. Many had been cut so I’m sure they will eventually be cut. Turned back and drove to SC7 parking. About 3 spaces there, road about 2 miles, roots, leaves, and pine straw covered, definitely need a mountain bike, beautiful trip in the woods. There is a small detour onto moss rd for about .5 miles, which is a country road not busy. Didn’t go all the way to Willington. Very nice day!
I walk and bike this trail often. Scenic and some challenging hills. Caution required after heavy rain as the trail floods in some areas near the creek.
Enjoyed a great ride on the trail with friends. We parked at Sandy Creek Nature Center and road all the way till it ended at Carriage Lane. It’s completely paved, it was our 1st trip so we did get a little confused but had no problems navigating back to where we started. We ended up with 14+ miles round trip which made for a great ride. Lots of other cyclists, walkers, and runners. But not crowded on the day we went during the week. Highly recommend
Wanted to provide a more recent review. Rode most of the trail yesterday with my wife. It is well marked, well maintained and beautiful ride. The path is hard pack - not concrete or black top so it is not super smooth. There are several things to see and placards to read that explain the features of the old railroad. Also a cemetery from the 1700s and a fun tressel towards the end. The only negatives were that my wife thought there were too many roots. There are roots and I rode a mountain bike so I didn’t really notice them as ‘bad”. Also there is about a 2.5 mile section you have to ride on the road in the middle. It is a country road and traffic was lite and the cars were respectful of us and rode slowly around us. There were benches and picnic tables along the route if you wanted to stop and just sit for a while. We only saw 2 other people walking their dogs. It was a fun trail for novice riders not looking for single track. Enjoy -
The trail now connects downtown Athens to Winterville road. It's a fun couple miles to bike or hike on smooth pavement the whole way. There are water fountains and benches as well. Lots of fun to connect the Firefly to the North Oconee Greenway and bike about 10 miles around Athens!
Gave it 4 stars for being fairly well maintained and off the road in areas. This is a 4-6’ wide asphalt path combined with sidewalks on a fairly busy road. Yes it is safer than riding / running on side of road, but you still have to clear every intersection / business parking lots 3-4 ways before crossing….and there are a lot. If you want a scenic trail, this is not it. If you want a safe pathway to Savannah River Locks from Evans, this is a good alternative.
Parts of it were very pretty, and overall pretty well maintained (but with a fair amount of roots in some areas). But about 1/3 of the 9 miles were on roads with no shoulder. Not busy roads, but not what we expected of a “rail trail”. Also a lot of spiderwebs on the trail.
Great trail. Listed as closed, figured that we would just be out the drive if it was closed. Could never figure out why it is listed that way. It is beautiful and well maintained.
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