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I would give this 5 Stars for everything north of Dort Highway! Definitely would recommend the northern segments traveling through the Genesee Recreational Area.
I tackled most of this trail entirely on inline skates starting from Kettering University to where it splits at Stepping Stone Falls. From the Falls, the trail links to Bluebell Beach and then back around through the Bluegill Boat Launch park. From Bluegill, the trail continues East as part of the huge ongoing Michigan Iron Belle Trail project! I have not yet skated on the two short branches that end at McLaren Hospital and Mott Community College.
The northern segment past Dort Hwy. winds through the woods surrounding Mott Lake with plenty of gradual slopes. The very twisty segment through Bluegill is a blast on inline skates!
The urban segments of the trail start by McLaren Hospital and Kettering University and then passes Atwood Stadium and Carriage Town into downtown Flint. In the downtown segment you can pass through UofM's campus and branch over to Mott CC. This urban section is pretty fun on skates and is a nice change of pace from my usual skate through wooded areas!
Now I would caution users traveling between 5th Ave and Dort Highway that this segment passes through a rougher residential area and is not very well maintained. As it currently is, I would consider this the skippable segment which knocked one star off of my rating. Now maybe this segment has a brighter future since it is part of the ongoing MI Iron Belle Trail project, but I am unaware if there are any current plans for renovation.
With that being said, there are several volunteer organizations in addition to the police that patrol the trail to keep it safe for all users. The Genesee Rec. Area definitely feels very safe throughout and again I highly recommend the northern portions of trail.
Rode this trail on inline skates with ease! This is a nice trail that manages to escape the commercial sections of Flint.
I parked at Kettering University which has video surveillance and rode all the way to where the trail currently ends at the Genesee Valley Mall. From Kettering, the trail passes through some residential areas before briefly traveling along the busy Corunna Road stretch. But then the trail makes a turn into a quiet wooded area where it would not seem like a mall is nearby! I saw quite a few people were biking and running the trail including several Crim Fitness groups.
The busy crossings at Court St. and Corunna Rd. both have push-to-cross buttons to stop cars for trail users. The other relatively busy crossings at Ballenger Hwy. and Lennon Rd. have "buffer curbs" so trail users can cross half of the road and safely stand in the middle before crossing the second half.
This trail connects to the Flint River Trail and the ongoing huge MI Iron Belle trail. If you head North East on the Flint River trail, you can get to downtown flint including the University of Michigan and then continue all the way into the Genesee Recreational Area.
Moved from Lake Orion to Imlay City and boy were we spoiled. We had the Paint Creek Trail and a portion of the Polly Ann Trail available to us in Lake Orion, both were very nice. In Imlay City, though? It's hardly a "bike path." The portion within the city is paved and nice, but beyond the city north or south is overgrown and impossible to bike. We have been quite disappointed with this trail since our move. I would love to be able to bike all the way to Lake Orion again and connect to the Paint Creek for Rochester. This trail needs some serious attention!
Tried this on a new bike yesterday and it was DELIGHTFUL!! It was a wonderful trip through open meadows, wetlands and climax forest areas along the south bank of the Huron River (not always visible - but close based on chatter from people in rafts/canoes/etc.). There’s a small street connector thru Dexter but this is minimal - and Dexter is a wonderful town for a meal/rest/drink/chat.
Pavement is smooth as a baby’s butt and there are no challenging hills. It’s just a very pleasant, easy ride and I enjoyed myself very much!
At the moment (O7-2OI8) this trail officially goes from Orion Township to North Branch. The Lapeer county part is not all the way finished. Some of it is paved and some of it is gravel and some is balast and some is grass with a singletrack and some is just grass.
The Oakland county part is is great.
Like most rail trails and just trails in general - this trail is under construction and in development and has proposed plans for it.
These things take time and l myself wish all the proposed trails were completed but l know they take time.
If l win the lotto l will pay to pave lots of trails.
I have been riding this trail for the past 5 years. I usually park at Adams Rd parking area right near the Mastodon site and travel up to Rochester and join onto The Paint Creek Trail. We always stop and have a meal or a drink in Downtown Rochester and there are MANY places to choose from. I am not a true cyclist—more of a bike enthusiast—so the stopping for a meal/beer makes the bike ride! The trail is well maintained through that area. We always see bunnies and deer as we ride. The whole atmosphere reminds me of being up north! We sometimes go the opposite way and ride into Auburn Hills. The path is not as maintained when we go that way—not sure why, but it is just bumpier. There area some places to eat/drink in Downtown Auburn Hills as well and a beautiful little park along the river. Ice cream shops too.
I have biked on most of the trails in southeast Michigan and I believe this is the best one. It has very smooth asphalt for 98% of the 23 mile stretch (there is an 1/2 mile section just east of Romeo that is rough). There are several parking spots along this trail and a couple restrooms too. Several stores along the trail have bike parking for their businesses. There is a spectacular scenic overlook of the Clinton River about 2 miles east of Romeo. The north/south section from Rochester to Romeo has the businesses. The east/west section from Romeo to Richmond is pleasant farmland.
My wife and I discovered the Kiwanis Trail this year. We park at the trailhead at Green Hwy. and Ives Rd, and walk 3 or 4 miles round trip a few times a week. It is paved, has adequate shade, and is quite pretty with trees and wildflowers along the way. I have one suggestion and one question: The suggestion is to keep the weeds and growth cleared from each side of the trail: The trail is fairly narrow to begin with, and when you have runners and cyclists in each direction, the growth cuts the effective width of the trail by several inches. My question is: Why is it that the first half mile marker (when beginning at Ives and Green) is less than a half mile? All of the other markers are accurate at a half mile or mile, except the first marker is only about .4 miles. Overall though, an excellent trail for fitness and family walks.
The section south of Edward Hines Drive is wide and smooth. I know much of this section was repaved with stimulus money 7-9 years ago. The section north of Edward Hines is in horrible shape. It is very rough. The stretch from 5 to 6 Mile Roads is especially bad. Some of crossings of major roads are difficult. It is a noisy ride, but the trail connects to several other trails.
This is a great connection from South Lyon to Kensington/Island Lake. However, I rode the path a couple weeks ago and was shocked at how bumpy it has become. It is definitely much worse than when I last rode it two years ago.
My wife and I went to Kensington today and we both have hybrid bikes. We were terrified that since the entire stretch of the Island Lake trail was extremely bumpy for a bike path, we’d destroy a few tires. Won’t be going there anytime soon, except for walks.
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