The Avon and Catawba Creeks Greenway has several neighborhood entrances in Gastonia. The 1.9-mile trail winds alongside Catawba Creek and Avon Creek with a few small bridges crossings along the way. The greenway is paved for its entire length, and much of it is lined by mature trees on both sides of the trail. Small benches are spaced throughout the greenway and usually come with good views of the creek. There are also numerous informational plaques placed along the trail regarding common bird species that can be found in the area.
The greenway is just one of many which together form the Carolina Thread Trail, a regional network of greenways, trails and blueways across North and South Carolina.
Parking is available at the National Guard Armory/Recreation Center (2100 Robinwood Road, Gastonia), which is about 0.2 mile from the eastern trailhead. On the northwest end of the trail, parking is available at Lineberger Park (700 East Garrison Boulevard).
This trail is nice and flat and mostly shady. it has easy access if you park at park off 700 E Garrison- the armory parking lot features a steep hill we didn’t want to navigate with strollers.
It's a nice trail flat with good tree coverage. It's a bit more than the 1.9 if you do both sides of the T , My round trip was closer to 5 miles..
The portion I have been on is very nice. It has recently been improved with much more parking at lineberger park and also a branch off trail that has parking at ferguson park..you can see this trail map on the carolina thread trails link.
Very nice trail for a quick ride. Be prepared for bugs if you are riding bikes.
My husband and I rode this trail with our two dogs. We all loved it! And was nice to see others using the trail as well.¿¿
There is no parking, so if you are looking for a place to exercise and you don't live in a neighborhood that is right on top of this trail, don't bother. Genius idea peeps! Just moved to Gastonia and I am already starting to hate this place.
My 8-year-old daughter and I rode this greenway a few weekends ago. I was very impressed! It was clean and well-kept. My daughter enjoyed the signage about the local birds that could be seen and the tunnels under the overpasses were her favorite part! We even found a baby box turtle that had crept up from the creek.
We saw lots of families, runners, walkers and bikers along the trail. Speaking of which, there was one emergency phone box that I noticed on the trail, nearer the south end of the trail. The pathway was smooth and gently curving, only slight inclines at infrequent points (up by the golf course.) We drove an hour to ride this trail and was so glad we did. We rode it down and back twice. We're planning to go again soon to bring my husband back to enjoy it with us.
Previous reviews here helped in finding good parking: the small parking area across from Lineburger Park is best, since that tunnel under Garrison Blvd. from the park was indeed muddy and impassable on bike. Just FYI, Lineburger Park restrooms weren't open on this Saturday morning, even after 11 which was a big disappointment since we'd driven an hour there! There is one port-o-john about the halfway mark down the trail.
We stopped by the fabulous Schiele Museum just down the road on our way out :) Beautiful greenway, great riding experience!
The whole family rode this trail yesterday and it is a great place to ride. The trail is paved with asphalt and wide enought to manuever around the walkers/runners who also share the trail. The branch that breaks off towards the golf course is less traveled and we did not encounter any walkers on this section. The trail is relatively flat with lots of scenery and several nice bridges to cross and a few tunnels under some major roads. I recommend parking in the lot across Garison Blvd from the park so you do not have to go through the first tunnel. It had a lot of sand and water from the recent rains that we had to maneuver through to get to the other side of the trail. We will definitely put this one on our list for regular outings for the family.
This is one of the best trails for all activities. The trail is well maintained and has plenty of shade along the route. The trail follows along a crystal clear creek. It meanders in the trees with signs explaining the vegetation and birds along the way. My whole family rides bikes and we range in ages 4 to 50. This will not be a great workout but it is a great family place. After you finish with your ride, walk or skate you can take in main part of the park with train rides for all ages and a spray park and playground for the kids. I could easily spend my day at this park. Great Trail.
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails conservancy
(a non-profit) and we need your support!