Linear Park Trail offers a nearly 9-mile east-west route through the town of Davie, paralleling the South New River Canal and Orange Drive. Bicyclists and walkers will enjoy the paved pathway, and anglers can fish in the canal.
Along the way, you'll pass Tree Tops Park, offering natural and equestrian trails, as well a boardwalk around a freshwater marsh. Another attraction, Vista View Park is true to its name with distant views of Fort Lauderdale and the Everglades from its hilltops. Head north on the Robbins Vista View Trail to reach the beautiful Long Key Nature Preserve run by Broward County.
Street parking can be found along Orange Drive. You can also park in Tree Tops Park (3900 S.W. 100th Avenue) and Vista View Park (4001 SW 142nd Avenue).
the trial is great if your walking, however if your on a bike you constantly have to make narrow passes. and sometimes swerve into the grass to avoid other cyclists’s. you also have to cross busy intersections every few miles, and you have to walk your bike to get across safely.
This is really not a bike trail. 4-5’ width and crossing at least 5 major roadways. 4 of 5 area drivers have contempt for bikers. Great path for the area neighbors to exercise.
My husband and I biked this today and found it enjoyable. Two lovely parks at either end. Stopped at a nearby Publix for some fruit and enjoyed it at one of the shelters along the trail.
Road 23 miles today, path is narrow and intersections are busy but doable. It was a beautiful December day.
It was great riding this trail in family. At the end you can find a Publix or a Plaza, and take a break there. Then go back. We park at the point where the App says. We started in the morning, so we lunch subs from Publix at the end of the trail. We saw many iguanas, turtles, ducks, birds, and many others animals. You can take a break any time you want under the trees. Maybe this is not a trail for super riders, but it is nice for a family ride.
I entered a park by Hiatus Rd into a nature preserve. Followed the path. Be careful there was horse shot on the path that you have to dodge as you proceed west. Then you have to navigate a lot of side streets until you make it to Vista Views Park...which has a nice bike path. There are no shoulders along the side street roads so you need to be careful. My avg speed was slow because you are riding sidewalks.
Very pleasant ride, but the trail is actually more like the Orange Ave sidewalk. Orange Ave itself has very little traffic. Not so for some of the cross streets. Signals for some of the busy streets are not at Orange Ave, and you have to go left or right for up to a few 100 ft to get to the crosswalk. Signal delays can be long. Trail was clean and well maintained. Public bathrooms at Davy town hall are clean and easily accessible from trail. Pretty and rustic buildings, too.
I was surprised at the amount of wildlife so close to a busy street. Definitely a good walking and running trail, but a little rough for bikes. Also, there were a lot of flies, so keep your mouth closed unless you want a snack!
I live 2 miles south of Linear Park Trail. I use it as a connection between my house and other trails and parks. Tree Tops, Robins Lodge, and Vista View County parks are near or just off the trail to the north. The trail runs from US 441 east along Orange Drive next to the canal with Griffin Road across the canal all the way to I-75. You can continue on Griffin Road east to the airport with a bike lane or west to Holiday Park in the Everglades with no bike lane. There are many street crossings, some are at the Griffin Road lights. All the parks have bath rooms and do not charge admission during the week. Vista View is on the west end and has a trash mountain that has paths, a road and great views of the area. I have ridden to the airport, where there is a park next to the runway, and back to Holiday Park. The trail does not have much shade. Griffin Road is very busy and Orange Drive is ok. Flamingo Road has a bike lane north and south that is like a super highway. Palm Ave, Pine Island Road, and University Drive do not have a bike lanes. The Town of Davie has a few paths that connect to Linear Park. There are maps at the Davie web site. There are places to eat along the trail also.
I took the Trail from the northern entry point and went south to Vista View Park. The trail is in great shape and wide enough for passing. I saw the biggest Iguana I have ever seen in the wild about 1.5 miles from Vista View. This Iguana was massive although something had taken most of his tail he was fast and lively. The waterfowl and snakes were a delight to see on the cool quiet morning I rode. I recommend this ride to anyone wanting a slow pleasant bike ride.
The "trail" is narrow and poorly surfaced. The upside is that there are some nice places to stop along the canal. I would just ride in the road on Orange Drive for a smoother ride. Conversely, there is a nice bike lane on Griffen Road as well as another option.
I took a ride on this trail on January 17, 2015. The paving is a bit bumpy and it is cut by a few roads, one of which has no way across, so you have to cross the bridge to the other intersection and come back to continue. I think the trail itself needs to be repaved to something smoother. There were a few unpaved parts as well. As for the wildlife, I saw a few iguanas, some ibises, manatees and homeless people sleeping in the picnic shelters. I didn't mind the homeless so much, but I figured they needed to be included. Overall, the trail has potential, but needs a good makeover to get it to 5 stars.
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails conservancy
(a non-profit) and we need your support!