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Wasson Way runs between Montgomery Rd at the edge of Xavier University's campus and Old Red Bank Rd at the edge of Ault Park in Cincinnati.
About the Route
The first section of the developing Wasson Way trail opened in 2018 in the eastern Cincinnati neighborhood of Hyde Park. It measured less than a mile, running past Withrow High School, shops and restaurants as it traveled from Madison Road to Tamarack Avenue, near Dana Avenue and I-71. The second phase extended the trail west to Montgomery Road, and includes a bridge over I-71. Phase 3 extended it east, doubling the length by adding another 1.2 miles stretching to Marburg Avenue.
The most recent additions to the trail, Phases 4 & 5, were finished in the winter of 2021, which continued the trail to the east into the wooded grounds of Ault Park. The trail's western end is currently at Old Red Bank Road, a short distance away from the start of the Fairfax Bike Trail at Woodland Road. The next phase of the trail is set to add another 0.8 miles.
Connections
When completed, the Wasson Way trail will span 7.6 miles from Victory Parkway (near Xavier University) to the Little Miami Scenic Trail in Newtown. The latter spans 78 miles from Cincinnati to Springfield and is in the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame.
Wasson Way runs between Montgomery Rd at the edge of Xavier University's campus and Old Red Bank Rd at the edge of Ault Park in Cincinnati.
Parking is available at several locations along the trail:
There is street parking, including some accessible spaces, along Wasson Road. There are two accessible spaces in the Evanston Playground parking and multiple accessible spaces at the other locations.
Visit the TrailLink map for detailed directions.
Please keep expanding this! Great for riding fast and not having to worry about getting hit by a car
They finished the expansion this winter. Extends the trail by about a mile or two.
I last rode this trail previously back on June 14, 2019. At that time, Wasson Way was only 0.6 miles long running from Madison Road near the Rookwood Pavilion shopping plaza to Tamarack Avenue near the Withrow High School Athletic Fields. Back then, Phase 2 of Wasson Way was under construction. The second phase was to feature a bridge over I-71 and to continue the trail west, to its final western destination of Xavier University. Phase 2 had been completed and I wanted to go back and check out the added length, particularly since my oldest daughter, Amanda, is a graduate of Xavier University.
Wasson Way, currently is a paved rail trail that now runs from behind the Valvoline Instant Oil Change on Madison Road near Rookwood Pavilion Shopping Center to Montgomery Road across from the Xavier University campus. This is a distance of 1.25 miles. The trail’s course is generally flat, with a slight rolling hills feel to it. There is a slight but noticeable climb from Interstate 71 up to the trail’s western end. To reach the center of the Xavier University campus you would have to cross Montgomery Road and ride through the Queen City Physicians University Station Internal Medicine parking lot and an additional XU parking lot to reach the buildings on the Xavier campus. Since it was beginning to get dark, Amanda and I chose not to ride onto the Xavier Campus on this day.
Wasson Way is a nice little trail. As currently constructed, it gives the students of Xavier University a clear unobstructed path to the restaurants and retail shops of the Rookwood Pavilion area. The path pavement is new so it is in great shape. However, I think that additional lighting should be added to the trail in the vicinity of Xavier University for security purposes. In addition, this current iteration of Wasson Way is just the beginning of a much bigger project. According to the Wasson Way website, the former rail corridor that the trail is being built upon is “one of the country’s great undiscovered greenways — over 6 miles of mixed use trail that goes from Victory Parkway near Xavier University through twelve local neighborhoods. Wasson Way is a key east-west corridor in CROWN, the Cincinnati Riding Or Walking Network. CROWN will create a 34-mile trail loop connecting Wasson Way to the Murray Path, Little Miami Scenic Trail, Canal Bikeway, Ohio River Trail, Mill Creek Greenway Trail, and more…” I can't wait to come back and ride this trail whenever a new phase of the project is completed.
I really enjoy how they finished this section of trail. I use it as my daily commute and really enjoy it
I rode this trail in my ongoing quest to ride all of the Ohio trails listed at TrailLink.com. This trail was listed late in 2018 after I had thought I had ridden all of the TrailLink.com-listed trails in the Cincinnati area.
This 0.6 miles of trail is the first phase of a trail designed to run about 7.2 miles from Xavier University east toward and connecting to the Little Miami Scenic Trail (part of the Ohio to Erie Trail route.). The trail stretches from Madison Road near the Rookwood Commons & Pavilion shopping plaza to Tamarack Avenue near the Withrow High School Athletic Fields. Phase 2 of this trail is currently under construction which will feature a bridge over I-71 and head west, hopefully to its final destination of Xavier University. If phase 3 is to expand eastward, the first obstacle to be overcome will be navigating through the traffic on Madison Road which seems very busy.
At this point I don’t think this trail is worth a trip to walk or ride until more phases of the trail are complete, or unless you live in this neighborhood.
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