I had just finished the Slippery Elm Trail about 25 miles north, and was hoping to squeeze in another trail from this part of NW Ohio. I had circled the Old Mill Stream Parkway so I was going to give it a go. I had brought both bikes, as the descriptions I read that this trail had more gravel/multi-use type surfaces. I hadn’t research this much (oops!) but was motivated. I drove down to Findlay then headed about 8 miles west and located the Heritage Trail trailhead.
Ok, so I didn’t even notice until later that you do NOT see a bike icon on the trail map. LOL. What I found out very quickly is that the section of trail was pretty soggy, muddy and pushed the capabilities on my gravel tires.
Eventually the trail pops out onto a county road and turned south. I had a very basic map. I had to double back a few times as I must have missed trail markers. I knew I needed to follow the Blanchard River. Ultimately, the travel went from off road, to shoulder, to streets and multi-use trail thru Findlay. The trail names change from Heritage, to Old Mill Stream to Greenway Bike Trail. Being unfamiliar with the trail and area, it was a bit unnerving as I kept having the sense I was getting off course. I rode east to the Bright Road intersection which was just east of Riverside park, about 12 miles from my starting point.
My original goal was to make it to the Riverbend Recreation area, another 3 miles. I was running short on daylight, and I was a bit frustrated from the navigation challenges, so I turned and made the return trip back to the car. Note: Temperature was now 38 degrees. I wasn’t looking forward to the last 1 1/2 miles in the mud.
I opted to ride the road shoulder on Rt. 244 the last mile vs dropping into the off-road Heritage Trail section. Cold and getting dark. Can’t say I really enjoyed this but I had a lot going against me: not navigationally prepared, weather, time (not enough daylight). The park sections are definitely nice for a short family ride, but the open sections out of Findlay, not so much. Let’s just call this a checkmark on the #BikeOhio1000 list 🙂
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