There are really no facilities, water fountains, and only a couple of shaded rest areas. From here about 5 miles of trail has been freshly paved with asphalt to about 1.5 miles west of Farwell. There are many beautiful views of the Muskegon River along with opportunities of viewing many birds and animals along the way. The Chippewa Nature Center is an excellent place to visit with the family including many additonal foot only trails with an excellent visiting center and many working displays including the sugar maple house and the centennial farm. This trail is much different than the Midland to Clare section. Excellent safe trial, well maintained, with great facilities. Nearing Evart the trail leave to old rail bed, it seems to avoid a swampy area. Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Twitter Messenger. To our surprise, even though Clare is a small town, it does have a lot of local eateries that stay open 24 hrs a day. Rode to Clare to spend the night . Great scenery, quiet and peaceful. In 0.7 mile, turn right onto E. Fourth St. Just before the end of the block, find a multiuse trail on your right and on-street or municipal parking on your left, behind the public library at E. Fourth St. and Pine St. Bring some money with you as you can stop at Alex's railside restaurant- they have an outdoor patio to cater to the cyclists. [6][7] snagged me. Water fountains at both ends, Sanford, and Coleman. !, and numerous spots to replenish your energy and quench your thirst. The Chippewa Trail heads south and west for 4 miles. This is an excellent relationship between the Friends of the Pere Marquette Rail Trail and the Chippewa Nature Center. I was not up for a 60 mile trip to traverse all the way to Clare, so my next visit will be to Clare for an out-and-back taking in the rest this trail has to offer! If you like farmland and not forests, this IS the trail for you. As I am still a beginning cyclist with this being only my 3rd trail, I have come to appreciate the signage and directions each trail posts to help you stay on the right path. I am trying to ride all of the rails-to-trails in lower Michigan so I am glad I conquered this section of the PMT. It looked like I was making good time on the way back, so I stopped and took photos in Lake and at Lake Station. US10 has a paved bike shoulder but I chose to stay on the gravel farther to the right since the speed limit increases to 55 as you leave town. The Pere Marquette Rail-Trail currently begins in Midland, Michigan and makes a continuous westward trek through the municipalities of Sanford, Coleman and Loomis, presently ending in downtown Clare. Remember, however, opinions are based on what one prefers and/or is accustomed to. 13 miles in length a good day ride to and from. The downside is that you should STAY OUT OF ISABELLA COUNTY!!!!! And it took me directly to the Doherty Inn where I had a reserved, bicycle-friendly room waiting for me. Once back on the trail west of Clare the rest of the ride to Reed City was easy, smooth cruising. (seule la portion Alma-Saginaw reste en usage), La Chicago Division: entre Grand Rapids (Michigan) et Porter (Indiana), et grce un droit de passage, entre Porter et Chicago (Illinois). This trail is in excellent shape. Also this is a pretty loose surface not the almost rock hard surface that you get with crushed limestone. Si vous habitez un autre pays ou une autre rgion, merci de choisir la version de Tripadvisor approprie pour votre pays ou rgion dans le menu droulant. I know I will ride this trail again in the near future. En 1984, l'Amtrak baptisa son service voyageur, entre Grand Rapids et Chicago, the Pere Marquette. Meals are available right next to the trail, or you can explore town for shops and more cafs. If wed wanted to, we could have continued on to Clare, Michigan. This is the only course that I record all my speeds, times, avg. It extends from the Tridge in downtown Midland ( where the trail is said to "begin") and goes to the Chippewa Nature Center , west of town. We had a wonderful ride & find weekend, except for the storm that luckily passed through the area fairly fast. De la oraul Clare spre sud-est pn la Midland, traseul continu ca Pere Marquette Rail Trail. I ride a handcycle and my middle wheel throws all the road debris right up on my cloths and body so what a nice gesture it is to get horse all over myself! we began in midland at the farmer's market ( mile marker 0) and made it to the loomis street mark (about 4 miles from clare, the endpoint). Just to the west, though, is a fairly large parking lot that had several cars already at 7:00 in the morning with no menacing signs. Rail Trail Photos. This section of the trail has no rest stops or bathrooms other than a road side park on the north side of Highway 10 which you can access from a spur off the trail about 7 miles from Baldwin. On a hot day, however, you are a long way from good clean cold water and shade is not this trail's strong point. There is plenty of parking at the Midland trail head famrers market. ), Midland County, Michigan, US; Same area and date Another location near Pere Marquette Rail Trail (Castor Rd. On hotter days, you'll be in the sun pretty much all the way, as there is little shade over the trail. The paved trail picks up 2 miles west of Clare in front of the Moose Lodge on M-115/US10. Great, paved and wide trail. "Accident or hoodoo, mystery of train wreck persists", "Salem, MI Excursion Train In Head On Collision, July 1907", "Lost car ferry discovered 110 years after sinking in Lake Michigan", Remembering the Pere Marquette Railway (Kevin Keefe), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pere_Marquette_Railway&oldid=1111756727, This page was last edited on 22 September 2022, at 19:08. For what its worth the cars ignored the solid yellow line and gave me very wide, very respectful berth that I wouldnt expect in southeast Michigan, so this alternate is up to you. [+] 26 novembre 2021 Journal le PERMAnent! The scenery is absolutely beautiful. There is a nice restaurant just south of the trail in Chase where we stopped for a snack. The rest of the trail to Midland was mostly smooth with only small sections with rough seams. We were disappointed that we couldn't ride all the way through, due to reconstruction of the path following the devastation of last year's flooding. To reach the trailhead in Clare from US 127 heading north, take Exit 156 left to E. Bus. #1223 - 2-8-4 "Berkshire" displayed at Chinook Pier in Grand Haven, Michigan. Great trail and I cant wait to ride from Clare to Baldwin next time. Along the trail, you can access village, city and county parks, enjoy views from the former railway bridges and visit the communities of Midland, Sanford, Coleman and Clare. Why they think they have the right to destroy this trail is unknown. The perfect distance for an enjoyable day ride with several areas to stop. Clare itself is a pretty little town with interesting-looking small shops and quiet streets. The paved portion of the Pere Marquette State Trail on the eastern end of the trail begins at the Moose Lodge on MI 115 just west of Clare. It's not designed very well allthough it is flat and level. Upon arriving at Reed City I finally dismounted for a proper rest and some photos, and met one of the guys from the Pere Marquette Snowmobile Club as they were doing some trail landscaping maintenance. Although I grew up in the thumb, its easy to forget how friendly Michiganders are outside of southeast Michigan. All the road crossings are paved and smooth too. Oops!! It's so nice to be able to enjoy a long ride without the noise and hazards of traffic. [Crossroads Restaurant?] Passer au contenu principal. The old railroad depot has been renovated, and you can visit the library about two blocks away at Railway and First Streets, or the bike shop at Railway and Seventh Streets. A doe and two fawns crossed the trail about 30 yards in front of me and another deer stood right in the middle staring at me before running. I WAS WRONG. Pavement picks up west of Farwell and continues almost all the way to Clare, where the trail ends again due to a bridge that has no deck. I love this trail!Just to note, there is a great map available at www.lmb.org/pmrt/map-II.htm.". Although I was riding in the middle of the day, I only saw 6 walkers and 3 other cyclists so the trail gets minimal usage. from Chippewa Trail near Ashman St. and Ann St (Midland) to E. Fourth St. and Pine St. (Clare). I take Maple Rd. Pour toutes questions, crivez Mme Rosa au rosa.a@csdm.qc.ca. We utilized the trail this morning for our long run while we were in town visiting family and the path was cleared better than most of the roads! The Pere Marquette Rail-Trail begins at the Farmer's Market in downtown Midland and extends 30 miles west to the city of Clare. Having read other reviews suggesting that highway 115 was dangerous with high speed traffic, I followed the Bicycle Route 20 signs (Maple Rd. Right now there is a beautiful display of cardinal flowers (wildflowers) just west of Maple Grove Road along a creek. We rode to Sanford and found some special treats along the way. La compagnie tire son nom du pre Jacques Marquette (16371675), un missionnaire jsuite franais qui fonda la premire colonie europenne du Michigan Sault Sainte-Marie. There are rest stops in Midland and Sanford as well as water supply and vending machines. Still, I enjoyed the utter solitude and would travel this path again. Goes from Midland to Clare, MI (30 miles one way). It's a shame that so many horse riders have to be so disrespectfull to the asphalt surface. Become a member and wear your FREE T-Shirt with pride. "My brother, John, and I rode the Pere Marquette Rail Trail from Clare to Midland and back on Saturday, August 21, 2004. With my visual inspection of the work done so far, my guess would be that the expansion should be completed sometime early summer of 2001.There are many points of interest on the trail with a Bed and Breakfast in North Bradley, an historic museum in Sanford, many different parks and nature set asides for the viewing enjoyment, and bicycle shops in Coleman, Sanford and Midland. Just a heads upMy wife and I parked near the Tridge and unloaded our bikes, changed into riding cloths then rode to the trail. Return to Overview Map of Grand Region Trails. Cette liaison directe permettait aux marchandises d'viter les dlais dus aux interconnexions entre les nombreuses compagnies au sud du lac Michigan, et d'chapper galement l'immense plaque tournante de Chicago. Had a lovely overnight trip on this trail-something we had wanted to do since getting new bikes. )The trail isn't particularly scenic, but is generally flat and straight for an easy ride. Fred. Sections are even sealed blacktop. Somewhat surprisingly, it was not heavily used on this otherwise beautiful Saturday. My goal was to complete my first Century ride (solo and unsupported at that) by riding from the Tridge in Midland to Reed Citys intersection with the White Pine trail, and then back to Clare to spend the night. First time on the trail and I love it.. people were riding across the barriers ..we opted to drive around.. then rode from Sanford to Midland. After an hour rest, we headed back to Midland and since we now have the wind on our back, we were cruising at an average speed of 15 miles/hr. Facilities and trail access are convenient. Few road crossings - thats nice. "This is the best trail in the region! planes off in the distance flying about. On July 20, 1907 an excursion train carrying 800 passengers from Ionia to Detroit collided near Salem with a freight train, killing 31 and injuring 101. About 70 kilometers (43 Miles). This ended up being just over 110 miles on day one, and was a great success. This site represents the wildflowers documented on the Pere-Marquette Rail Trail in Midland County, MI by volunteers. Total mileage was 61.25, with a total riding time of about 4 hrs, 20 minutes. Its not complicated, but it is not well-marked! (And this is after a huge winter storm had just gone through the area!) I guess just because they think they paid for it they must ruin it. I took this ride last Sunday, August 15th and it afforded a pleasant 25 mile ride. Starting in the the down town City of Coleman Michigan. We stayed at the Dohorty hotel which was really close to the Care trail head. ), Midland County, Michigan, US on Wed Nov 09, 2022; Same location Pere Marquette Rail Trail (Castor Rd. Le temps qu'il se rendt sur les lieux, le ferry avait dj coul emportant avec lui 28 passagers; heureusement il put repcher 33 naufrags flottants sur les eaux du lac[3],[4]. I usually do a 20 mile round trip and pack it up and head for home. The city of chase about 10 miles from Baldwin is near the highest elevation on this part of the trail and you ride gently uphill when approaching from either direction. The scenery is good and there's even a railside restaurant to eat and drink. As a Michigander Im a bit embarrassed to say its my first rail trail experience, and it was a good one. (actuellement utilis par, La Grand Rapids Division: entre Elmdale (Michigan) et Saginaw (Michigan). Has the ice and snow melted? Great Job Pere Marquette!! TerraTrike. Ses principales connexions se trouvaient Buffalo, Toledo et Chicago. I always start in Midland and go 10 miles through Sanford and back. It is recognized as one of twenty-five Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Fame trails in the US. Theres plenty to explore here, such as restaurants and shops or the riverside park. I rode the Pere Marquette Rail-Trail from Clare to Reed City and back. As noted, the trails dont connect in Clare, and so passing through the city roads for a couple of miles is required. After Coleman, which is about 20 miles from Midland, you are given the distance to the next road intersection from the one you are currently located. The newest, (so-called), paved section of this trail from Reed City to Baldwin IS NOT paved contrary to some reports. I hope that this section will improve with time. It is a beautiful ride to Reed City, everything from woodland forests and ponds to country farms. [] Pere Marquette Rail-Trail Claren ja Midlandin vlill Selvitys, joka tarjoaa linkkej aiheisiin, joihin sama hakutermi voi viitata Tll yksiselitteisyyssivulla on luettelo artikkeleista, jotka liittyvt otsikkoon Pere Marquette Trail . All are elliptical and pointed at end. There you will find a convenience store, restaurant, post office and some interesting old buildings. mixed with weeds or just weeds. Allthough this trail goes through some nice country where you can see lots of wildlife you can also see some real trailer trash along the pathway. There, you will find shelter and water just off the trail at the end. WHAT A PLEASURABLE EXPERIENCE.. We'll be back. All trails cannot be everything to everyone. I rode the trail, July 25, 2020, from Midland to Clare and back. There is a family campground east of Sears that has horses so the trail is quite loose and rough near there. Forests, parks, bridges, and historical sites provide diversions and opportunities for reflection along the way. I concede, it may not work for road bikes but that is exactly why they are called road bikes and not trail bikes. The shoulder was plenty wide, and again any passing cars gave me wide, respectful berth. Get a FREE Rail Trails Guidebook when you become a Member with Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. At about the halfway point is a roadside park along highway US10 that has a hand pump and pit toilets. Lots of shade along the way. My husband and I were absolutely delighted to learn that the Pere Marquette Rail-Trail is so well maintained in the winter! The rest was loose stone (left over railroad ballast?) I would like to finish the trail and head to Clare from Sanford. Great Educational tool for the whole Family. The 53-mile crushed-stone pathway goes all the way to Baldwin. we are becoming avid bikers, exploring trails within about a four hour drive from us and came upon this trail at this excellent website. Good riding yet? Avant publication, chaque avis passe par notre systme de suivi automatis afin de contrler sil correspond noscritres de publication. Leurs projet de tout fusionner fut refus par l'Interstate Commerce Commission ICC. Forests, parks, bridges, and historical sites provide diversions and opportunities for reflection along the way. (Snowmobiles are prohibited, so there was no tread damage, as is evident on the Musketawa Trail, for instance. The serene, paved corridor welcomes all non-motorized users, including equestrians on an adjacent path for approximately 5 miles between the community of Coleman and State Route 18 (N. Castor Road). I really got a kick out of one comments that they should of just used lime stone, this person claims that they ride both snowmobiles and bikes, he must of meant dirtbikes. That is where I started my trip that day and found a relatively simple way to make the connection for anyone riding both trails in one trip. I've never been to the path before today but can see how beautiful it must be during the other seasons and now that we know it's cleared in the winter, we'll definitely be back to use again. Road the entire trail and back on Sunday. The last 10 miles is also more rural with you have the wind in your face. I turned left and proceeded about 1.5 miles west to the current east trailhead of the PM State Forest Trail on the left. ", "Even though there is a 10' nice flat shoulder on both sides of this asphalt trail, snowmobile rs, who apparently think somehow they paid for this trail, are simply destroying it. absolutely awesome on so many levels! We rode the trail from Cadillac to Leroy and Reed City to just past Sears and back. The Reed City to Baldwin section appears to be a great snowmobile trail but it is not a trip for the casual bicycle rider. Traseul de stat Pere Marquette nu trebuie confundat cu Traseul feroviar Pere Marquette. It runs for 30 miles on smooth asphalt that is well maintained and, at 14 feet, wide enough to ride or walk side-by-side. As another heads up - the Pere Marquette is plowed from Sanford to Midland all winter,a 10 mile stretch. would love to start biking from lake to clare without getting on the roads. The 2009 paving improvements ended 2 miles west of Farwell in the middle of the forest. The wreck was not found until July 23, 2020. There is a completed equestrian trail that starts east of Coleman city limits going east approximately 5 miles ending at the small settlement of North Bradley. What a great trail system you have built. The trail is marked for snowmobiles but that season is so short I don't know what the purpose of this trail is. Uneventful, leisurely ride back to Midland with plenty of stops for photos this time. Similar to a previous post about Reed City to Partridge Avenue on the same trail, this was also a most enjoyable ride and I would recommend it also. We got another treat as we sat on the back deck when the cute little chipmunks playfully ran around waiting for me to drop my ice cream. I scouted this trail for a trip and decided against it. All riders rode a variety of bike types and all said the trail could be ridden on with everything from road bike to fat tire trail bikes. I enjoyed this ride. It is all paved but does use sidewalks along Poseyville Rd that are rough in areas.May I suggest a spur off the main trail in the Sanford area to the Pine Haven Recreation area, which has the best mountain biking trails in central MI. Look on Facebook for: "Rails to Trails, Lake County, Michigan" for photos and descriptions of the trail. Started at Midland trailhead-parked the car behind the courthouse. We loved the trail, the well spaced facilities, the places to visit along the trail and of course the caching! The Pere Marquette State Trail may be confused with another trail of similar name, the Pere Marquette Rail Trail, also in central Michigan, with which the Pere Marquette State Trail may one day be. It is a stone mix and actually they did a poor job of spreading it and packing it down.