Lebanon Countryside Trail

The Lebanon Countryside Trail is a rail trail in Ohio.

Largely used as a bicycle trail, it links the city of Lebanon, Ohio on the north to the Little Miami Scenic Trail at Middletown Junction on the south. The trail is about convert|8.5|mi long. It opened in late 2005.

Description

The trail's northern terminus at Lebanon is at the station of the [http://www.cincinnatirailway.com/lebanon.htm Cincinnati Railway Company] , which operates an excursion train, and is near the Golden Lamb Inn. The trail merges into Deerfield Road for a section that may be difficult for first-time users to recognize and follow. The trail resumes as a separate bicycle trail near the [http://www.countrysideymca.org/ Ralph J. Stolle Countryside YMCA] .

The southernmost portion of the trail runs over the former Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad right-of-way.

Cautions

The trail portions north of the converted railway portion include some hills that are considerably steeper than the shallow grades typical of rail trails, and may present a challenge to less-fit cyclists. The largest hill has an abrupt turn and stop at the bottom, and an awkward cross of two intersecting streets, Turtlecreek Road and Kingsview Drive. Stopping at the bottom of the hill may be difficult for inline skaters who lack expert braking skills.

Where the trail merges into Deerfield Road, it may be difficult for first-time users to recognize and follow. Pavement quality on the road shoulder was rough in places in late 2005, requiring cyclists with narrow tires to share the roadway with motor traffic.

Map links

The [http://www.oki.org/transportation/bike/maps/Warren_Butler_Bike_Map.pdf OKI Bicycle Route Map for Warren County] (warning: 4 MB PDF file) shows the Lebanon Countryside Trail as a dotted line (to indicate future construction at the 2005 publication date of the map), but the trail is complete now.

Below are links to maps showing some locations along the trail, arranged from south to north. Note that satellite and aerial photos may pre-date construction of the trail, so the trail may not be visible on the photos yet. Also, the trail does not appear on most road map sites yet, and might never, as most of them only show roads.

Middletown Junction

(coord|39.364895|N|84.236146|W) is where the trail begins at the Little Miami Scenic Trail.The trail heads west and crosses the old railroad bridge across the Little Miami River.

Intersection of Kingsview Drive and Turtlecreek Road

Here (coord|39.381442|N|84.237383|W) the trail makes an awkward cross of both streets at the bottom of a valley. The elevation at this intersection is about 625 feet. The northbound cyclist must now climb a steep hill along Kingsview Drive, which levels off around 760 feet. The trail gains more elevation as it heads north and then east, but over gentler grades.

Intersection at Deerfield Road (south)

This (coord|39.41197|N|84.208475|W) is the south intersection of the trail with Deerfield Road. The elevation at this point is about 880 feet. The satellite and aerial photos show the playfields and buildings of the [http://www.countrysideymca.org/ Ralph J. Stolle Countryside YMCA] to the south. This is the end of the southern portion of the trail. Many trail users who entered from the Little Miami Scenic Trail at Middletown Junction may stop here and turn around, not realizing they may turn left (north) on Deerfield Road to reach the northern portion of the trail that leads to downtown Lebanon.

Intersection at Deerfield Road (north)

This (coord|39.422035|N|84.205017|W) is the north intersection of the trail with Deerfield Road. The elevation at this point is about 740 feet. The trail heads west, across Justice Drive, and then north along a slope between State Route 48 to the east, and government buildings to the west.

Northern terminus

The trail ends here (coord|39.431965|N|84.206843|W) near the [http://www.cincinnatirailway.com/lebanon.htm train station] . The historic Golden Lamb Inn is just a couple of blocks away.

See also

* Rail trail
* Little Miami Scenic Trail

External links

* [http://www.cincinnatirailway.com/lebanon.htm Cincinnati Railway Company, Lebanon Station]
* [http://www.miamivalleytrails.org/Lebanon%20Countryside%20Trail.htm Lebanon Countryside Trail] (with photos and extensive commentary)
* [http://www.countrysideymca.org/ Ralph J. Stolle Countryside YMCA]
** [http://www.countrysideymca.org/facility/ymcasitemap.pdf PDF map showing YMCA in relation to trail at Deerfield Road]

References