Biking Ohio's Rail-Trails: Where to Go, What to Expect, How to Get There

Rating:
Summary: An excellent guide book to Ohio's bike trails.
Review: An "indispensable book for bikers, hikers, walkers, joggers and families who want to enjoy Ohio's Trails." This book is a major update of the original Biking Ohio's Rail-Trails offering more trails to visit. Shawn E. Richardson's book Biking Ohio's Rail-Trails follows an identical format to Shawn E. Richardson's other two books Biking Missouri's Rail-Trails and Biking Wisconsin's Rail-Trails. This colorful paperback book includes detailed maps, photos, and a description to each trail. Trail lengths range from 1 mile to 72 miles and incude information about trail surface (smooth crushed limestone, asphalt), trail use (biking, roller blading, horses, wheelchair, hiking), parking, and points of interest. Shawn E. Richardson provides information about the Ohio Office of the Rails to Trails Conservancy and their involvement with Ohio's rail-trails. If you live in Ohio, or plan to visit Ohio, this book is a must for any cyclist!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent data on Ohio's RailTrails! Great Maps!
Review: Biking Ohio's Rail Trails is a fact filled, extremely lucid book on the subject of the RailTrails in Ohio. These are the old abandoned railbeds that are being converted throughout the USA to RailTrails for bikers, walkers, bladers and runners. Shawn's book gives excellent information as to Where the trails are as well as wonderful maps of the RailTrails and how they connect to other biking trails. Mr. Richardson't book is well worth it for anyone who is interested in RailTrails in Ohio. His book is recommeded by "Miami Valley RailTrails. Tom Recktenwalt Miami Valley RailTrails

Rating:
Summary: More Like "Lemon"aide!
Review: Biking Ohio's Rail-Trails is a very well put together book. The best part I like are the maps! They are so easy to read, yet, they offer a reasonable amount of detail. I also like this book for the reason that if I would like to know just anything about any trail, if offers "just the facts!" However, if I would like to know more details, it also offers an additional paragraph or two about the trail's main attraction features. I just only hope that Shawn E. Richardson will do books like this for every state!

Rating:
Summary: A Lemon
Review: First impression: Poorly laid out. The contents are organized by the name of the trails. The first three "names" are: "Bike & Hike", "Bike Route -1", "Bike Route -2". There is an ameturish attempt at a map of the whole state with the trails in dark blue and some sort of numbering system. Unfortunately, the numbers are only marginally proximate to the routes (unless they are written over them -YOU try reading black type on a dark blue background!) The map and the legend for the whole book are hidden in the preface - I guess they think you won't be referring to them very often. Some trails are broken up into haphazard sections - I guess to fit the map scale - which varies only slightly from map to map. There is no way to find a trail by either location or length. Unless you know the "name", you'll have to scan the index (guess where it is!) looking for a "vicinity" you recognize. An example: Looking for something east of Cleveland I find one in the vicinity of "Ashtabula/Warren" (if you look at a map you'll find those cities are 45 miles apart) go to the page indicated and ...no, you won't find that map. Leaf forward and it'll show up. Then you can read all about the "future plans" for the trail. You might overlook the information on the length of the trail or the trailheads since the author hides that info in his painfully stiff prose. Show up at the trailhead and there is a beautiful asphalt trail for about 0.06 miles before it turns into golf ball size crushed rock (you'll need new tires - and leave the kids home!) but only for a mile or so. North of there, its all as described, but he obviously didn't do his homework. He seems more interested in what the planned trails will look like someday than what you can use today. Also no good information on traffic, elevation changes, or trail surface. Caveat Emptor.

Rating:
Summary: A Lemon
Review: First impression: Poorly laid out. The contents are organized by the name of the trails. The first three "names" are: "Bike & Hike", "Bike Route -1", "Bike Route -2". There is an ameturish attempt at a map of the whole state with the trails in dark blue and some sort of numbering system. Unfortunately, the numbers are only marginally proximate to the routes (unless they are written over them -YOU try reading black type on a dark blue background!) The map and the legend for the whole book are hidden in the preface - I guess they think you won't be referring to them very often. Some trails are broken up into haphazard sections - I guess to fit the map scale - which varies only slightly from map to map. There is no way to find a trail by either location or length. Unless you know the "name", you'll have to scan the index (guess where it is!) looking for a "vicinity" you recognize. An example: Looking for something east of Cleveland I find one in the vicinity of "Ashtabula/Warren" (if you look at a map you'll find those cities are 45 miles apart) go to the page indicated and ...no, you won't find that map. Leaf forward and it'll show up. Then you can read all about the "future plans" for the trail. You might overlook the information on the length of the trail or the trailheads since the author hides that info in his painfully stiff prose. Show up at the trailhead and there is a beautiful asphalt trail for about 0.06 miles before it turns into golf ball size crushed rock (you'll need new tires - and leave the kids home!) but only for a mile or so. North of there, its all as described, but he obviously didn't do his homework. He seems more interested in what the planned trails will look like someday than what you can use today. Also no good information on traffic, elevation changes, or trail surface. Caveat Emptor.

Rating:
Summary: Simple, concise, to the point.
Review: Good, basic info on Ohio's rail trails. Only lacking in that the descriptive narrative of each trail may not be sufficient for all prospective riders. Otherwise a good resource.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent quality bike trail maps for cyclists!!!
Review: This book is excellent for any cyclist who would like to find any major bike trail throughout Ohio. As long as anyone knows how to read a map, any cyclist will be able to find any trail with no trouble at all!!! A unique thing about this publication is that Ohio is apparantly going to a Bike Route trail numbering system. However, if a trail such as the Wolf Creek Rail-Trail is known as "Bike Route-38", the trail is listed under both the trail name and the bike route number; as you're out there biking that particular trail, you will actually see the bike route number signs along the trail! A great book for family outings! This book also contains information for other bicycling resources as well. No other book like it!