Trail Snapshot
Trail:
19 miles, 8-12' wide pavedOur trip: (41 miles) Starting at the Tallahassee trail access point off CR 363 we rode 3 miles north to the northern terminus and then south 19 miles to St, Marks, returning 16 miles to the Tallahassee trail head.
Difficulty:
Easy - Moderate The trail itself is easy to ride, while riding a complete round trip in one day requires a moderate level of fitness.Outdoor Travels Rating:
3 bikes out of 5Thumbs Up and Down
Thumbs up:
Thumbs down:
Lesson's learned:
Lodging:
We bunked at the Calhoun Street Inn Bed & Breakfast. Located in downtown Tallahassee, this b&b offered us a nice room and delicious breakfasts.Our room was spacious and affordable. It is located around 3.5 - 4 miles from the trailhead. We decided to shuttled our bikes to the trailhead with our car instead of riding the distance.Calhoun Street Inn Bed & Breakfast
525 N. Calhoun Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32301 Phone: (850) 425-5095
Gail Reinertsen, Innkeeper
Nuts & Bolts
Location:
The trail follows the abandoned railbed of the historic Tallahassee-St. Marks Railroad. The trail runs almost due south from Tallahassee to the town of St. Marks, which is at the confluence of the St. Marks and Wakulla rivers.Facilities:
Restrooms are available at the main trailhead in Tallahassee. Two other access points, one about mid-way and the other closer to St. Marks, offer parking and restrooms.Access and trailheads:
Tallahasse terminus: The main facility for the Tallahassee-St. Marks Trail is located on S.R. 363, just south of Tallahassee. This facility is 3 miles south of the actual northern terminus. It is advised to use this facility as it is not only MUCH nicer, but also appears to be a safer place to leave your vehicle than the actual northern terminus "facility".Mid Point trailhead: Along SR 363, North of US 98 and south of Natural Bridge Road.
St. Marks terminus: The trail is next to the "can't miss" Posey's restaurant in St. Marks. 55 Riverside Dr, Saint Marks, FL 32355
Admission:
FreeActivities:
Biking, skating, walking, joggingContact:
Tallahassee-St. Marks Historic Railroad State Trail, 3900 Commonwealth Blvd. MS 795, Tallahassee, Florida 32301. Phone: 850-245-2081, Tallahassee Headquarters: 850-245-2052Maps Links and Photos
Maps and Links:
Trail Map (not showing extension into Tallahassee)
Map My Ride MapTrail Photos:
Lots of great photos to give you a good idea of what riding here is like!
Tallahassee - St. Marks Railroad TrailAt the older North Terminus before the extension
Entering the main northern facility
The next facility is close to St. marks
Road Biking
Tallahassee - St. Marks Historic Railroad Trail
Tallahassee - St. Marks, Florida
19 miles of arrow-straight, paved, tree-lined trail with a questionable northern terminus and tasty grub at the southern end.
Dana Farnsworth, Outdoor Travels
It’s quite a mouthful: Tallahassee-St. Marks Historic Railroad Trail State Park. It’s quite a long and fancy name for a 19-mile, relatively straight stretch of 8-foot wide asphalt running through a mostly suburban area. First off, let me say that I did enjoy riding this trail and it is great that Florida developed this trail to promote outdoor recreation. It was Florida’s first railroad under construction back in 1837 and in 1984 was also the first designated state trail. A two-mile section has also been designated a segment of the Florida National Scenic Trail. I enjoy riding rail trails that are interesting – either with beautiful scenery, interesting sights, historical value, and side trips or pubs along the way. The fact that the trail starts in Tallahassee and ends in an interesting little town (St. Marks) intrigued me. I envisioned plenty of things to do and see in Tallahassee and St. Marks.
With all these things in mind, my adventure wife Kelli and I set out to ride the trail in a one-day, round-trip trek. Our plan was a good one. We would drive to Tallahassee where we would check into the Calhoun Street Bed and Breakfast for the night. The next morning we planned on driving to the trailhead, which is about 4 miles away and begin our ride south to the coastal town of St. Marks. There we would eat, drink and be merry before returning the way we came.
After a restful night and a delicious breakfast (thanks, Gail!) we prepared our gear and drove to the trailhead…or at least we thought we were driving to the trailhead. The trail is often listed as being 16 miles long. Actually that is the distance from the main facility in Tallahassee to the southern terminus in St. Marks. What is not often publicized is the fact that there are three additional miles of trail north of the main trailhead. Kelli and I discovered this as we drove toward the trailhead. Kelli looked out the window and exclaimed, “Look! The trail is over there!” We were driving south toward the trailhead, so it seemed an easy deduction that the trailhead wasn’t actually the northern terminus.
Because I like to get a “full-trail” experience, we began retracing our route after I whipped the car around 180 degrees. With the trail now in view to our left, we began what turned into a monumental journey, tracking the trail through suburbs and side streets to find the true northern terminus.
While conducting my pre-trip research, I had been unable to find any address where the trail actually begins. Without a point of reference we had to stop and get out of the car many times when the trail would disappear from our view in order to see if we were still close to it. In what I believe is an internet first, I can report that the current northern terminus is found near 844 Gamble Street in Tallahassee.
I was surprised to find that the facilities here were haggard at best: Dirt parking lot, single port-a-potty tucked under a tree, a small disheveled picnic shelter and a shady-looking surrounding neighborhood were the predominate features of the northern terminus.
After gearing up our bikes and starting our ride, I had second thoughts about leaving my car parked there for the day (we were the only car in the dirt lot). I went back to the car and removed my driver’s license and registration; if it were stolen while we were gone, at least I would have my license plate number and important documentation. I had a great sense of trepidation mixed in with the initial excitement of starting a new adventure as we began our ride.
The first mile or so of the trail wound its way through a questionable neighborhood. Several times we had to dodge a fair amount of broken glass on the trail. I was hoping that things would improve. Soon, we encountered a group of older men taking what looked to be their father out for a ride. They were adorned in big, fluffy parkas that were flapping in the breeze. With somewhat red, grim, and determined faces, they apparently were heading toward the northern terminus. After about a mile, the conditions on the trail did improve. The trail crosses two busy streets and then runs parallel to SR 363 on its way toward the main trailhead facilities. As we approached the facility we got our first glimpse of what turned out to be a very nice access point. People were busy in the parking lot prepping their bikes and milling about. There was a nice restroom as well as a brochure kiosk.
It was immediately obvious that no matter how much I didn’t want to ride the 3 miles back to northern terminus, I needed to move my car to the safer-appearing main facility. Kelli waited while I did my best Lance Armstrong impression. I hammered the 3 miles into a headwind as hard as I could, back across the two busy streets, dodging the broken glass, met the guys riding in big parkas again -- now going the other direction -- before finally getting back to where we started. I was pleased to find my car still intact and interestingly still alone in the dirt parking lot. After a speedy drive to the main trailhead, Kelli and I were ready to begin our ride for the second time.
The trail in this section is wooded and pretty. At certain times, you would never guess that CR 363 is not too far away. It’s also very straight – looking ahead we could see the trail disappearing into a dot of perspective-induced distortion far off into the distance. At the time, we didn’t think much about the trail being so straight. As we pedaled on the scenery was much of the same pretty woodlands. We passed the first of two additional trailhead facilities around mid-way. It looked to be a park with a playground and plenty of parking. The next one is a pretty close to St. Marks.
We noticed that this is the first rail trail that we have seen devoid of mile markers. It was impossible to accurately gauge how many miles we had covered. After a best guess based on how long we had been riding factored into what I thought was our average speed, we continued cruising along. We were really into a mind-numbing groove (from the straightness of the trail) when we abruptly came to a stop at a road crossing. I didn’t see where the trail continued, mostly due to the fact that we were in St. Marks – the southern terminus! Kelli and I both commented on how surprised we were to be there already.
After a couple of photos we surveyed the landscape looking for a place to eat. We didn’t have to look far. Posey’s was right beside the trail, not 100 feet away. Our host at the B&B had mentioned we should check out Posey’s for lunch. It certainly looked interesting enough. Posey’s looked to be a somewhat typical seafood port town dive. Just the kind I like! Our lunch actually made our trip worth our while. Posey’s has several things going for it: quirky atmosphere, great seafood, frigid bottled beer on ice and a beautiful view of the water! Kelli and I sat on their deck, munched on our delicious grouper sandwiches, had a few cold ones and enjoyed the view. Apparently Posey’s also has nightly live entertainment. If we were planning to stay only one night I think we would have had a great time staying in St. Marks. However, since we were staying two nights, I’m pretty happy we chose to stay in Tallahassee, as St. Marks looks like one night would be enough.
With our bellies full of grouper and beer we mounted up for the ride back. This is when we began noticing how monotonous the trail could be. Mile after mile of the same thing – if it wasn’t for one or two turns the trail would be perfectly straight. A straight trail isn’t so bad if the terrain changed or there were places to stop and eat, drink or see something interesting. But this trail featured mile after straight mile of tree-lined trail. It was as if we were stuck on one of those cheap, hand-held racing games where the track repeats itself after about five seconds – trees, pavement, trees, pavement, trees, trees, pavement…
Kelli commented that she was having a great time, but riding the trail one length would have been enough. Luckily, the trail isn’t really that long. Cruising around 12 miles an hour will get you from St. Marks to the Tallahassee trailhead in about an hour and a half as there really aren’t many reasons to stop. All in all, with riding to St. Marks, lunch and riding back it only took us around four hours to complete - that’s really a nicely spent afternoon if you ask me.
Overall, the trail is a real treat for those living in and around the area. If not the most exciting ride, gorging ourselves at Posey’s certainly enhanced the experience a great deal. Oh, and yes, my car was still in the parking lot where I left it – an experience I don’t think I would have had if I had left it where I originally parked.
Oficial Overview
Courtesy of Florida State Park's web site: http://www.floridastateparks.orgFlorida's first designated state trail follows the abandoned railbed of the historic Tallahassee-St. Marks Railroad. The trail runs almost due south from Tallahassee to the town of St. Marks, which is at the confluence of the St. Marks and Wakulla rivers. The Tallahassee-St. Marks Railroad was the first railroad under construction in Florida and the first in the nation to receive a federal land grant. Completed in 1837, the 20-mile line connected the territorial Capital with the Gulf port of St. Marks. Conceived and financed by leading planters and merchants, the railroad transported the prosperous cotton crop of the region for shipment to East Coast markets. Initially, mules hauled open freight and passenger cars loaded with naval store and timber industry products. The rickety railbed prompted an earlier traveler to describe it as "the worst that has yet been built in the entire world." In the 1850s, the railroad was modernized and used to transport cotton. The Tallahassee-St. Marks railroad was distinguished as Florida's longest operating line, serving for 147 years. It is of rich historical significance as a pioneer enterprise that stimulated the region's commercial development and settlement. In 1984, the Florida Department of Transportation purchased 16 miles of the corridor to preserve the right-of-way. The recreational trail was constructed and is maintained by the Florida Park Service. Today, people of all ages, abilities and incomes can enjoy using the trail.
