Cycling in Ohio - Sippo Valley & Holmes County Trails
/Last night was an interesting one. In the late evening, as we lay in Blanche reading before bedtime, our phones started blaring a weather warning. Heavy rain had been fallen all day, subsided for awhile, then began again accompanied by thunder and lightning. A flood and tornado watch had been issued, followed by a tornado warning. Local sirens were sounding.
Campground folks were out of their RVs, tents, and campers and our camp hosts were beckoning all of us into their basement just in case. About 50 of us, damp and sodden from our walk in the downpour, crowded into the small basement for an hour or so… including kids and dogs… until the danger had passed. No harm done and we got to know some of our camping neighbors. We’d prefer not to do this regularly, however.
Sippo Valley Trail
Dalton to Massillon - 21 miles RT
Once again based on the forecast, we anticipated a rain day did not materialize. We were surprised in the morning by overcast skies and dense fog, but no rain. We vacillated a bit… should we ride or should we not? We opted for a ride and glad we did. The sun was out by late morning and the rest of the day was beautiful.
The Sippo Valley Trail is partly paved and partly crushed limestone… easy, smooth riding, on a pleasantly warm day. There are benches, parks, and porta-potties conveniently located along the way. Quite civilized!
The landscape is mostly pastoral wandering past fields and farms, over plank bridges crossing little streams. The road crossings were well marked and we rarely saw a car or even other bikers for that matter. Towards the end of the trail, we ended up on city streets, but they were quiet and easy to negotiate.
On the Massillon end of the trail, we stopped for breakfast at picnic tables in pleasant Oak Knoll Park. The Howe Truss Bridge was close by and we took a look. Originally constructed in 1859 in Massillon, it is the oldest known standing iron bridge in Ohio. Originally built for a road in Alliance, Ohio, it was moved to Massillon in 1899 (not quite sure what replaced it) and put into place at the park as a part of Stark County history. It was restored in 2010.
Holmes County Trail
Fredericksburg to Killbuck - 33 miles RT
There’s a gap in the trail, so we moved from the campground to a hotel in Millersburg which happened to be conveniently located across the street from the trailhead… sort of in the middle of the trail. We decided to ride 10 miles to one end and back then 6 miles to Killbuck at the other end.
Parts of the Holmesville County Trail are wide enough to accommodate Amish buggies and they’re quite proud of that fact considering the large Amish/Mennonite population of the area. The trail has designated lanes for buggies/horses and bikes/walkers. Considering the width of the trail, it seemed more empty highway than a bike trail.
Once again, there were amenities along the route including a visitor center (which was closed) located in the repurposed Millersburg Depot.
Thistles were in bloom along the trailside and butterflies were everywhere… swallowtails, checkerspots, cabbage whites, skippers, viceroys… a kaleidoscope of butterflies!
Then we were in Killbuck. Not much there, just an old, long neglected depot building. We turned around and headed back to Millersburg and our hotel.
A gap in the Holmes County Trail had us moving to the Kokosing Camp & Canoe Campground near Howard, Ohio. At this pleasant campground, we’d be well situated for the next couple of days‘ rides. Join us as we ride over Baddow Pass then pedal through the Bridge of Dreams. Pucker up… it’s a covered bridge! Always something to look forward to.