This page is sort of a catch-all for all kinds of things which don't fit in anywhere else. Some of the information on the trail is personal experience or personal opinion. A lot of it is borderline out-of-date and I am updating it slowly.

TRAIL MARKERS

Those of us who are fanatics for distance as a measure of progress are aware that any running venue will pick up, over time, distance marks. Spray painted lines and numbers, hand-made signs, ribbons tied to trees or bushes and so on. Some of the trails have official distance markers. Where there exist, they are documented below. NEW: GPS coordinates for Markers are being catalogued.

The Columbus Parks Department Mileage Markers:

(OLENTANGY/LOWER SCIOTO/ALUM CREEK(Three Creeks Area) and BLACKLICK CREEK (Western Section) TRAILS.)

These were installed some years ago. They consist of wooden posts with caps and reflectors on whole mile points with stripes on the asphalt (both sides) and just the stripes on the half-mile points on the Olentangy north of Spring and the Lower Scioto south of Spring. (The Olentangy mileage runs concurrent with the Lower Scioto as will, I assume, the Upper Scioto trail when marked.) There is a final marker at the end of the Lower Scioto (MP 4.1) / The same posts are also found along the Alum Creek Trail in Three Creeks Metropark (mile posts only but there are painted dots at the half points with the end point at the west fork of the Oxbow loop - 4.7)) and also the Blacklick Trail. (There is also a final marker (2.8) at the turnaround on this trail as well.)

The markers positions and views both north and south can be accessed through the section pages of each trail or here:

OLENTANGY TRAlL
Worthington Markers
Parks North Markers
Clintonville Connector Markers
Parks South Markers
Campus/Harrison West Markers
Downtown (Olentangy) Markers

LOWER SCIOTO TRAIL
Downtown (Lower Scioto) Markers
Whittier Peninsula Section Markers
Greenlawn/Berliner Markers

ALUM CREEK GREENWAY 
Three Creeks Markers

BLACKLICK CREEK TRAIL 
Blacklick Markers
(There are also in-ground stone markers along the gravel trail in Blacklick Woods Metropark. They are on the south side of the trail.)

A note on terminology: I use MP (mile post) for the whole miles and MM (mile marker) for the stripes.

NOTE: The Olentangy Mile Post 3.0 was removed as part of the new trail construction and the SR315 ramp additions. Check the Campus/Harrison West photo page for an approximate location on the new trail. Also the 4.0 Mile Post remains on the old trail up by French Field House though it can easily be seen from the new trail down by the river. Mile Marker 3.5 is located right below the walkway overpass to the Lincoln tower located just north of John Herrick Dr. It has faded quite a bit from foot traffic--the stripe is still visible on the concrete side wall.

NOTE: The MM 0.5 stripe (as well as the underlying trail and ground) was removed for the construction of North Bank Park. The current position of that point is on the north side of the first trail intersection south of the northern side railroad over pass. See the markers page for the approximate location.

The Worthington Stone Markers:

The portion of the trail between SR 161 and Wilson Bridge Rd (the trail head and parking area of Olentangy Park in Worthington) uses a different marker system. The two miles of trail are marked using in-ground stone markers. These are place on both sides of the trail and call out the half-mile points in the direction of travel. The Worthington markers do not mesh with the rest of the system. There is a gap between the MP 11.0 (currently the farthest north marker on the Olentangy Trail) and the BEGIN/2.0 markers at SR 161. The first picture is an example of the Worthington marker. The second is a composite showing the gap between the two systems.

Presumably, at some point in the future, the measurement system will be aligned in order to account for the new extension north from Olentangy Park.

UPDATE:8/5/05

I don't know if this is prefatory to adding trail markers to those sections of the trail north of SR 161, but someone has added day-glo yellow circles to the trail at the mile and half-mile points from there to Worthington Hills Park so that us mileage-watchers can continue counting up to 14 miles now.

For those who use the trail, the section through Worthington proper has its own set of separate in-ground stone markers which start about 30 feet or so north of the last current mile-post (11) so you could always figure that the mile marks would be about thirty feet south of any stone marker. With the continuation of the trail over the Olentangy and up to Worthington Hills, however, this got a bit dicey since the last Worthington marker is over at the Olentangy Park trail-head by Wilson Bridge Rd. Now you can continue on the new extension and still keep the mileage. For the record, the mileage marks are here:

11.5 - on the wooded rise between the Thomas Worthington high school grounds and the first wooden bridge just south of the Tucker Rd. street sign. (stone marker on the other side of the bridge.)
12.0 - about halfway between the Highgate and Stevenson signs. (stone marker closer to Stevenson)
12.5 - midway between the two access trails that connect (and form a triangle) with Whitney Rd. (stone marker up at bridge)
13.0 - over the river north of Olentangy park just before you go under the first ramp. (stone marker on trail head back in Olentangy Park.)
13.5 - just south of one of the trail fences where it breaks out of the woods.
14.0 - in the parking lot of the shopping center about fifteen feet from the park entrance.

Description location of the Mile Post and Markers

The HERITAGE TRAIL Markers:

The Heritage Rail-Trail also uses a mile-post system for it's 6 miles.

The White Cross Markers: Every quarter-mile from just below the entrance to Olentangy Park off Wilson-Bridge Road in Worthington to the southern end of Northmoor Park. (Note: the first marker is just a white line and is about 1/16 mile up the road (and I do mean up) from the actual trail-head almost at the intersection with Wilson-Bridge Road. The markers were repainted in the Summer of '06  with a number system (Nearer picture) and appear to be courtesy of the Columbus Road Runners Club.

TRAIL SURFACE

The primary trail surface is asphalt. The width of the trail varies depending on the section but averages between 8' and 10' for the most part with a center line. Almost all of the trail asphalt is in very good shape. The trail in Worthington is similar but does not have a center line. The asphalt sections on the OSU campus are not in good shape and are as narrow as 4' in places. I believe that OSU is repaving some of these areas as a part of the current road construction work going on there. There are sections as wide as 12' and a short stretch, near Goodale Ave, where a piece of the abandoned SR315 road system has been adapted, it is, I believe, the standard 24' asphalt roadway.

There are, throughout the system, concrete walkways, bridges, sidewalks and so on but these tend to be fairly short stretches. Specifically they are:

ELEVATION CHANGES

That said, I think it is fair to say that the region can be characterized as relatively flat with occasional short challenging rises and hills. We have the ups and downs of, say, Highbanks, and the flatlands of the Heritage Trail to choose from.

OLENTANGY AND SCIOTO

GOING SOUTH/WEST

Switchback climb to SR 161 to cross the Olentangy.  About 15' over 100 yds with a sharp middle turn. 3% grade
Ramp up to Henderson Rd. About 15' over 35 yds with turnaround at the top. 15%.
Kenworth St to Milton Ave. About 8' over 75 yds. 4%
Climbout of Herrick underpass. About 12' over 50 yds. 8%
Fifth Ave climbout to Third Ave. About 18' over 150 yds. 4%
Third Ave underpass Ramp. About 15' over 150'. 13%
From the first underpass south of MP 2.0 to the blockhouse just beyond the Goodale St. bridge. About 20' over 200 yds. 3%.
From the Scioto river side up to Battelle Park. 20' over 200 yds. 3%
From Lower Scioto Park to Front Street on Whittier St. About 20' over 40 yds. 2%
From the underpass of Greenlawn Ave to Berliner Park. About 20' over 250 feet. 8%.

GOING NORTH/EAST

From underpass of Greenlawn Ave to Scioto Blvd. About 20' over 100 feet. 20% grade.
From I-70 underpass to Bicentennial Park. About 20' over 200 yds. 3%
Climbout from Scioto river side to near Long Street. About 15' over 60 feet. 25%

(Westbank) Ramp up in Confluence Park to Entrance and Souder Rd.

From underpass of Goodale to ramp near MP 2.0. About 15' over 300 yds. 2%
Third Ave underpass Ramp. About 15' over 150'. 13%
Climbout of Herrick underpass. About 12' over 50 yds. 8%
Antrim Lake to SR 161. About 15' over 1/4 mile. 2%
Climb to trailhead in Olentangy Parklands. About 6' over 1/4 mile. 1%
Climb to Wilson Bridge Road from trailhead. About 12' over 200'. 8%

ALUM CREEK

- Westerville has a slight rolling quality from W Main to Schrock Rd.
- Alum Creek Dam area can be configured, if surrounding roads are used, to provide a gradual climb of about a hundred feet. (Or you can          do stair work--about a hundred and twenty steps from bottom to top with a ten-fifteen foot rise on the path from the parking lot as well.)
- Nice rise going clockwise on the Oxbow loop. Maybe eight to ten feet over a half mile.
- Three Creeks generally has a slight rolling with some short sharper rises and falls north of Sycamore Fields.
- Blacklick has a nice rise to the top of a large knoll (see pictures) about a half mile in and a fall of about six feet as you approach the turnaround.

METROPARKS

- Highbanks yellow trail, particularly on the southern side of the access road, has a lot of somewhat shorter ups and downs as is traverses the ravined area with a somewhat more challenging climb to the top of the shale banks overlooking the Olentangy. Probably the best sustainable hill work I've encountered.
- Sharon Woods multi-purpose trail has two lengthy hills on the backside--the easternmost is a straight drop from east to west and the westernmost is a roller-coaster rise going the same way. They are separated by a short stretch of flat trail (the sledding hill is right there).

TRAIL LIGHTING/HOURS OF OPERATION

In the first case, to put it bluntly, there isn't any lighting. This is because, in the second case, the usual trail hours are listed as "dawn to dusk." (Note: there are some parks posted with specific hours of operation. Most are open by 7 am. Best to check first.)

So there is no night-time trail use and no need for lights. I wouldn't recommend running it at night unless it is with a lot of company, with the express permission of the Parks Dept and with your own lighting. Obviously, in the downtown area, where much of the running is on city walks, there is the usual sodium or mercury lighting, however, I wouldn't recommend running around downtown after dark except, again, in a group.

The OSU draft plan indicates that the campus portion of the trail may have lighting which would permit some use after dark.

TRAIL SAFETY

Friends who haven't run the trail, or have run only the more trafficked parts of it have asked me whether I think the trail system is safe. My reply is that there is no such thing as a "safe" trail and that every running venue has times or days or points along the way that represent a safety challenge for runners. Following the advice of running books and magazines with regard to never running alone, never running unless another person knows where you are and how long you're expected to be out, carrying the means to raise an alarm or defend yourself (legal means, of course) and avoiding those areas or times when you would be at risk.

I suppose that if you want statistics, you can get in touch with the local authorities--I have a URL for the Columbus Police Department on the Links page. There are currently on-line statistics for crime but because of uploading, they only are current through 2002. Still, I think they are representative of what you might expect. The trail runs through the 1st (Downtown - Freeway), 3rd (Parks North, Clintonville Connector, Parks South), 4th (Parks South, Campus/Harrison West), 8th (Downtown - Freeway, West Loop, Scioto North), 11th (Scioto South), 15th (Scioto North),16th (Downtown - River), and17th (Worthington Hills, Parks North - Antrim) precincts.

My personal experience is this: I run the trail in the mid to late morning almost any day of the week save Monday and occasionally in the afternoon. Some areas are very heavily trafficked most times I've run them: Antrim Lake, Whetstone Park, The OSU Campus. Most other areas have some other runners or cyclists going by occasionally. Some areas, such as the Freeway Segment of the Downtown Area Section can be pretty deserted. Still, there are sections of thick woods all along the route which should be taken with care and, of course, in bad weather or winter, the traffic level all across the entire length drops dramatically. I can honestly say that, while there have been times I have been alert, I can't say that I have ever felt threatened.

An addendum 9/27/04

My exploration of the trail system has taken me some places where I don't usually run and I would add the following: many of the trail areas around the downtown section are inhabited by homeless people or loiterers and, while in most cases they do little besides ask for money, in a couple of cases, I have found myself confronted, albeit mostly by senseless raving or just general bad mouthing, by a few of these individuals. My sense of it is to just keep running. In general, you will encounter these folks as you run in and around the downtown area from Third Ave to Greenlawn. Bridge underpasses, particularly ones with convenient asphalt paths, seem to be a favored spot for homeless shelters--I've passed one built from plywood with furniture and a Coleman stove, believe it or not. The tunnel under SR 315 is another spot. Bicentennial Park also seems to have more than its share. I'm not going to indict all homeless people on the basis of a few encounters but if this sort of thing bothers you or makes you feel threatened, then you should probably either avoid the area or run with a partner or partners.

I should also point out that the Lower Scioto Trail as it rounds the Whittier Peninsula, while picturesque, also goes through an area which is fairly remote and in which, on two occasions, I encountered what I took to be criminal activity. The user traffic is somewhat light and I would say that were I to run this area generally, it would be with a partner and, probably, with enhanced personal protection. 

Another addendum 7/8/05

It might be worthwhile to draw a distinction between what I call criminal activity and "mischief." The former is, to me, assault and/or battery, robbery, sexual assault, etc. These are usually crimes of premeditation or opportunity but generally require some intent. That latter, even when it approaches criminal mischief, is usually something that occurs "in the moment." These trails pass through a lot of neighborhoods. Neighborhoods have residents and, usually, kids and young adults (and some older adults) who may or may not have a sense of territory about their neighborhood and the parts of the trail that go through it. As such, they may engage in harassing behavior, menacing, threats and so on of varying degrees from annoying to dangerous. I think the best policy when faced with that kind of situation is to keep cool and keep moving. Yes it is everyone's trail but confrontation, however much you are in the right, can lead to physical altercation. Report the activity to the local authorities if it warrants it.

WEATHER

The trail is an outdoor venue and, as most of it is parkland, weather plays a part, more or less depending on the section. I've discussed some specific things on each section page. 

Sun/Wind

Generally, there are three types of cover: full, partial and none. The areas of full cover are relatively short. The Worthington Section is probably has the most tree canopy cover of any section, especially in the new Worthington Hills extension. There are some sections, however, which are just open. The Downtown Area has very little shade or wind-break anywhere along its length, for example. The Scioto South area has some very dense cover, particularly in the Berliner Park segment. Over on the Alum Creek Trail, the section from Main Street to the I-270 is a mix of short woody cover and long stretches in the open with the tree line mostly to the east. Farther south, it varies with Park areas generally open and the connectors more forested. The I-670 trail, on the other hand, is almost entirely out in the open. (And the only trail where you might find yourself, some times of the year, running directly into the rising or setting sun!)

One thing to bear in mind when looking at route planning. In general, the area between the trail and the river has a tree and brush line and whatever cover or canopy is on that side. Those areas where the river is on the east side are better for morning runs as the trees block the sun. The same goes for windbreaks. The picture to the right is looking south in Worthington. The heaviest cover is to the right (west).

Rain/Snow/Leaf Debris

The open character of the trail means that there is little protection from precipitation. The various parks have shelters which can be used for heavier downpours, thunderstorms, etc. but don't provide wind protection. There are some parts of the trail which are fairly low to the river and might be subjected to some issues in times of extreme flooding, though I haven't noticed anything recently. Snow and ice are not plowed or removed anywhere that I've seen so you have to rely on the traffic level to pack it down. The asphalt, with a little sun, tends to melt any cover which can make for some slushy, slippery runs. The only area where leaf debris is removed, so far as I can tell, is the Worthington Section. 

RUNNING STUFF

"SOFT" TRAILS: Most of the trails covered here are asphalt surface. A few utilize concrete walkways for short stretches. Although this is easier than running full time on concrete or hard-compressed (often crowned) roadways, it is not as easy on the legs as softer surfaces like gravel, dirt or grass. Almost all the Metroparks have unpaved trails. Some of the longer multi-use recreational trails are paved as are usually the short access paths between parking areas but every park has unimproved nature trails and a few like Darby Creek and Blacklick Woods have long gravel multi-use trails. Others have gravel surface hiking and walking trails which can be used for running. Then there are completed unimproved trails--these can vary from hardpack dirt to close-mown grass to partial gravel, from comfortably wide walking paths to narrow ruts and from a few hundred yards to a few miles. Running them can be an interesting challenge given that the surface is often broken and the turns and rises and falls can come quickly. you favor this kind of running, you might want to check the Metro Park Trails website. Some of the parks are covered here and I've repro'd the maps with the trail information.

MUSIC: As mentioned, I am not particularly a fan of running with music--at least, out of doors. Treadmill running, on the other hand, is a different proposition and I've been running on the or several years with an mp3 player. I realize that music is a personal choice. Well, recently, I stumbled upon something called PODRUNNER on ITunes. These are hour or so long tracks mixed to a specific BPM from 130 to 180. It is dance electronica--known colloquially as "trance" music. There are other exercise mixes as well. Another nice part is that the downloads are both free--not a whole lot in the I Pod/I Tunes world that comes that way--and they are mp3 files--not the proprietary apple files which can only be played on an I Pod. If this sounds interesting, go here: Yahoo Podcasts: PODRUNNER

JUST A SMALL CAVEAT

This site pretty much reflects my approach and experiences of the Parks and Trails and Greenways. Since I live north of the northern end, my perspective tends to run north to south and much of the description of the route reflects that. Where I think there is a difference in running in the opposite direction, I describe that. While I can't say that there are any serious elevation changes along the route, there are a few challenging short climbs though I think that a more serious runner wouldn't find these particularly difficult. Below, I have divided the trail, as I run it, into five sections. These are, admittedly a bit idiosyncratic and both do and do not reflect sections as I run them. (I have appended a list of the route segments that I run) As I've said before, I am relatively new to the area and I apologize in advance for any mistakes and any corrections, additions or other comments should be directed to npedicin@insight.rr.com.

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07/18/2007