Mountain bike trail in Mid-Ohio

 Mohican State Park

I took my bike for a ride today.  By that I mean I put it on the carrier on the back of my car and drove around.   

My knees are still hurting from my ride a couple of days ago, and today, my fanny pack was pressing into my kidney as I drove, making me aware of a kidney stone that hasn't moved for a while.  Some days are better for this woman in her 60's than others.

 I drove to the bike trail.   The sky was overcast, the temperature had not yet hit the promised 70 degrees, and I just did not feel like riding.  

So I put the car in drive and detoured to Malabar Farm State Park.   The roads around Malabar are pretty hilly and winding.  There are not good shoulders on the roads, they drop off sharply due to erosion.   I was not inspired to park the car and ride the bike.

I kept driving.  I stopped at the scenic overlook where you can look out upon the Clear Fork river Valley and took a photo.  It is too early in spring for the trees to have leafed out and the view was meh.

  

 I ended up at the intersection of Route 97 and Route 3, at the Mohican State Park.   

I checked out the Mountain bike parking area.  There was a sign with a map stating the trail was marked, and that there was a crossing at the bridge, but I could not spot the actual crossing. 

 I did see a paved entrance to the camping area across the street, so I drove to the parking lot.   There is quite a long camping area that is paved, with cabins and spots for RVs along its length.  There were several road bikes parked at some of the cabins. There were people riding bikes on the paved surface.  I saw the mountain bike trail as I drove by.  It was a dirt path that snaked up the side of a hill.    It is a marked trail, 25 miles long.  The map indicates that it runs along the topography lines.  This looks like it would be a fun ride on a mountain bike or even a gravel bike.

I noticed as I left the area that State Route 3 has a marked lane for bicycles.  This continued for a mile or more, where it changed to a paved trail heading towards Loudonville.   The Loudonville area was previously heralded as the "Fun Center of Ohio" and there are many campgrounds and canoe liveries in the area.  So Loudonville seems to be a bike-friendly town.   

I want to come back when the weather is warmer and the sun is shining.