HOLY TOLEDO! LoST on the North Coast Inland Trail - Smart-guided Cycle Tour
HOLY TOLEDO! LoST on the North Coast Inland Trail
- a Smart-guided Cycle Tour in Northwest Ohio
Go long - go short - go in-between - or go HOLY TOLEDO! 4 options on this LoST cycling adventure on a historical northern Ohio rail-to-trail.
The short (FREE), medium and long options of the LoST cover an 18-mile section of the NCIT (North Coast Inland Trail) through Lorain and Huron counties with a common tasty turnaround spot. These are mostly on paved-level rail-to-trails bikeways.
The HOLY TOLEDO! option goes all the way to... Toledo... of course! This, too, has numerous miles of paved-level rails-to-trails bikeways except for segments of the NCIT that are not yet in place and western segments that are crushed stone/gravel. It has the same common tasty turnaround spot as the three above tours. But, it continues towards Toledo ...or as far as you can go before heading back to the starting spot. Maybe you are going all the way - HOLY TOLEDO! - that- is 210 total miles.
Points of Interest:
- small towns
- farmland and parks
Points of Interest only with HOLY TOLEDO!:
- Toledo
- Lake Erie
- Levi Square
- campgrounds
- Maumee River
- Pearson Metropark
- Glass City Metropark
- Maumee Bay State Park
- Tony Packo's Restaurant
- Mad River & NKP Railroad Museum
- National Museum of the Great Lakes
Bikeways:
- Black Trail*
- Glass City Riverwalk*
- Coontz Complex Path*
- North Coast Inland Trail (NCIT)
- Rails To Trails Next To Maumee River*
*only with HOLY TOLEDO!
The North Coast Inland Trail (NCIT) was created in 1992 when seven park districts agreed to develop a system connecting trails in northwest Ohio. On August 15, 1998, the Lorain County Metro Parks opened a section of the trail measuring 148 acres. Most of the NCIT is a 12-foot-wide paved trail built over an abandoned Toledo, Norwalk, and Cleveland Railroad line. The NCIT runs for 65 miles from Lorain to Toledo with some sections still being built. The Lorain County Metro Parks’ portion runs from Lake Erie in Lorain to the county line in Wakeman. (Lorain County Metro Parks) Eventually, the NCIT is planned to cross northern Ohio making history by connecting bordering states Indiana and Pennsylvania.
LoST is an acronym for Long or Short Tour - a CycleNuts Group Tour favorite. Because this tour originally had three lengths, it was called a Triple LoST. With the addition of Toledo, it was renamed to Holy Toledo! OH - a LoST Smart-guided North Coast Inland Trail Adventure.
Go all the way or part of the way - rider's choice! 12 (FREE), 21, 37, 210 miles on this beautiful countryside rail-to-trail bikeway. 3 starting spots - 4 tour lengths - 1 common CycleNuts tested and approved pet-friendly tasty turnaround spot for all, except the HOLY TOLEDO tourists will continue towards Toledo.
How this LoSt Tour works. Three lengths go to and from a CycleNuts-tested and approved tasty turnaround spot - the HOLY TOLEDO continues towards Toledo. You have options. You can ride solo at your leisure. You can invite your crew to join you, each choosing their comfortable length. Remember to adjust the starting times for each so that all can ride together to the tasty turnaround spot. The three shorter routes are 92% bikeway with few opportunities to use your bike's climbing gears. They are shaded about 50% of the way. The Holy Toledo! tour is 74% bikeway and about 50% sunny.
More about the HOLY TOLEDO! OT (Overnight Tour) option
At 105 miles each way it would make for a mild endurance event of 210 miles. With the logistics of a couple of nearby campgrounds, it could also serve as a multi-day bikepacking adventure. The several small towns it passes through, along with Toledo, have conventional hotels that could make this a more comfortable touring adventure. Warmshowers, hotels, and Airbnb overnight stays are other options for HOLY TOLEDO! trekkers.
In Toledo, there are some notable points of interest to check out. First off, pinpointing the root of the phrase, 'Holy Toledo', is a real thing for Toledoans. A brief online search will only tease the imagination and lead to numerous rabbit holes and a wild goose chase, or two, to investigate. You see where this is leading.
Toledo is home to Jamie Farr - one of the stars of MASH, that long-running sitcom. Tony Packo's restaurant is included in the tour route -notable as a hangout of the star Farr, and the birthplace of the Hungarian hot dog. "If you are ever in Toledo, Ohio, on the Hungarian side of town, Tony Packo’s got the greatest Hungarian hot dogs.” (~ Klinger, MASH) Home of the Hungarian hot dog, and the collection of hot dog buns signed by Burt Reynolds and numerous other celebrities over the decades. It's on the tour route if you are interested.
Toledo - the Glass City - is famously known as a glass manufacturing city. It is the first city in America to have an all-glass exterior building, built in the early 20th century. Remnants and memorabilia are abundant throughout the city.
WHY CHOOSE a Smart-guided Selfie Cycle Tour?
You get all the benefits of a guided tour without the drawbacks of a tour guide, other tourists, time restrictions, and a rigid tour agenda. With this smart-guided tour, you can go when you want, at your speed, and hang out at a spot as long as you wish. You can even wander off the planned route and the smart guide will get you back on track when you are ready.
HERE'S THE PLAN: You bring a bike and a smartphone. CycleNuts provides the smart-tour guide links! You will receive an expertly designed tour route via email. Click the emailed link and follow the Selfie Tour route using your smartphone as your smart-tour guide for the Voice and Map guided turn-by-turn instructions.
SHORT INSTRUCTIONS: From your location, using your cell phone click on the starting spot link and follow the Google Maps directions. When you arrive, click the emailed tour navigation links to begin the tour. The navigation links will be either Google Maps, Ride With GPS (RWGPS), or both. For more complex tours, there may be several links to click with additional instructions. With Google Maps, the navigator will prompt you at each checkpoint to continue navigation.
BUY NOW AND RIDE WHENEVER AND FOREVER. The route links do not expire. Buy now and plan your adventure - invite your favorite peeps or ride solo; make overnight accommodation reservations; reserve a sitter for your pets. Many tours include dog-friendly tasty spots, as noted in the tour instructions. Here are two CycleNuts tested and approved sites for pet owners: Bring Fido for those touring with dogs; and Rover for those needing pet sitters. The purchase is for the CycleNuts Selfie Smart-guided route links and instructions. Attractions, lodgings, food, bike rental, etc. are not included.
CYCLENUTS SELFIE TOURS tie together fun, interesting, scenic, historic, tasty, and refreshing points of interest along a bikeway-focused tour route where you ride at your pace and pleasure. You are the tour boss. You choose the date and time - the tour is good for any day or time.
With these Smart-guided Selfie Cycle Tours, you bring the bike, and the smartphone - CycleNuts provides the smart-guided links. The smart guide gives voice and visual turn-by-turn instructions along an expertly designed tour route.
Do the tour solo or bring along your crew. Easily stop anywhere along the way to visit attractions or refreshments and the smart guide will continue the route from wherever you are when you are ready to roll.
Got questions? - Get answers! – http://CycleNuts.link FAQS
