Nickel Plate Trail
| Nickel Plate Trail | |
|---|---|
| Length | 38 mi (61 km) |
| Location | Indiana |
| Trailheads |
Rochester Cassville |
| Use | Hiking, Biking, Rollerblading |
| Hiking details | |
| Season | Year round |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Right of way | Nickel Plate Railroad |
| Website | Nickel Plate Trail site |
The Nickel Plate Trail is a rail trail that encompasses 38 miles (61 km) of abandoned railroad corridor in north central Indiana. The trail runs from Rochester to Cassville with plans to connect to Kokomo in the near future.
Route
The northern endpoint of the trail starts is in Rochester in Fulton and travels south into Miami through Macy, Deedsville, Denver to the north of Peru. The trail then uses various roadway combinations and picks back up as a separate trail on the west side of the city. From Peru, the trail heads south through Bunker Hill and Miami in Miami County and ends in Howard County at Cassville.
Plans
Currently, the trail ends in Howard County, just north of the city of Kokomo. Near-future plans are to continue the trail along the current right-of-way below the new US31 bypass by a "lighted tunnel", an at-grade crossing of the new US 35 junction and over the old US 31 via a pedestrian bridge. The trail extension is waiting on a deal between the city of Kokomo and Howard County to begin construction, which is planned for 2012.[1]
Other communities south of Kokomo have expressed interest in connecting to the Nickel Plate Trail. Recently, Tipton started work on a comprehensive plan with hopes of connecting to the Nickel Plate Trail. Should the Nickel Plate Trail connect to Tipton, the trail would then be near 60 miles in length, meeting the same length of the Cardinal Greenway, the current longest rail trail in Indiana. It would also connect Tipton, Sharpsville, Oakford to Kokomo via an extension of the current Industrial Heritage Trail on the city's south side.