Rails to Trails Magazine
The Dungeness River Bridge near Sequim, Washington, along the Olympic Discovery Trail | Photo by John Gussman
Rails to Trails magazine is dedicated to exploring America’s remarkable rail-trails and trail networks, with a focus on the impact they have in communities nationwide. Published quarterly—three times per year in print plus one all-multimedia edition—the magazine is a benefit of membership to Rails to Trails Conservancy. Subscribe now to get great trail content while supporting RTC and the trails movement.
Preview Spring/Summer 2024 Issue
![Eastern Continental Divide tunnel along the Great Allegheny Passage (gaptrail.org) | Photo courtesy Dave Majors](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Eastern-Continental-Divide-tunnel-along-the-Great-Allegheny-Passage_Photo-courtesy-Dave-Majors.jpg)
American Icon: The Great American Rail-Trail Is on Its Way to Fulfilling a Cross-Country Vision
![Debbie Njai sitting - Photo courtesy Black People Who Hike](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Debbie-Njai-sitting-Photo-courtesy-Black-People-Who-Hike.jpg)
Debbie Njai: Breaking Down Barriers for People of Color in the Outdoors
In this issue, we:
- Take a look at how trails and wildlife corridors are working together to keep animals safe and improve the outdoor experience for people too!
- Celebrate the fifth anniversary of the iconic Great American Rail-Trail®, with an eye on how it’s transforming regions—and the work yet-to-come to realize this cross-country vision.
- Get to know Black People Who Hike founder Debbie Njai and the inspiration for her work to connect People of Color to nature and the outdoors.
- Learn about four exceptional individuals who’ve made indelible marks on their communities and shaped the landscape of the nation and the Great American Rail-Trail.
- Check out some cool and unique sights along the Illinois & Canal State Trail … and take in the majestic beauty of Utah’s Moab Canyon Pathway.
- And so much more!
Subscribe to the Magazine
Rails to Trails magazine is a benefit of membership to Rails to Trails Conservancy, which is $18 a year, $4 of which supports the magazine. In addition to the magazine, members receive discounts on RTC gifts and publications.
Read More Magazine Stories
View More Blogs![The Tridge along the 30-mile Pere Marquette Rail Trail in Michigan | Photo by Cory Matteson](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Tridge-along-the-30-mile-Pere-Marquette-Rail-Trail-in-Michigan-Photo-by-Cory-Matteson-800x442-c-default.jpg)
Elements of Gold: Michigan’s Pere Marquette Rail-Trail Is a Special Place for All Seasons
![Clara McCarty Wilt and YWCA friends, likely in the 1920s | Photo courtesy University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections (POR2339)](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Clara-McCarty-Wilt-and-YWCA-Friends-in-the-1920s-Photo-courtesy-University-of-Washington-Libraries-Special-Collections-800x442-c-default.jpg)
First in Class: Washington Trailblazer Clara McCarty Wilt Was UW’s First Graduate
![Alaska's Tony Knowles Coastal Trail | Photo by Jody O. Photos](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Alaska_Tony-Knowles-Coastal-Trail_Photo-by-Jody-O.-Photos-copy-800x442-c-default.jpg)
Wintertime Trail Fun
![U.S. Spruce Production Division splicing an eye into cable during a logging operation | Photo courtesy Bert Kellogg Collection of the North Olympic Library System](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/U.S.-Spruce-Production-Division-splicing-an-eye-into-cable-during-a-logging-operation-Photo-courtesy-Bert-Kellogg-Collection-of-the-North-Olympic-Library-System-800x442-c-default.jpg)
End of the Line: How Timber and Train Tracks Transformed the Olympic Peninsula
![Franco Harris supported the trails and bicycling community in many ways, including as a board member for Rails-to-Trails Conservancy from 1992 to 1997, and as the owner of the Pittsburgh Power bike racing team in the early 1990s. | Photo courtesy Governor Tom Wolf | CC BY 2.0](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Franco-Harris-was-a-board-member-for-RTC-from-1992-to-1997-and-owner-of-the-Pittsburgh-Power-bike-racing-team-in-the-early-1990s.-Photo-courtesy-Governor-Tom-Wolf-CC-BY-2.0-800x442-c-default.jpg)
Remembering Franco Harris—Trails and Bicycling Advocate
![A Chinese railroad worker on the developing Northern Pacific line in 1905 | Photo courtesy University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A-Chinese-railroad-worker-on-the-developing-Northern-Pacific-line-in-1905-Photo-courtesy-University-of-Washington-Libraries-Special-Collections--800x442-c-default.jpg)
Remembering the Chinese Forerunners Who Built the Northern Pacific
Digital Feature Videos
In the all-multimedia Green Issue, Rails to Trails magazine takes a closer look at the leadership, public investment and community collaboration that is fueling efforts to create and connect trails—and bring this essential infrastructure to communities that have long been disinvested and under-resourced.
In Milwaukee, local leaders and trail advocates are working together to revitalize the 30th Street Corridor, once one of America’s most vibrant and prodigious manufacturing areas. Learn about the community’s vision to reignite the corridor and create new and vibrant prospects for commerce, economic development, recreation and active transportation—within the corridor and beyond. The corridor is a key segment of the developing 700-mile Route of the Badger, an RTC TrailNation™ project.
Featuring:
Willie Smith, Northwest Side CDC; Danitra Jones, Northwest Side CDC; Ammar Nsoroma, Red, Bike & Green-Milwaukee; and Willie Karidis, Rails to Trails Conservancy
Produced by Rails to Trails magazine and Johnson Media Consulting.
In California, billions of dollars are being invested through the state’s Active Transportation Program to create equitable access to trails in under-resourced communities and generate new economic, health, climate and active transportation benefits. Here, we explore two projects in the Bay Area regional trail network—the Richmond Greenway and the developing West Oakland Link—with a focus on their impact for residents, neighborhoods and the region.
Featuring:
Najari Smith, Rich City Rides; Toody Maher, Pogo Park; Gavin Lohry, Metropolitan Transportation Commission; Ms. Margaret Gordon, West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project; and Laura Cohen, Rails to Trails Conservancy
Produced by Rails to Trails magazine and DS Simon Media.
Photo Essays
![The observation deck on the Town of Kansas Bridge offers stellar views of the Missouri River, the railroads that run along it and the bridges that cross it. Especially at sunset, the bridge is a popular spot to enjoy the river vistas. | Photo by Cindy Barks](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/16-Riverfront-Heritage-Trail_Town-of-Kansas-Bridge-at-dusk-Kansas-City-MO_Photo-by-Cindy-Barks-800x442-c-default.jpg)
A View From: Kansas City’s Riverfront Heritage Trail
![Photo by Cindy Barks](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Photo-by-Cindy-Barks-800x442-c-default.jpg)
Destination: Southern New Mexico’s Cloud-Climbing Trestle Trail
![As a former train route, the Historic Railroad Trail is mostly flat along its 3.7-mile route. The flat terrain makes the trail a popular spot for people of all fitness levels. | Photo by Cindy Barks](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/As-a-former-800x442-c-default.jpg)
A View From … The Historic Railroad Trail in Nevada
![Longeberger Basket Company former world headquarters along the T.J. Evans Panhandle Trail in Ohio | BY-NC-ND 2.0](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Longeberger-Basket-Company-former-world-headquarters-along-the-T.J.-Evans-Panhandle-Trail-in-Ohio-BY-NC-ND-2.0--800x442-c-default.jpg)
America’s Most Unique Trailside Attractions
![The park at the Bug Light lighthouse is a popular spot for runners, bicyclists and dog walkers. South Portlander Mark MacIsaac, shown here with his dog Phoebe, is among the locals who use the park on a regular basis. Photo by Cindy Barks.](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2-Photo-by-Cindy-Barks-800x442-c-default.jpg)
Eastern Trail in Portland, Maine Photo Essay
![Wyoming’s Medicine Bow Rail Trail passes through large stands of lodgepole, spruce, fir and aspen; traverses meadows of grass and sagebrush; crosses numerous streams; and skirts dozens of swamps, bogs, ponds and lakes. Photo by Amber Travsky.](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/50-Photo-by-Amber-Travsky-800x442-c-default.jpg)
50 Great Rail-Trails in 50 States
![A Bayshore Bikeway cyclist navigates an intersection about 4.5 miles south of the City of Coronado, near the Silver Strand State Beach. The park features a long stretch of sandy beach along the Pacific coastline. | Photo by Cindy Barks](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2-800x442-c-default.jpg)
San Diego’s Bayshore Bikeway Photo Essay
![Provo, Utah, resident Veronica Hernandez takes a summer-morning ride along the Provo River Parkway. The 15.2-mile rail-trail is also popular with walkers and runners. | Photo by Cindy Barks](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Provo-Utah-resident-Veronica-Hernandez-takes-a-summer-morning-ride-along-the-Provo-River-Parkway.-The-15.2-mile-rail-trail-is-also-popular-with-walkers-and-runners.-Photo-by-Cindy-Barks-800x442-c-default.jpg)
Utah’s Golden Spoke Trail Network Photo Essay
![“It was a fantastic experience that really opened my eyes to the potential of a well-planned-out trail system,” said Karidis. “Pick friends to ride with who make you laugh and enjoy each moment—you are lucky.” Wille Karidis, Eric Oberg, Eli Griffen and Marty Cader ready for an adventure on the Ohio to Erie Trail | Photo by Marty Cader](https://www.railstotrails.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/photo-16_avengers-assemble_photo-by-marty-cader-800x442-c-default.jpg)
Ohio to Erie Trail Photo Essay
Subscribe to the Magazine
The magazine is a benefit of membership to Rails to Trails Conservancy, which is $18 a year, $4 of which supports the magazine. In addition to the magazine, members receive discounts on RTC gifts and publications.
Past Magazine Issues
View digital versions of past issues below or contact us for back issues.
We Want to Hear From You!
Our members always have plenty to say (and write) about Rails to Trails—and we’re always eager to hear it! If you enjoyed or have comments on a recent issue of the magazine, please submit a short letter to our editor. If we can—we’ll print it in the next edition! You can also contact us for former issues and articles of Rails to Trails not listed in the archive. Don’t forget to check out our TrailBlog for more stories.