I had a short day at work today, so I decided to get some walking in on a trail that I have never been on before. When I Googled "Indiana trails", the top result is a website called http://www.indianatrails.org/ This is an excellent website with information on many trails here in Indiana. It looks like there is a plan in place to interconnect various trails in the state, which will be great when done. After a brief search of the website, I realized that the Zionsville Rail Trail is very close to the hotel I am staying at.
I have been working some long hours the last cople of months, and I have not been able to do any hiking or backpacking. I am trying to stay in shape, but it is always a struggle where I jhave to set a side a block of time in my crazy schedule.
I drove to Starkey Park, which is a 77 acre park in Zionsville, Indiana that is named after Lucile Starkey who bequeathed a large section of the land to the Town in 1974 for use as a nature park.It is a very beautiful park with several connecting nature trails.
There are two separate trails with steep wooden stairs that lead down to Eagle Creek. From here, it is a short distance to a massive boardwalk that has a long ascent to the rail trail. The trail starts from here. There is a nice picnic spot and view from the top of the old railroad bridge that overlooks Eagle Creek. I took a few pictures of Eagle Creek over the top of the fence on the bridge before heading north on the trail. I only had the Blackberry 8300 for taking pictures, so they are not as good as I normally take with a better camera.
The southern 1 mile of the rail-trail, is also called the Nancy Burton Trail. It passes the small Nancy Burton park, which has a porta potty for those who are curious about where the restroom facilities are located. The southern 1 mile of trail is covered with crushed limestone, which I happen to prefer over the paved trail any day. It is very nice to walk on. It also would not be difficult for bicycling unless it was a very wet day. The southern part of the trail is up on a large embankment and passes through some beautiful woods.
The northern 2.5 miles of the Zionsville Rail Trail is paved, which I don't like as much as the dirt nature trails or even the crushed limestone, however this is a multi-use trail for bicycles, walkers, runners, etc. I have had issues with plantar fasciitis in the past, which causes terrific heel pain. I now wear some good New Balance walking shoes with Powersteps arch supports, and have not had any problems for a few years now.I have to admit I am one of those people that gets all tingly when I am on a trail. I really love being outdoors. It puts me in a zone, and is not only health exercise, it really helps the mind also. When I have more time, I would like to explore this trail further north.
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