Season All Website Officail site Established 1991 Trail difficulty Easy | Surface Paved Nearest city Traverse City Length 10.5 mi (16.9 km) Uses Cycling, Hiking | |
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Location Grand Traverse County, MI, US Governing body Traverse City Department of Public Works
Grand Traverse County Road Commission Trailheads Traverse City, Michigan
Acme, Michigan Management Traverse City Department of Public Works | ||
The Traverse Area Recreational Trail (TART Trail) is a rail trail in Michigan and is part of U.S. Bicycle Route 35. It is a paved, non-motorized recreational trail of 10.5-mile (16.9 km) in length that extends from the west side of Traverse City (M-22) to Acme (M-72). Most, but not all, of the trail follows the 19th-century roadbed of the former Chicago and West Michigan Railway.
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Map of Traverse Area Recreation Trail, Traverse City, MI, USA
The trail intersects other non-motorized trails in greater Traverse City, including the Boardman Lake Trail that skirts Boardman Lake, the Leelanau Trail with a connection to Suttons Bay, and the Vasa Pathway, a system of loop trails constructed for cross-country skiing and other non-motorized recreational use in the Pere Marquette State Forest east of Traverse City.
The original TART Trail was constructed in 1991–95. It was enlarged and extended several times in 1995–2005. Eventually the trail will connect to the Little Traverse Wheelway, but for now segment 1 is being worked out to connect to Elk Rapids. Segment 2 between Lautner and Bates roads has no completion time, while segment 1 on is in a preliminary planning phase from Elk Rapids to Bates Road.
Points of interest along the trail include:
The trail's acronym "TART" pays tribute to one of the best-known agricultural products of the Traverse City area, the tart cherry or pie cherry. For similar reasons, the local airport is called Cherry Capital Airport.
TART in Town
TART in Town is a cross-town route that uses surface streets to go from one side of town to the other. Points of interest include: