Phases 5 and 6 of an 88-mile trail system are under construction and, once complete, it will be the “longest contiguous MTB-optimized trail system east of the Mississippi River.” 58 miles of singletrack have already been built, and the rest could be finished before the end of 2025.
So, which state do you think lays claim to this impressive superlative? I’ll give you a hint: Arkansas isn’t east of the Mississippi river. Is it Vermont? North Carolina?
No.
It’s Ohio.
Building an economic driver in the poorest part of Ohio
The Baileys Trail System is being built in Wayne National Forest — the state’s only national forest. Located near the city of Athens, the terrain consists of rolling Appalachian hills that are more akin to nearby West Virginia than the flat terrain most people associate with Ohio. This expansive trail system will connect three local communities: Chauncey, Nelsonville, and Buchtel.
According to the Economic Development Administration, Athens County is known as a “persistent poverty county, meaning that for 30 years, more than 20% of the population has lived in poverty,” said Jessie Powers, Executive Director of the Outdoor Recreation Council of Appalachia (ORCA). This region of the state boomed during the coal era. Since the coal industry went bust, “our communities basically have seen decades of economic decline,” said Powers.
The construction of one of the largest mountain bike trail systems in the Eastern USA is intended to revitalize the local economy by creating an “economic generator.” Powers said that the mountain bike trails will “generate sustainable economic development, and then really provide that community health benefit.”
According to economic studies conducted prior to trail construction, “The cumulative 10-year economic impacts projected for the Baileys Trail System were roughly $53 million.” And so far, they’re on track: in the first year after the first phase was built, from June 2020 to July 2021, “the direct economic impact to Athens County was quantified to be $3.6 million, where the total — both direct and indirect — was quantified to be $5.3 million,” according to Powers.
88 miles of interconnected singletrack
Once the full build is complete, 88 miles of interconnected singletrack will wind through the Wayne National Forest. Powers said that they hope to build a minimum of 25 miles this year but that if things go well, the final 30 miles could be completed before the end of 2025.
So what will riders find when they visit the Baileys Trail System?
“This trail system has everything from beginner to advanced,” said Powers. “We started with the beginner portion intentionally to kind of fill out the gap in what we could offer here.” Further south, near Athens, the region already boasted some 90 miles of singletrack, but most of it consisted of fairly challenging old-school trails. Intentionally building beginner trails has helped the region quickly become a true MTB destination.
“But we started building some advanced trails in 2023, so some of those are done, and then more [will] come online,” she continued. Some of the most advanced trails in the network will be constructed this year.
The trail system primarily offers flow-style machine-built singletrack. While there isn’t a ton of elevation to work with, the trails will feature plenty of berms, rollers, and some jumps. However, don’t expect any big gravity lines — these are long trails that can be connected for lengthy rides deep in the forest.
As for technical features, “We do have some rock, but definitely not as much rock as you would see in, say, West Virginia,” said Powers. Still, professional trail builders tasked with constructing advanced trails have a way of making the most of the available terrain to build the most interesting trails possible.
And what a cast of builders has ORCA employed: IMBA Trail Solutions did some of the first work on the network, followed by Appalachian Dirt. Linear Active, one of the only professional trail building companies in Ohio, has been heavily involved in the project. This year, the big projects will be tackled by renowned builders Rock Solid and Dirt Sculpt.
$10.6 million in federal grant money is funding the build-out
The bulk of the trail construction has been funded by $10.6 million of federal grant money. Thankfully, the grant money has already been allocated, so the current funding freeze won’t slow the project down.
Of that $10.6 million, $9.1 million has been allocated for the trail build and trailhead infrastructure, with $1.5 million supporting ORCA. ORCA is essentially the management infrastructure required to coordinate a project of such a massive scale across 17 counties and three municipalities.
The main trailhead facility is being built in the town of Chauncey. About $2.7 million from the federal funds has been earmarked for the Chauncey trailhead facility, and ORCA has secured an additional ~$6 million, meaning that the trailhead will be an impressive ~$9 million facility.
The Chauncey Trailhead already “has a new bikeway extension, two new parking lots, [and] new playground equipment,” according to Powers. “We’re going to put in a new water line and build a visitor hub this year, and a bike washing station.” And in the future, they plan to build a campground.
58 miles of singletrack are ready to ride
While the final build will take place in 2025, Baileys already boasts an impressive 58 miles of singletrack that are ready to ride. The trails are already attracting tourists to the region and positively impacting the local economy.
But the trails aren’t just for the tourists — first and foremost, they’re for the locals.
Powers shared a touching story of how the trails are impacting the locals: “Our office was in Chauncey for a while, and we saw a teeny, tiny house. These people are definitely low-income, and the father and son are putting together a new bike on the front porch, and he wants to be a professional mountain biker. We’re seeing a lot of excitement in these communities.”
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