Detailed route information for the Summit Metro Parks Bike & Hike Trail

The Summit Metro Parks Bike & Hike Trail is a paved all-purpose trail in the northeastern part of Summit County (Ohio). It consists of two main sections:

1. A north-south section, approximately 10 miles long. The southern end is near the intersection of State Routes 8 and 303. The northern end is at the county line near Alexander Road, although the trail continues into Cuyahoga County as the All-Purpose Trail in the Cleveland Metroparks Bedford Reservation.
2. A loop section, approximately 20 miles long, through areas of Hudson, Silver Lake, Munroe Falls, and Stow. This loop is not a continuous trail, and following the entire loop requires riding on some public streets and roads shared with motor vehicle traffic.

Look for these "Bike Route" signs to
follow the on-street sections of the
Summit Metro Parks Bike & Hike Trail

The first time I tried to ride the whole loop section was about 12 years ago, on a mid-fall day much like today, with a chill in the air and some rain; there may have even been a few snowflakes falling. When I hit the first on-street sections, there was a detour due to some road construction, plus I missed some of the "Bike Route" signs, and I got lost. Eventually, I navigated the entire route, but probably spent an extra hour of trial-and-error finding my way around.

The page for the Bike & Hike Trail on the Summit Metro Parks web site has a map, and most of the on-street route can be deciphered. The page also lists all of the parking areas and trailheads for the entire trail.

I thought it might be nice for those who are into navigation technology to provide detailed route information for those planning a ride on the Bike & Hike Trail. I added a few routes to the Century Cycles Ride With GPS profile. All of the routes start at the State Route 303 trailhead.

Two of the routes follow the Summit Metro Parks' recommended route for the Bike & Hike Trail loop. One goes clockwise, the other goes counter-clockwise.

The trail runs pretty near to the city of Kent. With it many options for restaurants and coffee shops, Kent is a popular destination for many cyclists in the area, so I provided two additional routes that detour off of the main Bike & Hike Trail loop and go into downtown Kent. Again, both a clockwise and counter-clockwise version of the loop are included:

• Summit Metro Parks Bike & Hike Trail Clockwise Loop
• Summit Metro Parks Bike & Hike Trail Counter-Clockwise Loop
• Summit Metro Parks Bike & Hike Trail Clockwise Loop to Kent
• Summit Metro Parks Bike & Hike Trail Counter-Clockwise Loop to Kent

You can also find these links at this page on our web site. From each route page, you can print a cue sheet to follow along with while you ride, or download the route data to load into your own GPS device.

DISCLAIMER: Your use of this route information indicates your acceptance of all responsibility for its use. Ride safely, legally, and responsibly, and respect private property. Accessibility and suitability of roads and trails may change due to factors beyond our control; check local conditions before proceeding.