Another beautiful fall day and another trip to the Toledo, OH area to check out a trail. The trail we picked is the Towpath trail that travels from Farnsworth Metropark to Providence Metropark. We accessed it between those parks at the Bend View Metropark.
History of the Towpath Trail
The Towpath trail was once used by mules to tow boats along the Erie and Miami Canals. It was constructed in the mid 1800’s to connect Cincinnati and Toledo allowing crops to reach outside markets. The rise of the railroads in the early 20th century made travel by canal obsolete, ending commercial use of the canals. Luckily, this scenic section along the Maumee River was preserved and today is used by residents and visitors. It can be accessed from each of the metroparks along the route.
Our Adventure
We parked near the vault porto-o-potty and found a trail map and the entrance of the connector trail next to it. We followed the connector trail which immediately took us into the woods. It wound around and after about a quarter mile, we came to the Towpath Trail. There was a sign indicating the distance to the BendView Shelter and the Providence Metropark. We decided to walk toward the right and the Providence Metropark. Although we didn’t make it quite to the Providence Metropark, we had a nice 6.4 mile walk in the woods.
The start of the Towpath trail was a continuation of the walk in the woods. The trees were pretty dense on each side of the trail and we could not see the Maumee River, at least at the start of our hike. Because of all the trees, the squirrels were quite abundant. We heard and saw so many of them running around in the trees and across the trail. They were busy preparing for winter.
As we progressed along the trail, we started to see homes behind the trees on the right and even a big open field on the left. A little further, we finally saw the Maumee River on the left. We had so many pretty views of it, while on the right side we started to see some water, too. As we continued along the trail we saw some ruins that may have been part of the lock system. After walking 3.2 miles we decided it was time to turn around and head back to the car.
Sunny’s Perspective
There were squirrels! I had so much fun listening, looking, and smelling the squirrels. There were a couple sections where they were a lot of them and I really had fun trying to chase them. The trail also had really good smells. We didn’t see too many other people so I could zig zag across the trail to wherever my nose led. It was a great day in the woods!
Our Rating
Sunny and I give the Towpath trail 3.5 out of 4 paws up. It’s a beautiful trail right through the woods with views of the Maumee River on the left. It is a nice long trail that connects several parks, which provides restrooms and other facilities. It has an interesting history and, at least on the day we visited, it was peaceful without too many other people. We enjoyed seeing the river and the feeling of a walk in the woods. The trail is about the size of a one-lane road providing plenty of room when passing other pedestrians. The trail is crushed gravel and fairly flat making it good for those using strollers, walking, or riding bikes. All in all this is another really nice trail in the Toledo, OH area.
How Do I Get There?
Parking and the ability to access the Towpath Trail is available at the Farnsworth, Bend View, and Providence Metroparks. We chose the Bend View Metropark which had plenty of parking and a vault restroom. To get to the Bend View MetroPark use 1063 S. River Road, Waterville, OH in your GPS. From YS-24 take exit 57 toward Whitehouse/Grand Rapids. Turn onto OH-295 and continue south for just over a mile, then turn left onto S. River Road. Continue for just under two miles and turn right at the Bend View Metropark sign. Follow the road to the right. The entrance to the connector trail that leads to the towpath trail is near the restroom. The connector trail is about a quarter of a mile.
For more information about the Towpath trail, check out this website: