• When possible, carpool to the parking lots.
• If you are within walking distance of the greenways, consider riding your bike or walking to the greenway as opposed to driving.
• There are no lines in most of the parking lots, so be sure not to take up more space than needed when parking.  Leave enough room for your neighbor to get in and out of their car too.
• Be sure to store any valuables out of sight.  There has been an increase in break-ins around the greenway parking lots with the increase in use.
• Make sure you lock your vehicle while using the trail.
• Be courteous to everyone on the greenway during these high use months.  If on a bike, yield to those on foot.  If traveling by foot, leave space on your left for passing.

Enjoy the weather and have fun on the trails, the hot summer months are right around the corner and who knows when the rainy season will return!

Remember to Lock Your Car Doors!

December 2009 Big Creek Greenway Events

Biking and walking events are scheduled on the Big Creek Greenway in the coming weeks.  It looks like they are both individually organized (nothing official).

Sunday December 6th, 2009

Someone over at oacs-atlanta.com is organizing a kid-friendly bike ride get together on Sunday December 6th at 11am.  They are meeting at the Starbucks on North Point Parkway (next to Barnes and Noble near Mansell Road) and riding from Mansell Road to the end of the Alpharetta Greenway north of the YMCA and back.  Sign up for the ride here if you are interested.

Wednesday December 9th, 2009

Sticks and Strides Fitness Walking Club is hosting a Big Creek Greenway fitness walk at the Forsyth County Bethelview Road entrance on December 9th.  You can discuss and find out more details about the walk at Meetup.com.

Happy Trailing!

Forsyth Big Creek Greenway Phase 1 End of Trail

Phase 1 of the Forsyth County Big Creek Greenway trail was originally scheduled to open in early/mid November. With all the heavy rains and flooding in the area recently, that has been pushed back. It is now scheduled to open on December 2nd, just after Thanksgiving and just in time to exercise away those leftover turkey sandwiches.

The longest phase of the Forsyth Greenway, Phase 1 stretches between McFarland Parkway and Atlanta Highway 9.  It offers more of the same as Phase 2 and 3 with a mixture of paved areas and boardwalks.  The additional 4.5 miles of trail will make the Forsyth Greenway a popular spot for biking making the total trail 6.7 miles long (13.4 miles roundtrip.) [Phase 1 First Impressions]

So enjoy Thanksgiving break and get out to the Greenway while the weather is nice to make room for the winter holidays right around the corner.  Oh yeah, and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

The beginning of the Big Creek Greenway Forsyth at McFarland Parkway.

This weekend I changed my normal walking of the Greenway and dusted off my bike. Being on wheels allowed me to get further on the Forsyth Big Creek Greenway than I have been before, and I decided to continue on past Highway 9 heading towards McFarland Parkway and see how far I could get before the trail was not completed. To my surprise the paving and boardwalks are complete all the way down to McFarland Parkway, event though that phase of the greenway has not opened yet. Even more surprising were the number of people using this part of the trail. [photos of phase 1]

Since phase 1 is not officially open, it is not as maintained as phase 2 and 3 on the trail.  Debris remains on the trail from the recent flooding, and sides of the boardwalks do not have grass yet like the completed portions.  In addition, the crosswalks over Union Hill and Highway 9 are not completed yet.  It looks like there will be a light for crossing at Highway 9, and just a simple crosswalk at Union Hill.  Use caution when crossing the road, as commuters are not used to having pedestrian crossings yet.

With all that is not complete on the new phase of the trail, a majority is actually finished off.  Rest stations are easily found, 2 every half mile.  Fences are up near GA 400 to keep you from wandering onto the highway.  The boardwalks are stained, and parking areas exist at Union Hill and McFarland.

A hornets nest on the left side of the trail (heading North) about 15 feet in the air. It looked around 2 feet tall.

As for scenery, this trail offers more of the same from the rest of the Forsyth Greenway.  You can see Big Creek River a bit more often, and a few more bridges cross the river.  There is one entrance to the trail from an unfinished neighborhood near Union Hill.  I didn’t see much in the ways of wildlife beyond squirrels, birds, and a large hornets nest.

I enjoyed my ride through phase 1, adding an additional 8 miles (round trip) onto the length of the trail.  The area directly north of McFarland Parkway was very familiar to me, as my old neighbor and I used to go 4 wheeling back in the area after rain storms to pull out trucks stuck in the mud.  The trail follows the same utility roads we used to ride on.  Phase 1 between McFarland and Highway 9 will be a great addition once opened, making the trail more usable for those looking for a nice long bike ride.  The entire distance can be done on bike in about an hour and a half going at a leisurely pace.  That is how long it took me stopping to take pictures.  Enjoy this section, though I do recommend waiting until it opens officially this Fall.

• Photos of Forsyth Big Creek Greenway Phase 1 Between McFarland Parkway and Highway 9