Stretching more than 20 miles from Kenneth, in Cass County, to the south side of Winamac, the Panhandle Pathway is a fully paved bicycle/walking trail along the old Pennsylvania Railroad. At Kenneth, its southern terminus is about one mile west of France Park, and plans are underway to connect the trail to the park, with a longer-range vision of extending the trail into Logansport and making connections with other trails.
Upon reaching the south side of Winamac, the Pathway gives way to the Winamac Parkway, a linear park along the western edge of downtown following the Pennsylvania bed to State Road 14. There’s a picnic shelter where the trail meets Main Street, and the park is only a short block or two from Winamac’s downtown commercial blocks. A short ride eastward on Main Street leads you to the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Bridge, which pedestrians and bicyclists can use to cross the Tippecanoe River into the Winamac Town Park, which has a trail looping it.
Long-term visions lead the trail beyond the Winamac Parkway northward to the Tippecanoe River State Park and the North Judson Erie Trail, which runs about 11 miles between North Judson to the northwest and Starke County Road 700 East. (We hope someday to see the North Judson Erie Trail connect all the way to the Monterey Erie Trail, too! (See below.))
This short video displays fun on the trail, on the river, and at the state park, plus tells you a little about our fair community. This new video provides more information about the Panhandle and our community.
A smaller Monterey section of the Erie Trail exists, but does not currently connect to the longer North Judson branch, although it is part of U.S. Bike Route 35, which runs from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, to Mississippi, and connects to the Winamac Town Park via Pulaski County Bike Route 1, which will become part of the under-development Pulaski County Bike Route Network.