TART Trail

The Traverse Area Recreational Trail (TART Trail) is a rail trail in Michigan and is part of U.S. Bicycle Route 35. It is a paved, non-motorized recreational trail of 10.5-mile (16.9 km) in length that extends from the west side of Traverse City (M-22) to Acme (M-72). Most, but not all, of the trail follows the 19th-century roadbed of the former Chicago and West Michigan Railway.

TART trail
Location within the state of Michigan
Location	Grand Traverse County, MI, US
Nearest city	Traverse City, Michigan
Coordinates	44°45′59″N 85°37′25″W
Established	1991
Governing body	Traverse City Department of Public Works Grand Traverse County Road Commission
Length	10.5 mi (16.9 km)
Trailheads	Traverse City, Michigan Acme, Michigan
Use	Cycling, Hiking
Trail difficulty	Easy
Season	All
Surface	Paved
Website	Official site

The trail intersects other non-motorized trails in greater Traverse City, including the Boardman Lake Trail that skirts Boardman Lake, the Leelanau Trail with a connection to Suttons Bay, and the Vasa Pathway, a system of loop trails constructed for cross-country skiing and other non-motorized recreational use in the Pere Marquette State Forest east of Traverse City.

The original TART Trail was constructed in 1991–95. It was enlarged and extended several times in 1995–2005. Eventually the trail will connect to the Little Traverse Wheelway, but for now segment 1 is being worked out to connect to Elk Rapids.[1] Segment 2 between Lautner and Bates roads has no completion time, while segment 1 on is in a preliminary planning phase from Elk Rapids to Bates Road.

Points of interest along the trail include:

• The shoreline of Grand Traverse Bay
• Clinch Park along the downtown bay-front
• Downtown Traverse City
• Traverse City State Park
• Traverse City Area District Library
• Beaches
• Hotels,Restaurants and Resorts
• Local and regional transportation (Bay Area Transportation Authority)
• TART in Town (on-street bike route)
• Darrow Park
• F&M Park

The trail's acronym "TART" pays tribute to one of the best-known agricultural products of the Traverse City area, the tart cherry or pie cherry. For similar reasons, the local airport is called Cherry Capital Airport.