The Nickel Plate Trail stretches from Kokomo, IN to Rochester, IN. There is a gap in the middle of the trail at Peru, IN. It is part of the Great American Trail. The entire length is paved, flat, straight and mostly smooth. I parked on the northern end, at the trailhead, 41.05488, -86.20243.
The trail's northern segment ended at Lover's Lane in Peru and the road didn't have any shoulders but it was only a few hundred yards to a much safer road. The remaining streets were much safer. Broadway was busy but fairly wide and only a couple of blocks. The route I used in town was given on Google maps, bike layer. The streets are not marked with trail signage and there were quite a few turns.
I stopped at the southern edge of town to eat at Wings Etc. The manager invited me to park my bike inside, near the kitchen door. After a nice lunch I was ready to tackle the southern portion of the trail.
I turned around just outside of Kokomo at a busy road crossing, 40.53453, -86.12582. There is another trailhead here. I didn't enter town but the trail ends there. Then it was 41 miles back to the car.
This trail has been on my to do list for some time. I was excited to finally ride it. The trail did not disappoint. It was a very enjoyable ride. The few road crossings were mostly driveways or very quiet roads. There were benches, maps and repair stations along the way. Adjacent to the trail were pastures with horses grazing and a landscaping business with an incredibly landscaped pond. I spotted four deer during my ride along with numerous small animals. I would definitely ride this again if I return to the area.
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