Trail Focus:Trail Focus:
Adapted from the October-December 1997 North Star: The Magazine of the North Country Trail.
Bill Menke asked rhetorically in an article earlier this year, "Is the North Country Trail a historic trail?"
There are places where the trail fairly drips with history, and one of them is the forty miles or so south from Delphos, Ohio, where the NCNST and the Buckeye Trail share the route with the Miami and Erie Trail, the old towpath of the Miami and Erie Canal.
The canal, first under construction in the 1830s, operated until the early part of this century. There are many places between Toledo and Cincinnati where traces of the canal can be seen, but it's still most complete between Delphos and Lockington, and the Miami and Erie Canal Trail covers much of the distance between the two. Along the route are many historic structures, bridges, aquaducts, cuts, and, of course, the canal itself, a marvel of engineering for work entirely done with muscle power. Though the canal lands are a very narrow patch of public ownership, they provide a route for the trail where little other opportunity exists. The 40-mile Miami and Erie Canal Trail was the first state recreational trail to be designated under the Ohio Trails Act, and is administered by the Ohio DNR, Division of Parks and Recreation.
There are a few breaks from the canal towpath, where roads must be followed. The route is blue-blazed throughout. Good shoes and long pants are recommended, as much of this route is through tall grass. Drinking canal water is not recommended, even with treatment; carry insect repellant in summer. CAMPING: Campsites are a problem. Camping is not prohibited on state canal lands south of Delphos, but there are few suitable locations. "The openness of the trail makes camping difficult," Ed Talone wrote of this section on his 1994 thru-hike. MAPS AND OTHER INFORMATION: Buckeye Trail Delphos and St. Marys Section maps; also, the Hutchins Guide (all available from North Country Trail Store) covers the section from Delphos south as far as Lake Loramie. The maps given here are probably sufficent for most users.
DELPHOS, OH 45833 (Pop. 7314) LODGING: Arrow Motel, 718 5th St., (419) 692-0786. RESTAURANTS: Several. GROCERIES: Large, full-service grocery store. OTHER: Laundromat, bank, pharmacy, hardware, doctor, dentist, hospital. POINTS OF INTEREST: The Delphos Canal Commission, a private foundation, has raised the wreckage of the Marguerite, the last surviving canal boat, which dates from the 1850s. It has been restored and is on display near the canal.FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Delphos Chamber of Commerce, 310 N. Main St. (419) 695-1771.
0.0 [0.0] POHLMAN RD (TR136) CROSSING OF MIAMI AND ERIE CANAL TOWPATHFrom this point, the trail is certified for a distance of about 40 miles, only about half of which will be discussed here. The Hutchins guidebook also picks up description at this point. The trail heads south along the towpath, and after a ways departs from the towpath for a short distance, and follows Canal Street through town, passing through a city park, where there are the remains of an old lock, and continues south facing back yards, passing a block from downtown. Shortly to the south, the remains of another old lock are passed, then, after crossing railroad tracks rejoins the original canal towpath. At Climo Street, a white-blazed side trail leads east to Waterworks Park, where there are toilets, water and picnic tables. Outside of town, the trail and the canal generally follow the county line between Allen and Van Wert Counties. The route continues south for another 1.3 miles on the towpath until reaching State Rd.
3.0 [3.0] CROSS STATE RD. Between Delphos and SR81, the canal bed seems little more than a small drainage ditch. The paralleling SR66 is about 0.2 mi. to the east, and the canal route mostly goes south through open fields with little shade, mostly doing double duty as farm lanes along the edge of fields -- a pleasant walk if the sun isn't beating down hard on a hot day; it does go though a few patches of woods to give relief, though. However, the trail tends to not be highly maintained, and much of it is through open farm fields with little shade or cover, especially so for the next few miles south of Delphos. After 0.9 mi, Landrek Road is crossed. Another mile and half and Bloomlock Rd. crosses. After another 1.1 miles, Zion Church Rd. crosses. After another 1.9 mi., SR 81 is crossed. A paralleling road picks up at SR81, and continues alongside the towpath until reaching Bailey Rd., on the north edge of Spencerville.
SPENCERVILLE OH 45887: Restaurants, stores. According to Hutchins, the local police department occasionally allows hikers to camp in a lot the village owns on the north edge of the village.
10.0 [7.0] CROSS BAILEY RD. For the canal enthusiast, the path south from here is probably the more interesting part of this walk, with many old structures, interesting hydrology and more sylvan walking than to the north. Again, the trail departs the towpath to follow a paralleling street through the village (Canal Street, again), past several foot bridges over the watered canal, and past the remains of a canal lock with a historical marker, and rejoins the towpath at Wiltshire Rd., on the south end of the village. The towpath continues south on the west side of the canal for another two miles with a county road paralleling, and SR66 paralleling but a ways back on the far side, before reaching Deep Cut Rd. A historic marker is located at an ODOT rest area off SR66, to the east and north of the Deep Cut Road bridge. At this point, the trail enters Auglaize County. Deep Cut is one of the more interesting relics of the canal along this part of the route, and is a National Historic Landmark. The cut was necessary, as there was no higher-level source of water that could have allowed for canal locks and less digging. Over 6,600 feet long and 50-60 feet deep, it was dug entirely with human and animal muscle power through a glacial moraine, with the laborers making 30 cents and a jigger of whiskey a day -- the whiskey to ward off malaria, which was endemic in the area a century and a half ago, but which has entirely disappeared today. (This has historians, entomologists and epidemiologists puzzled -- what happened to the malaria? It probably had something to do with the clearing of the land and a change in mosquito populations, but no one is quite sure.) The best view of the cut is from the rest area, where there are rest rooms, water, tables, and parking.
12.5 [2.5] CROSS DEEP CUT RD. Follow the towpath south on the west bank, next to a paralleling county road, crossing SR66 along the way, to a point just north of Kossuth where the trail is blocked by a fence and a land dispute; at this point, leave the towpath and follow the paralleling CR66A 0.9 mi to the church in the village at the junction of SR197.
KOSSUTH, OH 45887 (Pop. 61) No services available (except at the church on Sunday morning.)
14.5 [2.0] CROSS SR 197 The Buckeye Trail maps change from the Delphos to the St. Mary's section at this point. South of Kossuth, the towpath bends slightly to the southeast, and after 1.2 miles crosses Barber-Werner Rd. After about another mile, the path crosses a picturesque aquaduct over a small stream. Half a mile further at a bridge, there is a historical marker telling the story of a gruesome slaying on the site in 1854. 0.3 miles farther, the towpath crosses SR66. The canal bends back to the southwest, crossing Lock 14 Rd. after 1.4 miles, and passing Lock 14, a concrete structure built in 1907 to replace the original white oak lock. At one time there was a lock-tenders house, a sawmill, a blacksmith shop, a church, general store, and nearby homes at this lock. From this vicinity, the canal is used as a canoe route to a feeder canal south of St. Mary's, and on to Grand Lake. 2.2 miles farther, the towpath reaches Glynwood Rd.
20.3 [5.8] CROSS GLYNWOOD RD. Just south of the Glynwood Rd. crossing the canal broadens into 40-Acre Pond. This was a turnaround basin and feeder lake for the canal, used to keep water levels stable in the canal. Another pond, slightly to the south, was also created for canal use. The route, now on a dirt trail, swings to the southeast, then swings back to the southwest, and after 2.0 miles, gets into St. Marys and reaches US33, which is crossed under via a concrete aquaduct.
ST. MARYS, OH 45885 (Pop. 8414) was once called Girtytown. LODGING: Grand Lake St. Marys Bed and Breakfast, 524 W. South St., (419) 394-1138. Two motels are also located on the west side of town. RESTAURANTS: Several. GROCERIES: Large, full-service supermarket. OTHER: Bank, laundromat, hardware, doctor, dentist, hospital. FEATURES OF INTEREST: The city of St. Marys is constructing a replica of a canalboat, which can be seen in the park behind the municipal building. NEARBY: Wapokeneta, OH, 12 miles east, is the boyhood home of Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon. There is an air and space museum there. FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact St. Marys Chamber of Commerce, 301 E. Spring St. (419) 394-6202.
23.6 [3.0] CROSS UNDER US-33 The route continues south along the towpath, and generally follows the towpath through the city, although there are a couple of points where the route has to climb up from the towpath and follow sidewalks on city streets, the first at the Old St. Marys Cotton Mill. The route follows the street one block south, reaching SR66 downtown.