Kal-Haven Trail - Kalamazoo to South Haven

[davenacy]

Anyone ever done this trail? I'll have some time to kill Saturday, July 31 and am looking to get some miles in.

[Mike]

It's a great trail, Dave. Runs about 30 miles, depending on where you get on. Crushed limestone and fairly hard packed pretty much the whole way wish a few paved sections at either end.

[davenacy]

Yesterday was a perfect day to ride from the Kal-Haven 10th Street trailhead northwest of Kalamazoo to South Haven and back (~65 miles round trip). The trail requires a $3 permit and is well maintained end-to-end. Kal-Haven meanders through hardwood forests, sprinkled with a few farms and small towns.

At the midpoint of the trail is Bloomingdale. The town was the scene of an oil boom in the 1930's. Today it has a nice park with a small museum just off the trail. There's a small grocery store to grab what you need to refuel to continue in either direction.

The ride was twice what I've attempted so far. If I had to do it over again, I'd start in South Haven and ride to Kalamazoo and back. It may have been from fatigue, but I was 2 miles per hour slower on my return trip. It think it's more likely that there's an uphill grade from South Haven to Kalamazoo.

All in all, it was a great day to be cycling. Mission accomplished.