NCR Trail: Start at Southern Endpoint

ABOUT THE TRAIL
The NCR Trail (official name is Torrey C. Brown Trail) is nearly 20 miles long in Maryland. It continues into PA for another 20 miles. The trail is 10’ wide with a stone dust surface & it has mile markers along the whole length. It runs along the Gunpowder River & it is shaded. For some nice details, go this webiste: [Northern Central Rail Trail (NCRT) – Birders Guide to Maryland and DC (birdersguidemddc.org)](https://birdersguidemddc.org/site/northern-central-rail-trail-ncrt/)

SKILL LEVEL
Beginners can enjoy this trail because it is wide and fairly flat compared to other bike trails.

DISTANCE OPTIONS
Participants can turn back at any time they wish. These are just suggestions.

OPTION A: 14 miles total. Bike up to the Monkton Station. Enjoy a break before biking back.
OPTION B: 22 miles miles total. After stopping at Monkton Station, continue up to Gnome Hill for another break then bike back.
OPTION C: 40 miles total. Same as above but continue north until you get to the PA border (19.9 miles one way).
OPTION D: 43 miles total. Continue for 1.3 miles on the Heritage Rail Trail to the town of New Freedom for a rest stop in town before biking back. There are a couple of food options right off the trail.
OPTION E: Bike up to the endpoint in York, PA (27 miles from the PA border line).
(There is a 16-mile train ride that runs on a limited schedule from New Freedom up to Brillhart Station (just south of York). $30 one-way, 1.5 hours. See Northern Central Railway for more info.

PARKING -
Option A: Mile 0
Ashland Road parking lot. There is no street address. Use the red pin in the map to open a navigation app on your mobile phone or type in "245 Ashland Rd Cockeysville, MD." If lot is full and street parking is full, go to option B. (This has never happened to us so far!)

Option B: Mile 0.5
Paper Mill parking lot. Take York Road (Route 45) to Cockeysville (Exit 18 off I-83). Turn right (east) on Ashland Road. Bear left onto Paper Mill Road. Go less than ½ mile, crossing the trail to the parking lot on the left
Option C: Mile 2
Phoenix parking lot. Take York Road north of Shawan Road in Hunt Valley (Exit 20 off I-83). Turn right (east) on Phoenix Road. Travel 1.7 miles and look for the parking lot.

THE PLAN
Bikers: Plan to arrive at 9:45 AM so you have time to find parking, get your bike, water bottles, your helmet on and check your tires. We'll do roll call and an icebreaker at 10:00 and then depart. If you're arriving late, leave a comment in the event comments and try to catch up with us at Monkton Station. If you parked at B or C, let us know so we stop to pick you up on the way.

Social meetup on the trail

• Monkton Train Station: M 7.2 It has restrooms, water, telephones, benches & picnic tables. The restored 1898 station serves as a museum, gift shop, & ranger station.
• Monkton Hotel Cafe, across the parking lot, for cooling down, playing a table-top game, just relaxing, etc. Coffee, tea, bakeries and sandwiches.

At the 11-mile mark there is Gnome Hill, a 10-foot high hill with hundreds of garden gnomes to check out. There was also a water and snack station at Gnome Hill (with a cash collection jar).

Required bike tires: Due to stone dust surface, people recommend hybrid or thicker tires but we've biked it twice with road tires (although they aren't the thinnest). I don't know if E-bikes are allowed at this time.

BIKE RENTALS
A bike rental/repair shop is nearby.

BATHROOMS
Restrooms/Portables are at Paper Mill, Phoenix, Glencoe, Monkton (best option), White Hall, Bentley Springs, & Freeland.
WATER
Water is at Sparks, Monkton, & White Hall.

Sparks Nature Center at Sparks Rd is open Weekends 10 -3.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Bring: Cash - if you want to use Gnome Hill's outdoor drink/snack shop. Water bottles, snacks, biking gloves, bike bell, bike lock, helmet visor, sunglasses, bike tube, pump, patch, first aid kit, mobile phone with nav app installed (e.g. Google maps, we use RidewithGPS). If you get leg cramps during or after a ride, take electrolytes before and during your ride (or add salt and magnesium to your water). A change of clothes for your ride home or a car seat cover to absorb sweat.
Clothing: Wear biking gloves and durable clothing so that if you do fall, your skin is protected. Avoid wearing all black, all dark grey, all dark brown, or all dark blue, which blends in with pavement, especially while riding through a shady segment. Consider wearing something light to help others notice you.

REQUIREMENTS
Participants must wear tightly secured helmets when on their bike.
Be proactive to avoid a fall/crash and minimize injury:
· Keep a distance between yourself and other bikers. If the biker ahead of you suddenly stops, you should be able to avoid hitting them.
· Don’t make stops on the trail. Pull over to the side and use hand gestures to let people know you’re slowing down to make a stop.
· Yelling out “Passing on your left” and/or ringing a bike bell as you approach people ahead of you, so they don’t inadvertently move in your line of travel.
· Slowing down to wait, rather than speeding up when trying to pass people at the same time walkers/bikers are approaching you from the opposite direction.
· Avoid potholes and debris and slow down when approaching bumps
· When approaching road crossings and iffy situations, triple-check before crossing and don’t let yourself be distracted by talking, etc.
· Ensure your helmet is tightly secured so that it won’t move if you hit the ground.

MEETUP POLICIES
Participants should understand that biking is an inherently dangerous activity, and an accident could happen at any time. Participation is at your own risk.
An RSVP of “Yes” to an event is your digital signature acknowledging that you have read, understood, and agree with Meetup’s and MD Rail Trail Biking’s policies, esp. section 6 “Release” and section 8.2 ” Limitation of Liability,” found at https://www.meetup.com/terms/
You should not hold the organizers, leaders, and other participants accountable for any injury that occurs during a meetup event.