Swamp Rabbit Trail in Greenville, South Carolina

Swamp Rabbit Trail is part of the rails to trails program that is designed to create a thirteen mile trail system from downtown Greenville to Traveler's Rest, South Carolina along what used to be a rail line that stretched up to River Falls near Jones Gap. The trail is named after the rail system that was known for running through patches of wetlands. The trail existing trail is a mix of street based trail, greenway trail and natural surface trail. The greenway trail sections include a 5' section of rubberized surface that is easier on pedestrians and designed for frequent and long term use, while the rest of these portions of the trail will be paved with asphalt that is ideal for cyclists.

Since an accurate description of the trail plan is difficult to find online, I thought I'd share what I was able to find in Greenville's master plan for Swamp Rabbit Trail. In Greenville network, the Swamp Rabbit Trail is designed to meander through the city and outskirts in five distinct corridors . This is the definitive overall plan for the trail in Greenville, but I wouldn't be surprised if the actual names of some of the corridors were changed to something more pleasing by the time the sections are complete.

Downtown Connector

The Downtown Connector will be a 1.5 mile spur along the Reedy River corridor that will span from Linky Stone Park to Cleveland Park. It will follow along Broad Street, an abandoned railroad strip and finally connect to Cleveland Park through McBee Avenue. This portion of the trail network will be comprised of a mix of greenway and street trails.

Hincapie Path

This portion of the path is now complete and is an excellent way to see how the Greenville portion of Swamp Rabbit Trail will look when completed. The trail begins on preexisting trails in Cleveland Park and continues on its own until Farris Road where it becomes a street trail until petering out along Cleveand Street. Be aware that there are already signs up indicating that the trail will take you all the way to Greenville Tech, but that portion of the trail is not yet complete.

Greenville Tech Path

This portion of Swamp Rabbit Trail will begin at the corner of Cleveland Park and Woodland Way and winds along natural and urban areas for 2.2 miles to S. Pleasantburg Drive. The route will meander along Reedy River until Greenville Technical College and then pick up with Cleveland Street south until South Pleasantburg Drive. This portion of the trail network will be comprised of a mix of greenway and street trails. Completion of this section of the trail is expected some time this year.

Reedy River Trail South

Reedy River South will pick up at S. Pleasantburg and traverses 1.7 miles to Interstate 85. The route will include quite a bit of roadside trail as well as some in a natural setting along the river. This portion of the network will be made of greenway and street based trails.

Reedy River Trail at Lake Conestee

The final portion of the Greenville network of Swamp Rabbit trail will begin at I-85 and make its way to Conestee Lake over the course of 2.2 miles in am mostly natural setting. The trail will wind close to Greenville Municipal Stadium and some area churches. This portion will be entirely comprised of greenway trail.

Plans are in place to eventually extend the trail system even further. By 2012, the Traveler's Rest and Greenville portions of Swamp Rabbit Trail will combine with trails in Simpsonville and Fountain Inn to create a 20+ mile trail stretching well beyond Lake Conestee.

Sources:

http://www.greenvillesc.gov/publicworks/SwampRabbitTrail.aspx
http://www.randomconnections.com/?p=1300
http://www.greenvillesc.gov/city_services/GreenwaysMasterPlan/Chapter3_14-21.pdf
http://www.greenvillesc.gov/city_services/GreenwaysMasterPlan/Chapter3_1-8.pdf