Historical sign at the Tallahassee trailhead showing part of the original railway.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkTalltrailheada.jpg?t=1174165377

The Tallahassee - St. Marks State Trail was the first rail to trail project in the state of Florida. Leaving the busy Florida capital you'll end up in the sleepy little coastal town of St. Marks at the junction of the Wakulla and St. Marks rivers. A round trip will add about 32-33 miles on your speedometer.

Typical trail scenes

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarktypicalb.jpg?t=1174165959

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkwarnsign.jpg?t=1174166111

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkoaks.jpg?t=1174167347

A two lane dirt trail to . . . where?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkdirtroadcows.jpg?t=1174167466

St. Marks trailhead looking north.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkStMarkstrailhead.jpg?

Horse Trail

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkhorsetrail.jpg?t=1174165740

As you can see it is a mostly straight flat paved trail with an accompanying horse trail along side that ventures onto the main trail at intermittant but very brief intervals. I haven't seen any horse poop so horses must be rare.

Public facilities for water and bathroom breaks are available and reasonably clean.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkfacilitiesa.jpg?t=1174167116

A ballpark with facilities.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkfacilitiesb.jpg?t=1174167229

Arrival in St. Marks provides a nice break during the ride. If you're a newbie and still breaking in your rear end you'll appreciate it.

There are a couple of small redneck looking restaurants near the water and another nicer one just a few blocks north. I've never eaten in any of them so I can't comment on the food.

Eatin' places near the water.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkRiversideCafe.jpg?t=1174168076

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkRiverCantina.jpg?t=1174168183

If you've been to St. Marks and eaten seafood chances are you were at Posey's. It, too, looked redneck and was famous. That's right, I said was. Sadly, Posey's was flooded during a hurricane and is no longer with us :sad: . I've had some very good meals at Posey's.

Here's all that remains.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkolPoseys.jpg?t=1174168468

There's some pretty scenery in St. Marks.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkriverdocksa.jpg?t=1174168851

Local fisherman with his fishfinder.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkfishfindercrop.jpg?t=1174168977

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkyatch.jpg?t=1174169078

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkdock.jpg?t=1174169173

As you can see this is old Florida. I did, however, see a three or four story highrise residence going up so this may be changing. :(

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkcannon.jpg?t=1174169830

The junction of the St. Marks and Wakulla rivers provided a strategic site for multiple forts over the centuries.

Here is an artist's rendition of what one of the earliest forts may have looked like. This is looking south toward the gulf. St. Marks grew up about a half mile east (left) of this site.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkmural.jpg?t=1174170252

You can easily spend 30 minutes to an hour looking at the ruins and exhibits.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/MeanBone/Bicycle/TallMarkfortwalk.jpg?t=1174170583

You'll find some interesting stuff, here.

Thanks for that! It made me feel very relaxed.

-Rob

Nice.....

I wish I have a route like that near by.

Hey great post and good pics. How long is the trail?

Hey great post and good pics. How long is the trail?

It's roughly 16 miles one way. So a bit over 30 miles roundtrip.

I really really wish Posey's was still there. Their fried grouper was outstanding. I can only hope the other places are as good.

That's one of the benefits of riding . . . you feel like you're not cheating if you enjoy a good meal.

That's a lot of pretty scenery and history for only 30 miles. Sure looks nice though. I'm from Pensacola but have no intention of returning to Florida anytime soon. It's too damn hot in the summer and not cold enough in the winter! :D

-Rob

I used to live in Valdosta, Ga., and we would head down to Tallahassee and N. Florida for fun. It's a beautiful area and very unlike most people's conception of Florida. Let's hope it stays that way. Glad to know about the new bike trail. We used to camp, hike and canoe down in that area and had some great times.

Very cool trail and ride, and you have some great photos in there too. Thanks for sharing!

We have ridden on a lot of Rail Trails in Florida and were suprised on how uniformly good (and empth) they were.

Quality post.