Explore the Cardinal Greenway: Indiana’s Longest Rail Trail

Courtesy of Cardinal Greenway

Angie Pool may not be running a marathon or cycling a century, but on family walks on the Cardinal Greenway rail trail, she engages in a similarly strenuous activity – figuring out how to maintain Indiana’s longest recreational trail.

“When I am out on the trail, I see all that needs to be done – the trees needing to come down, the cracks needing to be sealed, the benches needing boards replaced,” says Pool, CEO of Cardinal Greenway Inc., the nonprofit organization responsible for operating the trail system.

Major efforts are underway to preserve Cardinal Greenway’s existing 62 miles, add more trail and close the gaps that exist. By connecting trail segments, the system will serve more residents and visitors while better supporting active events throughout East Central Indiana.

Multiple Uses

Cardinal Greenway offers an ideal path for student athletes who are training as well as competitors in events, like the IRONMAN 70.3 Muncie, a competition that includes swimming, biking and running. The event has taken place for several decades, and it earned the distinction of Best Overall Race and Best Post-Race Experience in 2022. 

Nathan Lambrecht

Cardinal Greenway uses the trail for its own annual fundraising events, including the end-of-July Cardinal Century Ride, the Fall Biketourberfest and a walk/run on Thanksgiving morning.

“At the end of the day, we as the Cardinal Greenway organization are bringing the municipalities of Marion, Muncie and Richmond, the five counties, and all our small communities together,” Pool says.

The History of the Cardinal Greenway

Today, more than 400,000 people enjoy the Cardinal Greenway trail annually. The trail system’s beginnings date to a lunch conversation among a few Muncie business leaders in the early ’90s. They soon purchased 75 miles of abandoned railroad from CSX Transportation Corp. for the rails-to-trails project.

“During the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) and forming a nonprofit board, a portion of our planned purchase was bought by neighboring landowners of the rail line, creating our gap,” Pool says. “Not being deterred by this, our original founders stayed the course and formed the Cardinal Greenway Inc. organization in May of 1993.”

Courtesy of Cardinal Greenway

After planning and fundraising, the organization completed construction segment by segment. It finished the first mile in 1998 and the final mile in 2012. During this time, Cardinal Greenway Inc. also took over managing Muncie’s White River Greenway and ownership of the John Craddock Wetland Nature Preserve, also in Muncie. 

In 2018, the Rails to Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit that works to preserve unused rail corridors, added the Cardinal Greenway trail system to its Rail Trail Hall of Fame.

“The trail seems to have helped generate an expanded sense of civic pride as well as an enhanced quality of life,” the Rails to Trails Conservancy noted.

Looking to the Future

The first step in the Cardinal Greenway update is related to Taylor University’s Main Street Mile Initiative, a $100 million community and economic development plan that will connect the university to Upland’s downtown. The initiative includes adding roughly 2 miles of trail west of campus, which will help close a gap in the overall trail. Following this phase of trail buildout, substantial money must be raised to begin future phases of trail construction to close gaps between Matthews and Upland, and Upland and Gas City, Pool says. 

Other funders have already begun contributing to the effort, including the Ball Brothers Foundation, Land Conservation Fund at The Community Foundation of Muncie & Delaware County, AEP, the Grant County Commissioners, George and Frances Ball Foundation, Sherman and Marjorie Zeigler Foundation, and others.

Moving forward, Pool expects miles will be added to the trail so it remains the longest trail system in Indiana and lives up to its award-winning reputation.

“We want to remain a trail organization that continues to help other startup trail groups and continue to serve as a resource for trails across Indiana and the country,” Pool says. “But more than anything, we want the trail to continue to serve thousands as a vibrant resource to enjoy nature, improve health and well-being, and have fun.”