Visit 3 to 10 of Ashtabula County's 17 covered bridges including the longest covered bridge in the US, the Smolin-Gulf Bridge.
Most of the ride is pretty flat and with the exceptions of short stretches through Ashtabula and Jefferson all the roads traverse farm country.
The base route is about 49 miles and visits 8 bridges.
For those wanting more miles there are two more bridges that can be added to the base route adding 5 and 6 miles respectively.
For those wanting less I have a shorter route of 34 miles that visits 3 bridges.
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SMOLEN-GULF
The longest covered bridge in the United States is of Pratt Truss construction. Engineering and structural design by John Smolen (former County Engineer) and architectural design by Timothy Martin (current County Engineer) the bridge was dedicated August 26, 2008. The bridge is 613 ft. long and stands 93 ft. above the Ashtabula River. With clear width of 30 ft. and height of 14 ft. 6 in. it will support full legal load traffic and has a life expectancy of 100 years. |
Terrain:
The first 8 miles are on the Western Reserve Greenway Trail.
After the first bridge, the longest covered bridge in the US, there are some hills for the next 10 miles. Nothing extreme.
Then the rest of the route flattens out.
Services:
Make sure you have enough water and a snack. There are no services from the 10 mile mark until the 40 mile mark.
Get together at Ferrante Winery after the ride.
Information and photos of each of the bridges. Maps and cues for long, medium and short routes.
Download maps, cues and info from here:
Ride details, photos, maps and cues
Directions to the ride start:
Head north from the Akron area and pick up I-271.
Take I-271 north to I-90 and head east.
Exit I-90 at exit 223, OH-45.
Turn right (south).
Take OH-45 2.3 miles to Lampson Rd
Turn left onto Lampson Rd
Go .5 mile and turn right into the trailhead parking lot.
View Lampson Rd parking in a larger map
Directions to Ferrante Winery:
5585 N River Road West
Geneva, OH 44041
Turn left onto Lampson Rd
Turn right onto OH-45
Go 1.3 miles to OH-307.
Turn left onto OH-307
Go 5.3 miles to Ferrante Winery