Consider this an aspirational pick, a word of encouragement. At 2.5 miles in length and with a ton of grade-level street crossings, Northaven Trail is not much of a draw for the spandex-clad speedsters whipping their two-wheeled poor man's Porsches around White Rock Lake. And since it is the epitome of what Dallas calls a "trail" — i.e. a cement one-lane street — it won't appeal much to those muddy madmen at the Dallas Off-Road Bicycle Association, who do yeoman's work supporting countless off-road trails tucked around the city. We're giving Northaven Trail the nod this year for what it will, God and transportation budgets willing, one day be: a vital east-west link in Dallas' growing system of hike-and-bike trails. Anyone who's biked any distance in Dallas can testify to the shortage of paths linking the trails that flow north and south, leading eventually to downtown. When it's finished, the plan is for Northaven Trail to help link up Campion Trail in Irving to the west to White Rock Trail in the east, giving easy access to DART rail and allowing riders in North Dallas to hit White Rock Trail without having to defy death on Forest Lane or other major surface streets. It won't be a speedy ride, and it won't be a technical challenge, but the dream for Northaven is that it will be a useful cornerstone in making Dallas a more bikeable city.
Readers' Pick:
White Rock Lake
