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BayZil Rail Trail Brook St Trailhead
4.6 ★★★★★ 73 Google reviews · Running trail in Bay City, Michigan · Hours vary
Runner's snapshot
- Surface
- Paved
- Distance
- 5.5 mi
- Shape
- Not reported
- Shade
- Not reported
- Access
- Not reported
Confirmed from BayZil Rail Trail Brook St Trailhead's own listing, the park or land manager's website, and runner reviews. Blank cells mean we could not verify that fact — we would rather say "not reported" than invent one. There is no Easy / Moderate / Hard rating on this page on purpose: a one-word difficulty score tells you nothing about whether a trail suits your run. Surface, distance, shade and hours do.
Paved hiking and biking area featuring wildlife and a picnic shelter with a restroom.
What runners say about BayZil Rail Trail Brook St Trailhead
“The path is well-kept, and there are many geocaches to be found!”
“There trail goes across a couple bridges about a mile and a half down and has great views of the river and the Zilwakee Bridge.”
“I like the location of the path, as it is quite peaceful.”
A beautiful 5.5 mile paved stretch of rail trail on an old passenger rail route between Bay City and Saginaw. This is part of the Bay City trail system, and if you go the other way from the trailhead, you will be heading towards downtown Bay City. Lots of views of the Saginaw River watershed with wildfowl everywhere.
U can see some wildlife, all kinds of animals. good place for a walk or ride.paved trail.
Very scenic! Low traffic. We also see 10x more birds, turtles, fish, beavers, snakes, etc than people. Pretty smooth path with well kept bridges too. Hard to access from the Zilwaukee end (or maybe I just don't know where it start) at the end of road with no designated parking spots, but the trail is worth it.
This is a very nice rail trail with some bridges along the way. I like the location of the path, as it is quite peaceful. The scenery also looks really good when the leaves are changing colors in the Fall. I recommend this trail if you bike, jog, run, or walk.
Trail conditions & character
“There trail goes across a couple bridges about a mile and a half down and has great views of the river and the Zilwakee Bridge.”
“Hard to access from the Zilwaukee end (or maybe I just don't know where it start) at the end of road with no designated parking spots, but the trail is worth it.”
“5 mile paved stretch of rail trail on an old passenger rail route between Bay City and Saginaw.”
“I like the location of the path, as it is quite peaceful.”
“At this point there is a good parking lot, a shelter with a picnic table, and a porta-potty”
“A beautiful 5.5 mile paved stretch of rail trail on an old passenger rail route between Bay City and Saginaw.”
Plan your run at BayZil Rail Trail Brook St Trailhead
The practical stuff
- AccessHours vary — hours are not posted for this trail, so check before an early or late run
- SurfacePaved — asphalt or concrete. Fast and predictable, runnable year-round, and fine with a stroller
- Distance5.5 mi as reported — check whether that is one way or a round trip before you commit. Long enough for a real long run.
- ShadeNot reported. Assume some of it is exposed and carry water in summer.
- At the trailheadparking, restrooms — reported by runners
Running trails near Bay City
Other trails within easy driving distance — useful when this one is flooded, gated, or just not the run you had in mind today.
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Bay City Fitness Park
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Frankenlust Township Nature Park
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