Montgomery Bell Trail

Dogs Leashed

The Montgomery Bell Trail is a great 10 mile loop to cover everything Montgomery Bell has to offer and a bit of a preview of the Bell Ringer 50K. The trail is well blazed White for the most part, and with the exception of one area signs indicate which direction the MB trail runs when there are intersections. However, I will provide some tips for some areas where people occasionally make mistakes.

First, the map shown here is wrong. If you are running this course clockwise (as from the perspective above) then you need to split LEFT at the intersection with the Ore Loop Trail (blazed Red in the park). One will see signs indicating this at the intersection and the trail will be blazed White and Red for this stretch. Go the wrong way as shown in this map and you'll shed over half a mile. There are signs indicating which direction the MB Trail runs, but it can be easy to make a mistake.

Second, beware at the intersection of the MB Trail and the Creech Hollow trail (blazed Orange in the park). This is the one area I know of where two trails connect but the trail names are not identified on the sign. Rather, the large sign with a map indicates mileage to various locations. At this point, you'll need to turn left (if traveling c-wise) toward the Woodland shelter. You'll see a white blaze up the hill from the sign. This is a spot where many runners accidentally go the wrong way, particularly if running c-wise.

Finally, it may be worth noting that going counter-clockwise one will see occasional mile-markers along the trail. They are not always easy to spot but they are there. The zero mark is at the visitor center trailhead.