Ribbon Cutting Ceremony Set June 25 for Malabar, Palm Bay Trails System and Grapefruit Trail
By Space Coast Daily // June 22, 2021
System includes 30 miles of connected off-road trails in Malabar and Palm Bay
BREVARD COUNTY • PALM BAY, FLORIDA – Brevard Mountain Bike Association, in coordination with Palm Bay Parks & Recreation, the Audubon Society, Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands, the City of Palm Bay, and Melbourne-Tillman Water Control, recently completed an off-road trail which connects two major trail systems within Malabar and Palm Bay.
Bikers, hikers, and runners can now travel, via trail, between the Malabar and Palm Bay Trail System and the Grapefruit Trails.
With this final piece, there are now 30 miles of connected off-road trails within Malabar and Palm Bay making the trail system the premier off-road trail system within the county.
After seven years of coordination and design effort, raising $24,000 from the mountain biking community, building 390 feet of bridges, and logging hundreds of volunteer hours from dozens of volunteers, the once rogue “Super-Secret Trail,” now named “Semi-Secret Trail,” is officially signed and open for recreational use.
The trail will receive a Grand Opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday, June 25 starting at 9 a.m. The ceremony will take place on the “Hannway” bridge inside Turkey Creek Sanctuary.
The Hannaway bridge is the 240-foot entrance bridge to the Semi-Secret Trail from the “Ho Chi Minh” trail within Turkey Creek Sanctuary.
The media and the public are invited to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
To access the location, turn south from Port Malabar Rd NE onto Briar Creek Blvd and follow the signs to the parking area. After the ceremony, participants can enjoy light refreshments and will be offered a tour of the west-end bridges via a half-mile walk.
Hiking shoes, boots, or sneakers are recommended to access the ribbon-cutting location as the trail passes through sandy soil with some tree roots.
From the Hannway, trail experiencers should expect a 2-mile trip, one-way, to the Grapefruit Trails through the native forest alongside Turkey Creek and the Tillman Canal.
Trail users will pass through the hydric (wet) hammock and mesic (moist) hammock. They will enjoy seeing manatees, alligators, and Florida cooters (turtles) in the creek.
Visitors may also spot an otter or a garfish. Birds also abound throughout, including ospreys and owls.
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