North Ashland Railside Park and Trail

I'm biased, I love all things trains.

What better way is there to spend a Saturday than to watch CSX and Amtrak trains going by North Ashland Railside Park and Trail?

This particular Saturday (5/15/21), I saw about one train per hour (one freight train and two Amtrak trains). It was clear and sunny, but not too hot with a gentle breeze; most of the park and trail are shaded.

It’s a small and lovely park. It has a large picnic table and two benches that overlook the tracks so you can watch trains go by from a comfortable position. Plenty of grass if you wanted to set up a badminton set or kick the ball around. The only drawback is that the park is quite small, almost as if a home was torn down and the lot was used for public purpose. There are neighbors on either side, so you may end up looking through someone’s window. The trail portion follows the CSX line for about a half-mile. It is popular for walkers and paved for those with mobility issues. There are bout four parking spaces at the entrance, but you can walk a bit further to street parking. The trail terminates at Vaughan Road.

This spot could possibly be considered “sensory friendly” for people who want to watch trains, but without the noise of a fast moving train blowing its horn. Trains will sound their horn a half-mile north of Ashland at Vaughan Road / Henry Street, but since Ashland itself is a no-whistle and speed restricted area, you will not get horns at West Patrick Street, which is closer to the benches. Also, trains headed south (toward the station) are slowing down because they’re entering city town limits.

Just a nice small park on the north edge of town. Perfect to watch the trains roll by!

I love walking this park. I often eat my lunch here on the picnic table and walk up and down the trail, most of which is shaded. There is a pokestop here and another one not far if you play Pokemon Go.

Simple park to watch the trains. Clean. Connected to a short paved walking trail along the tracks

Quiet. The boys and I sit in the car and eat breakfast on rainy mornings herd and wait for trains. Little and simple for relaxing.

Stopped here to picnic on our road trip. Had public bathrooms that were very clean. Great place to stop.

Out of towners stopped by for a quick lunch and got honked at by a train. 10/10 will return.

A very nice spot to hang out at and watch trains.

Less of a park than a picnic area. Small grassy area with two picnic table, two benches, and a trash cans. Nothing remarkable, but it’s a good place to watch trains if that’s your thing.

Calling it a park maybe gives wrong impression. It is literally just a lot sized green by the tracks just outside downtown Ashland. Right against neighborhood houses this is more like someone's backyard. Two picnic tables and three parking spaces. That's it. But it is a good private place. My son stood there and waved to trains passing by and conductors blew the horns in return. What a blast.

Small picnic area with a paved walking path along the railroad tracks.

If you like it empty field with pretty grass and a couple picnic tables this place is for you. But they really should put a playground in. There's nothing for kids to do at this park except maybe have a picnic or frisbee. Unless you live behind the police station in Ashland or near Carter Park there's nothing in walking distance for kids to do in this part of Ashland.