The Peavine Trail runs for 1.5 miles from State Street in downtown Marion, North Carolina to just south of the First Christian Church on Rutherford Road. Construction of the crushed gravel and grass trail began immediately after the City of Marion’s purchase of 2.4 miles of the abandoned Peavine Rail Line from Norfolk Southern in 2010. The railroad corridor originally extended southward from Marion to Camden, South Carolina and was opened for operation in 1890 by the Georgia and Carolina Midland Railway Company. This rich history of the Peavine Trail is evident at the current Rutherford Road endpoint, where barricades prevent access to a gorgeous but structurally unsound original wooden trestle.

The Isothermal Rail-Trail feasibility study is underway to connect the Peavine Trail with the Thermal Belt Trail in Rutherford County.  This may include the rehabilitation or demolition of the trestle to allow for the extension of the Peavine Trail  to McDowell Technical Community College in the future.

Parking and Trail Access

( See map below) Public parking for the Peavine Trail is available at the old Rescue Squad building adjacent to the trailhead off of State Street. Additional parking can be found at First Christian Church on Rutherford Road, although this lot is unavailable on Sundays from 9 am to 12:30 pm.