Three miles of car-free trail from downtown Clearwater to the sand at Clearwater Beach, with the best water views on any bridge in Pinellas County. It’s the shortest ride in our guide and probably the one your guests will remember.
Why We Love This Trail
Most bike trails make you earn the view. This one hands it over about halfway across.
The Memorial Causeway Trail runs from downtown Clearwater across the Intracoastal Waterway to Clearwater Beach, entirely separated from traffic by a concrete barrier. The centerpiece is the causeway bridge — a long, graceful climb with pull-offs along the way where you can stop, lean on the rail, and look down at Clearwater Harbor with the beach ahead and downtown behind. On a clear morning it’s genuinely one of the best things you can do on a bike in Florida for under an hour of effort.
It’s short enough that anyone can do it, scenic enough that nobody complains, and it ends at a beach with a fishing pier, a playground, and a sunset festival. That combination is hard to beat.
At a Glance
| 📏 Length | About 3 miles each way (roughly 6 miles round trip) |
| ⏱️ Time | 30–45 minutes each way at an easy pace |
| 🛣️ Surface | Paved asphalt throughout |
| ⛰️ Difficulty | Easy — flat except for the bridge |
| 🚧 Traffic Separation | Concrete barrier across the bridge |
| 💵 Cost | Free (parking is not) |
| 🔗 Connects To | Pinellas Trail, Druid Road Trail, Clearwater Beach Walk |
| 🐦 Bonus | Part of the Great Florida Birding Trail |
| 👨👩👧 Kid-Friendly | Yes, with supervision — the beach end gets crowded |
Trail Map
The Route, Turn by Turn
Riding east to west (downtown out to the beach), which is the direction most people go:
- Start at Turner St and East Ave, where the Memorial Causeway Trail, the Pinellas Trail, and the Druid Road Trail all converge. There’s parking right at the corner.
- West on Turner Street for about three tenths of a mile.
- North on Bay Avenue, then about a tenth of a mile to Chestnut Street, where the causeway proper begins. Signage through this section is good — follow it rather than your instincts.
- Up and over the bridge. A spiral ramp on the downtown side lifts you onto the span without having to cross the roadway. The grade is mild and the pull-offs are worth using.
- Down onto the causeway, where the trail runs roadside with a wide median. About three tenths of a mile past the bridge there’s a small parking area with a covered bench, water, and a bike fix-it station.
- Across a second small bridge into Clearwater Beach. From here the trail gets much busier with pedestrians as it passes shops and restaurants.
- Finish at Coronado Drive and S. Gulfview Blvd, where a pathway leads through the Pier 60 parking lot and meets the Clearwater Beach Walk — a wide promenade running along both sides of Gulfview Blvd if you want to extend the ride.
The Bridge
Worth its own section, because it’s why you’re here.
There’s been a crossing at this spot for a century. The original 1920s bridge was replaced by a drawbridge in the 1950s, and when rising traffic made a drawbridge impractical, that in turn was replaced in 2005 by the high fixed span you ride today. It’s a good-looking piece of engineering, and from a bike it’s the best vantage point in Clearwater.
The climb is the only real elevation on the trail, and it’s a mild, steady grade rather than anything steep. Riders in ordinary shape manage it fine. If you’re on a single-speed cruiser you may end up walking the last stretch, and there’s no shame in that — plenty of people do.
There is no shade on the bridge. None. In summer, do this early or late.
Stop at the top. The pull-offs exist for exactly this. Clearwater Harbor spreads out below, the marina and downtown sit behind you, and the beach and the Gulf open up ahead.
Renting a Bike
Most guests don’t travel with bicycles, and this is one ride where that genuinely doesn’t matter — there are rental options at the beach end of the trail, so you can drive over, rent, ride the causeway, and hand the bikes back.
🚲 On Clearwater Beach
- Dreamrider bike share — at the Residence Inn, 315 Coronado Dr. App-based: scan a QR code, enter your details, and the bike unlocks. Available from 5am to 7pm, which makes it the only realistic option for a sunrise ride. Seven gears, and riders specifically mention it made the causeway bridge easy. One caveat: the seats don’t adjust low enough for anyone much under 5’5″, so it’s not a fit for kids.
- Fun Ride Rentals — 301 S Gulfview Blvd, Suite 105. Open 10am–6pm daily. Best known for golf carts and scoot coupes, but they do rent electric bikes, and repeat customers speak well of the service.
- Clearwater Beach Scooter and Bike Rentals — 619 S Gulfview Blvd, inside a hotel gift shop. Open 9am–7pm most days, later on weekends. Free valet parking, which on Clearwater Beach is worth real money.
- Captain Bill’s Beach Bike Rentals — 800 Bayway Blvd. The one that delivers, which changes the equation entirely: have bikes dropped at the rental and keep them all week instead of renting by the hour.
🔧 Full-Service Bike Shops
None of these are on the trail, but they’re the ones to know if you need a repair, a longer-term rental, or a proper road or performance bike. All are a few miles east of downtown Clearwater.
- Chainwheel Drive — 1770 Drew St. Rents bikes by the day or week, lends helmets, and will fit your own pedals if you brought them. Closed Mondays.
- The Bike Shop — 1895 Drew St. Small, owner-run, exceptionally well reviewed for repairs and refurbished bikes. Closed Sundays.
- Outspokin Bicycles — 2241 Gulf to Bay Blvd. The big full-service shop, open seven days, good for same-day repairs and racks.
- Electrified E-Bikes — 1602 Gulf to Bay Blvd. E-bike specialists, sales and service.
Rental rates and hours change with the season — call ahead, especially outside the winter months.
Where to Park
Downtown End — Recommended
Turner St & East Ave, Clearwater — parking at the trail junction itself, and far cheaper and easier than parking at the beach. Start here, ride to the beach, and let the crowds be someone else’s problem.
Mid-Causeway
A small lot about three tenths of a mile west of the bridge, with a covered bench, water, and a fix-it station. Limited spaces, but it’s the shortcut if you only want the bridge and the beach.
Beach End
Pier 60 and the surrounding lots — paid, pay-by-plate or ParkMobile, and they fill early on weekends and holidays. Usable, but this is the expensive way to do it.
What to See Along the Way
🎭 Coachman Park & The Sound
Right at the downtown end, on the waterfront. The Sound is Clearwater’s outdoor amphitheater, and the park around it is a good place to start or finish. Check what’s on — a concert night turns this into a very different ride home.
🐬 Clearwater Marine Aquarium
A short detour north up Island Way onto Island Estates. This is the rescue and rehabilitation facility that the Dolphin Tale films were set at, and it’s a working marine hospital rather than a conventional aquarium. Easy to fold into the ride if you’re not in a hurry.
🎣 Pier 60
Where the trail delivers you. Fishing pier, playground, restrooms, and the nightly Sunsets at Pier 60 festival with street performers and craft vendors, running two hours either side of sunset.
👉 Read our full Pier 60 fishing guide
🌅 Clearwater Beach Walk
The promenade at the west end, running along both sides of Gulfview Blvd. Adds an easy flat mile or two with the Gulf beside you, and it’s the right way to finish if you timed the ride for sunset.
Know Before You Go
🚶 The Beach End Gets Congested
Once the trail crosses into Clearwater Beach it runs past shops and restaurants and fills with pedestrians who are not watching for bikes. Slow right down, or walk it. At peak season — spring break especially — this stretch can be close to impassable on a bike.
☀️ No Shade on the Bridge
Worth saying twice. There is no cover anywhere on the span, and no shelter if a storm rolls in. Check the radar in summer before you start — a causeway is a bad place to be caught out.
💨 Wind
The bridge is exposed, and a stiff Gulf breeze on the climb makes a mild grade feel considerably less mild. It’s usually calmer early.
🌀 Use the Spiral Ramp
On the downtown side, the spiral ramp gets you onto the bridge without crossing the roadway. Take it. At busy times of year crossing the causeway at road level is genuinely unpleasant.
🅿️ Park Downtown, Not at the Beach
The single best piece of advice on this page. Beach parking is expensive, limited, and full by mid-morning on weekends. Downtown parking is none of those things, and the ride over is the point anyway.
Connecting Trails
- Pinellas Trail — meets the causeway trail at Turner St and East Ave. Turn north for Dunedin, south for Largo and Seminole.
- Druid Road Trail — converges at the same junction
- Clearwater Beach Walk — the promenade at the western end
- Ream Wilson Clearwater Trail — reachable via the Druid Road and Duke Energy trails, heading east toward Safety Harbor
👉 Read our full Pinellas Trail guide | Back to our biking guide
Getting There from Our Vacation Rental
From: 1731 Clearwater Harbor Dr, Largo, FL
To: Turner St & East Ave, Clearwater (the downtown trailhead)
Distance: Roughly 10 miles
Drive time: 20–30 minutes depending on traffic
Head east on Walsingham Road, north on Seminole Blvd / Missouri Ave through Largo and Belleair into Clearwater, then follow signs toward downtown. The trail junction is a few blocks south of Cleveland Street.
📱 GPS directions to the downtown trailhead
Riding the causeway at sunset is one of our favorite things to do on the whole coast. If you’re staying with us and want to try it, ask — we can help you sort out bikes before you arrive.
