Rail-Trail
State: IA Length: 52 miles Surface: Asphalt, Crushed Stone
The Cedar Valley Nature Trail follows an abandoned railroad right-of-way of the old Waterloo, Cedar Falls & Northern, an interurban railroad system established in the early 1900s. The 52-mile trail is a linear park that courses through the Cedar ...
State: IA Length: 7 miles Surface: Crushed Stone, Grass
The Comet Trail is built upon an abandoned right-of-way of the old Chicago Northwestern Railroad. It runs for 7 miles between the town of Conrad (City Park) and just east of Beaman, traversing a mostly rural landscape of farms, rolling prairie ...
State: IA Length: 3 miles Surface: Asphalt, Concrete
The Grundy County Lake Trail circles its namesake 40-acre lake, where outdoor enthusiasts can enjoy fishing, boating, and many other recreational opportunities. The paved trail then continues north, crossing under Highway 20, and runs along ...
State: IA Length: 2 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Harry Cook Nature Trail runs for 2 miles from the edge of the small city of Osage, Iowa to the city's public Spring Park. The trail, which opened in the early 1990s, occupies the bed of an abandoned railroad corridor and winds through dense ...
State: IA Length: 27 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
Iowa's Heritage Trail runs for 27 miles between just west of city of Dubuque and the town of Dyersville to the west. The crushed-limestone trail follows an old railroad corridor of the former Chicago Northwestern line. You'll see remnants of ...
State: IA Length: 25 miles Surface: Asphalt, Concrete
The High Trestle Trail (f.k.a. the Ankeny to Woodward Trail) is named for the original railroad bridge that spans the Des Moines River between Madrid and Woodward, on the trail's northern end. This dramatic trestle is a work of art itself: a ...
State: IA Length: 5.6 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Jackson County Recreation Trail follows part of the Maquoketa River outside of Spragueville and Preston, through bucolic countryside of woodlands, farms and river lowlands. You can start the trail in the burg of Preston by taking the Copper ...
State: IA Length: 13.8 miles Surface: Asphalt, Crushed Stone
The Kewash Nature Trail winds for nearly 14 miles between the towns of Keota and Washington. These endpoints were creatively combined to form the trail's name. The trail has a crushed limestone surface for most of its route, but the portion ...
State: IA Length: 14.5 miles Surface: Asphalt
The Ottumwa Trail System provides a scenic north-south route along the Des Moines River through the center of Ottumwa. Along the way, trail-goers can enjoy many of the city's natural treasures, including Gray Eagle Nature Preserve, Turkey Island ...
State: IA Length: 2.4 miles Surface: Concrete
The Pine Lake Trail runs through a heavily wooded state park of the same name, which is especially known for its 250-year-old white pine trees. The trail begins at Deer Park, a half mile east of downtown Eldora in central Iowa, before heading ...
State: IA Length: 3.6 miles Surface: Crushed Stone, Dirt, Grass
The Pony Hollow Trail in the northeastern Iowa city of Elkader offers a scenic route through woodlands and wetlands along the former Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad bed. The western half of the trail begins just south of Elkader City ...
State: IA Length: 88.1 miles Surface: Asphalt, Concrete
The Raccoon River Valley Trail runs along an abandoned railroad right-of-way that was first built in the 1870s to carry rail traffic between Des Moines and the Great Lakes region. The route encompasses a wide range of landscapes, from suburban ...
State: IA Length: 11.9 miles Surface: Asphalt, Concrete
Iowa's Riverfront Trail runs along the Mississippi River through the cities of Davenport and Bettendorf to its eastern endpoint near the large Alcoa plant in Riverdale. In the west, the trail starts as a loop around scenic Credit Island Park, ...
State: IA Length: 3.8 miles Surface: Ballast, Grass
The Russell White Nature Trail runs for nearly 4 miles through a landscape of forest, pasture and prairie and links the tiny community of Lanesboro with open space to the southwest of the town. The trail occupies part of a railroad corridor ...
State: IA Length: 3.5 miles Surface: Asphalt
The South Riverside Trail is one in a series of trail systems throughout Cedar Falls, Iowa. The trail runs between Main Street at the Cedar Falls Recreation Center and the Greenhill Trail just west of US Highway 218. A spur on the west end takes ...
State: IA Length: 39.9 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Three Rivers Trail runs for 33 miles from the tiny community of Rolfe—named for the Englishman who married Pocahontas—to just west of Eagle Grove, the largest city in Wright County. The trail occupies an old Chicago and North Western ...
State: IA Length: 11 miles Surface: Asphalt, Concrete
Trout Run Trail forms an 11-mile loop around Decorah, providing access to many of the area's natural treasures and views of beautiful Iowa countryside. Although there are many places to hop on the trail, one of the best is the Decorah Fish ...
State: IA Length: 18.5 miles Surface: Asphalt, Crushed Stone
The 18.5 mile long Wapsi-Great Western Line Trail follows the abandoned Chicago Great Western Railway grade between Riceville and the Iowa/Minnesota State Line. The corridor was originally built by the Minnesota & Northwestern Railroad in 1886. ...