Rail-Trail
State: IA Length: 13.50 miles Surface: Cinder, Crushed Stone
Cinder Path, stretching between the sleepy towns of Cheriton and Humeston in southern Iowa, might appear unassuming to those unfamiliar with Iowa's great trail history. But don't let the rugged surface or the untamed vegetation fool you—Cinder ...
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: 0.75 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Copper Creek Trail runs for a short distance from the town of Preston, heading northwest along Copper Creek to meet with the Jackson County Recreation Trail. You'll find a nice picnic spot with a gazebo where the two trails meet.
State: IA Length: 4.70 miles Surface: Gravel
The Ed Winkel Memorial Trail runs for nearly 5 miles from the small town of Sibley in Osceola County, Iowa to just west of the unincorporated community of Allendorf. Offering a hint at much of Iowa's landscape, the trail travels exclusively ...
State: IA Length: 16 miles Surface: Concrete, Crushed Stone, Gravel
The Fairfield Loop Trail forms a 16-mile ring around the town of Fairfield, mostly in the outlying areas of the countryside. The trail links two major preserves and connects city and county parks. Along the way you'll pass through woodlands, ...
State: IA Length: 2.60 miles Surface: Cinder
The Fort Dodge Nature Trail begins at the city's Snell-Crawford Park and runs northeast for nearly 3 miles. The trail travels adjacent to overhead power lines and crosses a couple of bridges over Soldier Creek. Passing just out of sight of the ...
State: IA Length: 0.50 miles Surface: Ballast, Dirt, Grass
The Galloping Goose Trail is so called for the nickname of the old railroad that once ran through the area and upon which the trail sits. As of 2012, about 0.5 mile of trail have been built northeast of the little community of Rippey. One day ...
State: IA Length: 2.70 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
Nearly 3 miles of the Grant Wood Trail in Jones County has been constructed so far (2012) along a former Milwaukee Road right-of-way in Marion and Olin. The trail is named for the early 20th-century Iowa artist, perhaps best known for his painting ...
State: IA Length: 8 miles Surface: Grass
About 8 miles of the Grant Wood Trail in Linn County has been constructed so far (2012) along a former Milwaukee Road right-of-way between Marion and Martelle. The trail currently is in three separate segments over a 10-mile stretch, the longest ...
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: 25.80 miles Surface: Crushed Stone, Dirt, Grass
The Heart of Iowa Nature Trail currently consists of two disjointed sections. The first stretches from the small city of Slater in the west to the tiny town of Collins in the east. This segment includes a brief on-road detour between 535th Avenue ...
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: 1.50 miles Surface: Asphalt, Gravel
The Hoover Nature Trail in Conesville consists of two disjointed sections. The first runs for about .25 mile north along farmland from the intersection of 7th Street and Todds Ferry Road. The second (and longer) section begins just south of ...
State: IA Length: 3.20 miles Surface: Grass, Gravel
The Morning Sun section of the Hoover Nature Trail actually runs from a couple miles north of Morning Sun to just south of it on the small town's eastern edge. The trail is mostly surfaced with mowed grass and features a short restored railroad ...
State: IA Length: 2.70 miles Surface: Grass, Gravel
This section of the Hoover Nature Trail is the roughest and least maintained. The trail actually runs from just north of the small town of Nichols to a few miles south of West Liberty at 155th Street. Be aware that grass may be overgrown on ...
State: IA Length: 3.50 miles Surface: Crushed Stone, Grass
One of the many highlights of the Hoover Nature Trail is the completed section stretching from the tiny town of Oasis to the small city of West Branch. West Branch's main claim to fame is its status as the birthplace of the only American president ...
State: IA Length: 115 miles Surface: Asphalt, Crushed Stone, Grass, Gravel
The Hoover Nature Trail is a planned rail-trail built on an abandoned Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad right-of-way. When complete, the trail will run through 6 counties and 16 towns between Cedar Rapids and Burlington. The trail will ...
State: IA Length: 1.30 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Hubbard Prairie Trail is a one-mile rail-trail extending from the northwest edge of the small town of Hubbard in central Iowa to the Meier Wildlife Refuge. The refuge offers a pleasant place to fish, kayak, or enjoy other outdoor activities. The ...
State: IA Length: 5.60 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: 1 miles Surface: Gravel
Although short, the Lindale Trail provides an important off-road east-west connection between Cedar Rapids and Marion. The tree-lined route, along the former Canadian National Railway, is nestled between houses and businesses. At its eastern ...
State: IA Length: 1.50 miles Surface: Grass, Gravel
The Mapleleaf Pathway is located in the small community of Diagonal, Iowa. The trail occupies an abandoned Chicago and North Western Railway corridor, which once formed part of a larger system that looked like a maple leaf when viewed on a map—hence ...
State: IA Length: 15.30 miles Surface: Cinder, Crushed Stone, Gravel
The Old Creamery Trail, running between Vinton and Dysart, is so named for the Old Creamery Theater Company building in Garrison, another tiny farm community through which the trail passes. The gravel trail passes through rural Iowa among cultivated ...
State: IA Length: 2.50 miles Surface: Dirt
Iowa's Yellow River State Forest contains a sprawling network of hiking, equestrian and bicycle trails. The Paint Creek Trail, which occupies a segment of an abandoned railroad corridor, is the only rail-trail in the 8,500 acre forest. The trail ...
State: IA Length: 2.40 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: 11.50 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Pioneer Trail is named to give a nod to the people who settled in Grundy County in the 1850s. Eventually, the railroad came to serve the farm communities of Holland, Grundy Center, Morrison and Reinbeck. The trail now replaces the rails, ...
State: IA Length: 3.60 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: 10.50 miles Surface: Crushed Stone, Dirt, Grass
The Praeri Rail Trail runs on an old section of railroad right-of-way between Zearing and Roland in central Iowa. Sections of the trail near Roland and McCallsburg have a crushed limestone surface, but the rest of the trail is mowed grass and ...
State: IA Length: 0.30 miles Surface: Cinder
Although short, the Reumpers Nature Trail runs under a beautiful canopy of trees along the former Chicago Northwestern Railroad in Radcliffe, a small town in central Iowa.
State: IA Length: 3.80 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: 5.30 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Solon–Lake Macbride Recreation Trail runs for 5 miles between the scenic state park and the town of Solon to the east. The popular trail is perfect for cycling or walking and skiing or snowmobiling in the winter. In addition, the park ...
State: IA Length: 63 miles Surface: Crushed Stone
The Wabash Trace Nature Trail is a 63 mile route, converted from a railroad right-of-way, coursing across the scenic southwest Iowa countryside from Council Bluffs to Blanchard at the Iowa–Missouri border. Don't let the "nature trail" part ...