Rail-Trail
State: IA Length: 13.5 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: 4.7 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: 25.8 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: 17 miles Surface: Concrete
This proposed 17 mile rail- to-trail project will extend the Raccoon River Valley Trail System from Herndon 17 miles west through Guthrie County to end at the Coon Rapids-Whiterock rural tourism destination area. This will complete a key segment ...
State: IA Length: 18.2 miles Surface: Asphalt
The Iowa Great Lakes Trail was formerly known as the Dickinson County Spine Trail, and it is just that—the 'spine' of the great active transportation system in the Iowa Great Lakes region near the border with Minnesota. Included in this ...
State: IA Length: 2.5 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: 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: 10.5 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: 20 miles Surface: Asphalt
The Prairie Farmer Rec. Trail (a.k.a. Winneshiek County Trail) was named for a radio show once broadcast throughout the Midwest. The trail occupies the right-of-way of the former Milwaukee Railroad, which ran between Calmar to Cresco through ...
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: 15 miles Surface: Asphalt
When complete, the Rolling Prairie Tri-County Trail System will connect several communities and two state parks as it travels through quintessential northeastern Iowa prairie. Following an 80-mile east-west route, it will traverse the counties ...
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: 33.2 miles Surface: Asphalt, Concrete
Note: A user fee is required for those 18 and older ($1 per day or $15 per year). The Sauk Rail-Trail runs for 33 paved miles between Swan Lake State Park in Carroll and Black Hawk State Park in Lake View. The trail links the communities of ...
State: IA Length: 5.3 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: 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: 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. ...