Glacial Lakes State Trail:
Minnesota
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Description:
The 25-mile, paved Glacial Lakes State Trail follows the former right-of-way of the Burlington Northern Railroad between Willmar and near Paynesville, at the Kandiyohi and Stearns county line. The trail passes through the towns of Spicer, New London and Hawick and past Green Lake. The segment between Willmar and Spicer includes a parallel grass track for equestrians and the rest of the trail includes a grassy shoulder for equestrians.

In New London you can take a side trip to Sibley State Park (about 3 miles away); follow State Rt. 9 to County Road 148. Note, by bike you'll have to ride in a bike lane on the shoulder of CR 148. In Paynesville you can connect to city trails that circle Lake Koronis.
Beyond the county line near Paynesville the trail is undeveloped to just past Richmond; railroad ballast still covers the surface and some bridges are out.

The Glacial Lakes State Trail traverses the gently rolling prairies of central Minnesota and travels between a landscape of tallgrass prairie and deciduous forest. Among the farmlands you can catch glimpses of the original prairie and wetlands, which makes ideal habitat for whitetail deer, small mammals, birds, reptiles and butterflies.

Services are available in the towns along the route, including rest areas and restrooms. The trail is groomed for snowmobiles in winter in Kandiyohi County.

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Parking & Trail Access:
You can access Glacial Lakes State Trail in many places along its route. In Willmar take U.S. Hwy. 12 East to County Road 9. Turn north (left) and go 2 miles to the parking lot at the Civic Center (west).

In Spicer at the junction of State Rt. 23 and County Road 10 there is a parking lot west off 23.

In New London follow State Rt. 9 North to the public water access parking lot on east (right).

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Reviews: [0 trail ratings]
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NE Destination
By timbee in July, 2009
Finally the NE section beyond Hawick doesn't dead-end. There is a 2 mile spur into Paynesville on very nice smooth asphalt. Once there you'll find many stores & eateries. It appears the city has some additional "in-town" trails, also. This is a great addition to this otherwise amenity lean jaunt.

As I noted before, the Willmar end (largest city) has nothing, not even a bench. There don't appear to be any spurs into the city either. I did find water & a porta potty in the ballfield half mile away, though. Why doesn't Willmar get with it??
Smooth but noisy
By dreamshark in October, 2008
We rode from Spicer to a little past New London on September 23, 2008. It's an easy, comfortable ride. The trail surface is flawless smooth asphalt, and the terrain is mostly flat. Late September turned out to be the perfect time to ride for fall colors: lots of brilliant red sumac contrasting with meadow grass, fall wild flowers, and the pale yellow of little popples and birches just starting to turn. Most of this segment is in full sun, although there are some well-shaded areas near the lake on the north side of Spicer.

The main drawback is that the trail runs close to a busy highway for almost the entire way. Sometimes the trail is just 30 feet from the road with no tree cover at all. Other times there is a narrow band of second-growth forest, an embankment or even a small lake to provide some shield for highway noise. But you're never far enough from the road so that you can't hear it.

All in all, this was an easy and pleasant trail except for the road noise, especially recommended for early fall riding when the sumac is peaking.
Some parts are nice
By tcbretl in October, 2008
We rode this trail from Willmar to New London on our tandem. The section from Willmar to Spicer was nice, quiet, and scenic; but the section from Spicer to New London was too close to a busy highway. We also tried to follow an "other trail" (marked on our MN Dept of Natural Resources map) connecting New London to Sibley State Park , but it turned out to be nothing more than a 3 foot shoulder on the road. Sibley State Park, however, was worth the visit.
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