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The Osage Prairie Trail follows the corridor of the old Midland Valley Rail for 16.3 miles. The trail links Oklahoma State University in Tulsa with the town of Skiatook to the north.
The trail is lighted in places for night use and passes through both urban and rural landscapes. The southern end is mostly suburban, while around Skiatook and Sperry the trail takes on a more countryside atmosphere.
About the Route
The trail heads south from the northernmost trail endpoint along NW 166th St. and heads directly south along a rural corridor, ensconced in trees. As the trail heads south, the trail passes through the heart of Skiatook and then heads back out into the rural Oklahoma countryside where the route crosses over Bird Creek.
After here, the trail turns slightly east and continues south through the towns of Sperry and Turley. South of Turley, the trail landscape completely changes from the northern rural landscape and enters the dense suburbs north of Tulsa.
The route meets its southernmost endpoint just shy of downtown Tulsa along E Independence Place.
The Osage Prairie Trail runs between NW 166th St. (Skiatook) and E Independence Pl. (Tulsa), which offers parking.
Parking is also available at:
Please see TrailLink Map for all parking options and detailed directions.
We rode the entire 16.8 mile trail from the OSU-Tulsa trailhead to the end of the trail ~1.5 miles north of Skiatook and back. It’s a blacktop trail the entire way. The banner for the trail on Trailink says there is a bridge out. That is not correct. The first 4.5 miles heading out of Tulsa goes through some gritty landscape with a lot of litter along the trail. Once you clear the urban area, you head through a mix of pasture and farmland, some wetlands, and a few rural towns. The trail is in good shape and appears to be well maintained. Quite a few crossings over adjacent roads, but few are high volume. Not as scenic as many trails that we have ridden, but a pleasant, flat ride.
It is a great ride in some places. There is still a bridge out so you have to take a detour which is dangerous. You also have to cross a lot of streets. We always stop at the little park in the center of Sperry where they have free WiFi courtesy of the Cherokee nation. There is also too much trash but at least someone took away the broken toilet.
Beautiful scenery, well kept, not crowded. Love all the bridges!
Rode from skiatook to Sperry. So easy and flat and pleasant. Lots of green trees and nice bridges and country roads. Interestingly this trail is NOT on all trails
I read the reviews and they all had merit; there is horse poop on the trail, a bridge is out with no warning or signs of being repaired and there are multiple streets to cross and some of them are fairly heavily trafficked—on the plus side, it’s also very lovely, shaded for long stretches and not busy. Slight grades, easy to run/walk/bike. I ran 10 and I saw only one bike and two walkers. Overall very pleasant—no lighting along trail so not a good spot to go before or after the sun comes or goes.
Rode the Osage starting from OSU and went to Skiatook. The bridge across Flat Rock Creek is still closed, so there are concrete blocks on the trail at E 36th St N and E 46th St N, but no signs indicating a detour. We (on a tandem) opted to go west to N Hartford Ave which is wide and not busy at the time we rode it. Going to the east, is N. Peoria Ave (Rt-11). Google Street View shows it has a sidewalk that might be rideable.
All other comments regarding glass and loose dogs are accurate. In addition, we found numerous piles of "horse poop" on the trail as well. The trail south of Sperry could use some TLC in the way of community clean up events.
This was my first ride on the trail, started at the OSU campus, went to Skiatook took a small rest then came back. Bridge is still out but found a nice “sidewalk” to make the detour. Wasn’t expecting greatness but it was nice for a long ride(32 miles)!
No notice that the bridge is out. A lot of horizontal cracks on the trail, some that could do a lot of damage. A lot of road crossings and blind view of oncoming traffic. Beautiful scenery, sketchy on the southern part of the trail in Tulsa county.
Great trail. Started south from Skiatook. Mile markers at 14, 13 and 12 so was going to check accuracy of my recently changed tire size settings in my bike computer. Took reading at mile 14 and planned again at mile 4. Just after mile marker 12 a sign said entering Tulsa County. Then no more mile markers. So much for plan. Worse still no information markers of any kind in Tulsa Co. made a couple of wrong turns when options presented themselves. Then approaching downtown Tulsa trail enters a large parking lot with no information on where to pick it up. Just drove city streets for rest of ride.
We rode this yesterday for the first time. Before doing so, we read the variety of reviews and had a fairly accurate expectation.
The southern end, containing several road crossings, still has several areas with broken glass, graffiti, junk yards, an aggressive dog and gives one a general feeling of uneasiness.
The northern end is much more pleasant. Longer stretches between road crossings, more rural, cleaner and allows one to enjoy the ride, the views and the experience. The park at the Skiatook Trail head is beyond impressive!
Our suggestion: start at Skiatook and head south into Tulsa and head back into Skiatook. The trail does extend north beyond the Skiatook Trail head for 1 1/2 miles. So the entire length is 16 miles, one way.
I enjoy biking this trail, usually the section between Sperry and Skiatook. It is quiet and rural. Crossing a few non-busy roads is no bother to me. They've built a nice little park with water fountains and kiddie play area at the Skiatook end.
This is a wonderful flat trail. I have ridden it several times. It can be dangerous with mean dogs. I have run into them more that once. I would love to ride it more often but I hesitate. Be careful. I wish there was a way to contain them.
Great trail that runs north to Sperry and Skiatook. Well maintained thru these towns and there is some nice country to see. It goes thru the center of Skiatook Central Park which is a very nice park. It is currently being expanded farther to the north of Skiatook going into Barnsdall and hopefully into the City of Pawhuska. The additional trail to the north will bring even more great country to ride, jog or walk thru.
Rode this trail from Tulsa to Skiatook and back. Not that much to see but if you want miles and want not much traffic this is a trail for you. Better make sure you have at least one spare tube lots of glass on the trial
Way to many intersections w traffic.
I rode the entire trail about two weeks ago for the first time during a weekday. For the most part I enjoyed it. As others mentioned, the part from just South of Sperry all the way into Skiatook is really nice.
I also found the other end, from the OSU-Tulsa parking lot north to 46th street North was OK as well. This part is more urban but visually interesting.
That leaves a small section in the middle; specifically from 46st North to 56th North which is a few blocks West of McClain High School.
The trail here is tree lined, visually pleasant and somewhat isolated from the adjacent neighbor hoods. During this section I met two different groups of three young men walking along the trail. Since it was around noon on a school day I assume they were a bit past high school age or perhaps just "taking a break" from school. Although I greeted both groups, an individual from within each group made some comments which I couldn't completely comprehend since it appeared to be Ebonics and I was moving steadily about 10-12mph and not having time for conversation. IMO, it was an attempt to intimidate or trying to impress their cool comrades.
Therefore, I would be a bit careful of the section b/t 46th and 56th St. North for single riders on days when you see no other bikers in the area. Groups and weekends where there is more activity should still be fine - - I hope.
Road the entire trail yesterday from the Skiatook trail head to the Tulsa OSU end and back. I thoroughly enjoyed the ride through Skiatook and Sperry. The southern half of the trail going through north Tulsa had broken glass scattered on the pavement in more than a couple places and had several busy streets to cross. If I return with my kids we'll stick to the Skiatook to Sperry stretch where there are only quiet country roads to cross.
This is a very nice trail. Prefectly flat and straight. It is well maintained. However, there are limited facilities. We had to use the restrooms at a public library about two blocks from the Tulsa trailhead. About 6 miles from the Skiatook Trailhead there is a junk yard where a pack of about 5 dogs are loose, but all they did was bark and chased alongside us for 50 yards or so.
We started at the Skiatook Trailhead. From Tulsa you go north on Hwy 75 to OK 20 and then go west into Skiatook. The trailhead is on the west edge of town right on OK 20. Currently there is new construction of a public park where the trailhead will start. This will be an outstanding trailhead when completed. You can pick up the trail about a block south of the construction where there is a parking area.
We live in the Hilton Head area and an item in our bucket list is to completed a bike ride in every state. This trail completed Oklahoma for us and it was well worth the effort.
50/50 shaded path with wonderful scenery and good services. Highly recommended!
The Osage Prairie Trail actually runs from the OSU Tulsa campus near Greenwood and Archer to Skiatook Ok ending at state highway 20(main street). It is lite for a mile and a third on the Skiatook end and through the town of Sperry. The trail contains 3 very scenic bridges and is somewhat shaded. There are several water fountains along the trail.
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