Explore the best rated trails in Altoona, IA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the South Tama Recreation Trail and Galloping Goose Trail (IA). With more than 78 trails covering 4222 miles you’re bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Part of an expansive trail network in the Greater Des Moines region, the 26-mile Neal Smith Trail rolls along the banks of the Des Moines River through the Ding Darling Greenway conservation area and...
The Waveland Trail runs through the historic neighborhoods of Waveland Park, Waveland Woods and Waterbury in western Des Moines. Along the way, the trail passes a community center, library, golf...
It may be hard to believe now when you see children laughing on the playground and neighbors out on a morning jog but Easter Lake and the park that surrounds it sit on the site of a coal mine that...
The West Des Moines Levee Trail was named in 2015 as one of the Top 10 most frequented trails in the Des Moines trail network. The trail is the connector between two other popular trails, Jordan Creek...
The Lions Park Trail provides a charming path alongside a little creek in the suburb of Grimes, IA, far to the northwest on the outskirts of the Des Moines area. This short trail provides a perfect...
The Green Meadows West Trail is a short multi-use path that provides an off-road connection for the Green Meadows neighborhood to the rest of the Johnston area's network of trails, enabling residents...
The Ewing Park Trail is a paved path, perfect for a short bike ride or jog, located in the city of Des Moines' Ewing Park. One of the city's largest public parks, the park is home to a popular lilac...
The 1.6-mile McVay Trail in Indianola provides a paved route for cyclists, walkers and joggers between East 5th Street and Pickard Park. The trail follows the bed of the former Chicago, Burlington and...
The Mahaska Community Recreation Trail wraps around the southeast Iowan city, winding through neighborhoods, farmlands, community parks, and woodlands. Construction of the trail began in 1999 and to...
The Johnston Interurban Trail, built on a corridor used by Iowa's Inter-Urban Railway from 1906 until 1948, provides an important connection for the area's top-notch trail system, which enables trail...
The High Trestle Trail is one of the most pristine and highly trafficked trails in Iowa—even at night. The trail’s popularity is largely due to its famous 130-foot-tall High Trestle Bridge, which...
The Rock Creek Recreation Bike Trail is a paved multi-use trail that provides a connection between the small, charming college town of Grinnell and Rock Creek State Park, a popular destination for...
Named for the major project the city of Des Moines has undertaken to improve transportation and connectivity along the Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway in the southeastern section of downtown, the...
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Built on a former section of the Chicago Great Western Railroad (built in 1893), the Great Western Trail spans 16.5 miles from just outside of urban Des Moines southward to Martensdale. Begin your...
The James Street Trail begins on Meredith Drive in Urbandale and stretches over two and half miles north into the neighboring municipality of Grimes. The concrete trail is generally flat and easy to...
The Iowa 330/US 30 Trail stretches from just west of the small town of Melbourne to the outskirts of Marshalltown, the largest city and county seat of Marshall County, located close to the geographic...
The Jerry Kelley Trail, named for the city of Indianola's former long-tenured mayor, provides a great community pathway that links residents to schools, local parks, and the city's pair of fantastic...
The small city of Knoxville, about forty miles southeast of Des Moines, is chiefly known for the Knoxville Raceway and the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum, which draws racing enthusiasts...
Running along a pleasant wooded corridor that follows the path of the Little Walnut Creek on the western outskirts of Urbandale, the Little Walnut Creek Trail is an excellent means of recreation for...
Located just over thirty miles east of Des Moines, the small city of Newton boasts a charming midwestern feel - and complementing the city's charm is the lovely Newton Hike and Bike Trail, which...
Covering the majority of the northern side of the small suburban community of Grimes, IA, the Beaverbrooke Park Trail offers a lovely paved route along the tree-lined path of an irrigation ditch....
Beginning at the end of the Bob Layton Trail in Urbandale, the Walnut Trace Park Trail allows walkers, cyclists, and others to continue exploring the peaceful meadows alongside Walnut Creek for over...
The Kruidenier Trail cuts through beautifully landscaped areas around Gray’s Lake and leads you into downtown Des Moines. The park offers a permanent on-site bike rental facility, restrooms, and a...
Who says Iowa doesn’t have hills?! The winding route of the Volksweg Trail sticks mainly to the rolling hills and scenic viewpoints from Lake Red Rock all the way to the town of Pella. Dutch...
The Meredith Trail connects from downtown Des Moines west to Gray’s Lake Park. The trail picks up off where the Principal Riverwalk leaves off along the Des Moines River. At the confluence with...
A newly constructed six-lane highway built to accommodate the rapidly expanding suburb of Waukee, the Grand Prairie Parkway was designed to serve a variety of needs, and the accompanying Grand Prairie...
South Skunk River is a tributary of the Mississippi River. In Ames, the Skunk River Trail brings residents closer to river and to nature. The shared use path sits on the shady west bank of South Skunk...
It may be hard to believe now when you see children laughing on the playground and neighbors out on a morning jog but Easter Lake and the park that surrounds it sit on the site of a coal mine that...
On the western outskirts of Des Moines, the Raccoon River Valley Trail offers a quintessential central Iowa experience. Over its 89-mile span, you’ll traverse woodlands, prairie and agricultural...
Constructed in a lovely corridor that runs in between suburban neighborhoods in West Des Moines, the Ashawa Greenway Trail offers a short but pleasant paved path that serves both as a means of...
Running along a pleasant wooded corridor that follows the path of the Little Walnut Creek on the western outskirts of Urbandale, the Little Walnut Creek Trail is an excellent means of recreation for...
The Jordan Creek Trail is a pleasant suburban trail that connects neighborhoods with shopping and retail, schools, and recreational amenities. The trail gets its name from the Jordan Creek, which it...
As it runs directly through the heart of Marshalltown in central Iowa, access to the Linn Creek Recreational Trail is easy for many of the city's residents. They will want to take advantage of it,...
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...
It took a nearly a decade of work and collaboration between two Central Iowa communities and a host of other partners to move the JewEllsworth Trail from vision to reality. The trail sits in the...
The Heart of the Warrior Trail runs east-west through Waukee, a small city in the Greater Des Moines area. On its east end, the trail begins in Lions Park. Here, it connects to the popular Clive...
Stange Road trail connects residents of the Somerset neighborhood in north Ames, to the Iowa State University campus that lies directly south of it. The shared use path sits on the west side of Stange...
The Timberline Park Trail forms a crucial link in the Urbandale area's trail network, while also offering a scenic experience for local residents in need of a neighborhood stroll. The northern end of...
A short, paved path that runs through open fields and clusters of trees alongside Beaver Creek, local residents use the Augustine Trail both as a convenient means of recreation and dog-walking, as...
The Oralabor Gateway Trail is a 5.2 mile concrete-surfaced spur branching off from the Neal Smith Trail south of Saylorville Lake and just north of NW 66th Avenue. While running adjacent to suburban...
While Greater Des Moines is flush with multiuse trails, one of the paved pathways running through the suburb of Clive really stands out. Offering a string of trailside parks and fun twists and turns...
It took a nearly a decade of work and collaboration between two Central Iowa communities and a host of other partners to move the JewEllsworth Trail from vision to reality. The trail sits in the...
The Lions Park Trail provides a charming path alongside a little creek in the suburb of Grimes, IA, far to the northwest on the outskirts of the Des Moines area. This short trail provides a perfect...
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The Walnut Creek Trail serves as an important trail connector in West Des Moines. On its northern end, it seamlessly links to the Clive Greenbelt Trail, which heads west and, in turn, connects to the...
Beginning just past the junction of the Johnston Interurban Trail and the Trestle to Trestle Trail, which carries users over the creek and south into Des Moines via the area's stellar system of...
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Connecting neighborhoods to parks and trails in the center of Waukee, a small but fast-growing suburb west of Des Moines, the Sugar Creek Trail helps provide an easy way to bike or walk around the...
Urbandale, Iowa is home to an extensive trails network; there are over 54 miles of trail spread across the city. The Meredith Drive Trail isn't necessarily the most scenic of the trails, it does form...
This is a shared-use path located on the east side of Northwest Beaver Drive in Johnston, Iowa. The trail connects residents to two recreational sites on the west shore of Saylorville Lake as well as...
Constructed in a lovely corridor that runs in between suburban neighborhoods in West Des Moines, the Ashawa Greenway Trail offers a short but pleasant paved path that serves both as a means of...
The James Street Trail begins on Meredith Drive in Urbandale and stretches over two and half miles north into the neighboring municipality of Grimes. The concrete trail is generally flat and easy to...
Notice: In 2019, the bridge over Beaver Creek in Johnston collapsed. Repairs on the bridge are expected to be completed in 2021. Repair schedule and updates can be found at the Polk County...
The 1.6-mile McVay Trail in Indianola provides a paved route for cyclists, walkers and joggers between East 5th Street and Pickard Park. The trail follows the bed of the former Chicago, Burlington and...
The West Des Moines Levee Trail was named in 2015 as one of the Top 10 most frequented trails in the Des Moines trail network. The trail is the connector between two other popular trails, Jordan Creek...
Part of an expansive trail network in the Greater Des Moines region, the 26-mile Neal Smith Trail rolls along the banks of the Des Moines River through the Ding Darling Greenway conservation area and...
The East Hillcrest Trail is a short suburban trail located in the community of Indianola. Running along the avenue of the same name, the trail provides several important local connections, linking the...
The Green Meadows West Trail is a short multi-use path that provides an off-road connection for the Green Meadows neighborhood to the rest of the Johnston area's network of trails, enabling residents...
Residents enjoy getting outside and onto this popular Urbandale trail thanks to its ease and connectivity to neighborhoods, parks and other trails. The trail begins just above Douglas Avenue, crossing...
The Ewing Park Trail is a paved path, perfect for a short bike ride or jog, located in the city of Des Moines' Ewing Park. One of the city's largest public parks, the park is home to a popular lilac...
Providing a pleasant off-road route between the two Des Moines suburbs of Urbandale and Johnston, the Johnston to Urbandale Trail also serves as one of the main points of connection from Urbandale's...
The Long Meadow Trail is a quaint path in suburban Johnston, IA, popular with joggers and walkers from the various neighborhoods it runs through. The paved trail provides an important off-road...
Our family (dad, mom, and 2 kids -- 5 and 8) love to go on bicycle rides on trails in the central part of the country. We have ridden on trails in Kansas, Missouri (our home state), Nebraska and Iowa. Of all the places where we ride (usually "day trips" from our home in northwestern Missouri), the trails in Iowa are our absolute favorite. We are frequent visitors to the High Trestle Trail, and decided to "switch it up" one afternoon (Aug 8, 2021) and try out a trail that we hadn't been on before. We selected the Raccoon River Valley Trail.
With the kids in tow, we don't ride the entire trail. Instead, we usually go out 4 or 5 miles, and then return. We put in at the trailhead in Adel, IA, and headed east about 4 miles before turning around because the kids were getting tired (the furthest they have ridden is about 12 miles total on a ride). Having been on the High Trestle Trail many times, the kids **love** going over the bridges. We weren't disappointed going over the bridge 1 mile east of the Adel trailhead, which goes over the Raccoon River.
The condition of the portion of the trail we rode was just OK. That portion of the trail is paved with asphalt, and there are some dubious patch jobs along the portion of the trail that we rode. I was eager to ride my newly-re-cabled road bike, and the trail was mostly smooth enough for that. But, you better look ahead and pick your path well, because some of those hack patch jobs are pretty rough. Still, it isn't bad enough to detract any stars from what we thought is an outstanding trail.
We paid the daily fee for 2 adults (kids ride free), which helps fund maintenance for the trail. We are definitely not against paying the small fee ($2 per adult per day ... we just put a fiver in the envelope) to help fund the maintenance and upkeep on high quality trails.
After the ride, we stopped at Brickyard Burgers and Brews (1802 Greene St, Adel, Iowa 50003 ... https://adelbrickyard.com/ ... copy the URL and paste it into a new browser tab), which is RIGHT AT the Adel, IA trailhead. They have awesome wood-fired oven baked pizzas, and they were (as my daughter says) DELICIOSO! Out of two large pizzas, we went home with only three pieces remaining ... and the kids split one of those (the only remaining piece from their pizza) on the way home in the truck!
Of the four states we have ridden trails on, the trails in Iowa are our favorite. While most trails are "paved" with chipped gravel, the majority of the trails we've been on in Iowa are paved in either concrete or asphalt. It is a much more enjoyable ride. It may cost a bit more initially, but we can only imagine that it also has lower maintenance costs, since we've witnessed the chipped gravel trails often having "ruts" from people riding after a rain. There is no such issue on the concrete and asphalt paved trails that we've been on. And, by offering a smoother ride, it's not hard to imagine that more people will take advantage of what the trails have to offer, increasing traffic to the towns located along the truly paved trails. I tend to not take my road bike on the chipped gravel trails, fearful of a crash from hitting some loose gravel that will cause me or my bike (or both) serious injury. The fact that I can ride my road bike on these trails is a real plus, and one that I go out of my way to ride on.
All any other state has to do to figure out how to do trails "RIGHT" is look to how Iowa has created their trail system. Keep up the excellent work on the trails, Iowa! You've done it up right!
Concrete and asphalt with lots of ups and downs and turns. Goes through a few parks, there's lots of shade.
This is nearly a primitive trail. It needs funding and maintained . A mile section between Derby and Humelston is completely overgrown. I had the handlebars jerk out of my hands on 3 different sections. The cinder portion is ok and rideable but some gravel patches are very soft causing almost abrupt slowdowns. Numerous rest shelters are completely overgrown by brush and weeds. The bridges have warnings at both end to get off and walk across because of the uneven planks. I have ridden most all Iowa trails and this is the worst for condition. It is a shame as some of the terrain is quite pretty. But even in July stagnant water and mosquitos were bad. I crashed on the trail due to the very rough uneven surfaces. It would make a good hiking trail. If you ride it you will want wide tires and suspension. I had a hard tail front suspension carbon mountain bike and it was a rough ride.
Great trail / riding conditions. A few stretches between towns that have not been upgraded but overall a great ride. A couple stretches need shoulder improvements.....if you veer off the trail you're in trouble due to a 4" drop into class 5 rock and then into the woods (the only reason I deduct a rating star). Get this fixed, the trail deserves 5 stars!
I did the loop starting in Perry. I liked that there are several little towns for rest and nutrition stops. Other riders were courteous and friendly although some could turn down the tunes....hard to enjoy the peacefulness when AC/DC is blaring throughout the woods.
If you have a road bike or bad shocks this will not be as enjoyable as other trails. The trail needs some work done. It’s pretty bumpy in spots. However it is a beautiful ride with some cute bars along the way!
Great winding trail around Lake Red Rock with beautiful views of the water.
This is a beautiful quiet ride! Several benches to enjoy the peace and quiet. Wide trail very well maintained. Sinage within ellsworth was a bit confusing! Jewell is a great little town with little shops to walk thru
Started in Berwick at the suggested park and the plan was to go to Baxter, about a couple blocks before the end, the trail is closed. There is a detour in the subdivision. Otherwise no other problems with the trail, it was 54.4 miles round trip, great ride. From Baxter back to Berwick there is more uphill. If you’re looking for a easy ride just go one way; Berwick to Baxter.
My dad and I went exploring and chose this location to check out. We were pleasantly surprised by the clean water of the lake, and around the lake was very picked up of all garbage . The only thing with the walk around the lake are the lines in the road. There is a bike/walking lane and a single file car lane that is not marked consistently and folks don’t seem to understand that and think it is a car lane. The road is a one way loop, and still there was confusion with motorists regarding the biker/walkers. We will definitely be back to kayak around the lake as it is really pretty and it loops around an island . It also looks like a great place to fish. Be sure you have your fishing license/trout license. Enjoy!!
2-ish miles south of Jefferson the bridge is still out, w/no practical alternative route. Construction was active, but still no stable bed on new bridge. Let’s hope it’s passable by end of 2021.
Nice and wide. Good connection between Summerset Trail and good biking around YMCA.
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