Explore the best rated trails in Athens, OH, whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Ohio Canal Greenway and Paint Creek Recreation Trail . With more than 18 trails covering 195 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.
During a busy workweek this was my go-to ride. I ride it twice and add some riding around town in order to get at least 10 miles in. There is lots of shade on the trail. I would have two points of caution: The deer are heavy. I’ve had several cross in front of me and sustained a minor injury when I had to slam on my brakes. Secondly, there is a lack of trail etiquette from pedestrians. I put a bell on my bike but it hasn’t helped. Use caution on this trail, especially when crossing Route 93.
Almost skipped this trail because of the bad reviews. Glad I didn’t. Looks like they fixed the worst spots. Most of the remaining bad ones marked with white paint. Still have a few unmarked bumps that will get your attention. I didn’t think they were too bad on my hybrid at my leisurely 12mph pace.
Rode from Hopewell Mounds MM9 to Shaw Wetlands MM30. Nice peaceful, quiet, secluded ride. Saw only 2 people in 4 hours! Even though SR35 is visible to the north for about half the ride, I didn’t hear any road noise until about MM29. Crossed about 15 bridges. Some cool old wood piling ones. My favorite part was Hopewell to Frankfort - curves along creek and big bridges. I think my least favorite was about MM23.5 to MM25.5. Open with farm fields on both sides.
Looked like they blew the leaves off in Ross County. Fayette County was totally leaf covered in spots. Made it hard to see the buckeyes.
If you can handle some root bumps, go enjoy this secluded ride….bikin-Mike…Oct 2023
The trail is lacking in signage, has a sizable detour, goes over a number of road areas that are not true trail paths, is very bumpy with poorly maintained asphalt, and has steep hills to go under bridges. One of the poorest trails I've ridden. Not worth the trip...
A very beautiful path! The path is along the river with beautiful views of the river, boats and bridges that cross over to West Virginia. Plenty of places to stop and enjoy the view along the way. We got ice cream at a little shop on our way back. It was way out of our way to get to this trail..but definitely worth the trip. ¿¿ (Giving it 4 stars because of the length…but still loved it).
This trail has potential for some serious greatness, but it needs some work. It’s very secluded and peaceful with some beautiful scenery and it’s highlighted by the Moonville and kings hollow tunnels which are fantastic to ride through. The trail from Mineral on pass the Moonville tunnel is crushed stone and not so bad to ride on. Once you go through Moonville and keep heading west towards Zalensky though, there is a bridge out & it abruptly ends. I drove over to Zalenski and rode the other half of the trail, which is all grass, and not really all that great. If this trail was paved and all connected & a little longer, it would be one of the best, but… It still needs a lil work.
This is a nice enough trail but it’s way too short. It’s kind of sad because it has so much potential. There’s a whole section at the end that’s completely unkept & unridable and it just ends up ending in someone’s driveway. If they could tie this trail into the round town trail then it would really be something special. While they’re at it… Why not extend it all the way down to the paint creek trail. That would be sweeet!
This is a nice enough trail but it’s way too short. I supplemented it by riding around in Circleville. If they could find a way to tie it in to the Pickaway trail, they would really have something special.
This trail is not bad but it could be so much better. It’s not in the best condition and the section from Bidwell to Kerr was completely unkept & unridable as far as I could tell. If they could fix that section and have it connect to the main trail and then somehow add some more trail along the river front, this would be a five star trail.
We started at the Nelsonville trail head and rode south. We had no idea how beautiful the path was. The path was well maintained and there were several porta-potties along the way. We were getting ready to turn around when we stumbled upon Eclipse Company Tap Room on the path. An appetizer and a few cold ones and we were back on the path. What a hidden gem. We will be back! had a few cold
We rode from Nelsonville to Athens on June 1, 2023. It was a beautiful day and we stayed at the Hocking Tec Lodge. We just got on the trail and saw a turtle. My husband put it over in the grass. It had been several years since we rode this trail. That evening we ate at Sonic and my husband had a sparrow land on his head while he was eating a hamburger. We will remember this great trip.
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