Explore the best rated trails in Dresden, OH, whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Hoover Scenic Trail and Heart of Ohio Trail . With more than 41 trails covering 4442 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.
My brother and myself rode this trail on July 23-24. We started at the Nelsonville Train Station where there is plenty of parking. Took many pictures of railroad cars and there was an active train that added to the fun. Note: The train station was not open and there are limited times so check the Hocking Valley Scenic Railway website. The day was very warm; one thing - there is plenty of shade on this trail until you get to Ohio University where it opens up. The trail is well paved and maintained. Early in the trip, we passed Hocking College and Robbins Crossing Historical Village. From my understanding, the village is open only on weekends. You can still walk around the buildings. A little after the Beaumont-Salina trailhead, we came across a beautiful image painted on a side of a shed (one part is a blue train engine labeled as Conrail Quality) - we stumbled across this riding off the trail just a bit. Next was the town of The Plains. Home of Joe Burrow. You can find his field a little off the trail. We had a great meal and service at the Eclipse Company Store. Both had one of their specialty beers. Ohio University will be next with a golf course right there as well. There are some community gardens that follow. The trail will continue for a few more miles and then ends at S Canaan Rd. The last few miles it runs parallel to a highway and there is not much to see. We had a nice few days staying in Nelsonville at the Primrose B&B. We had wondered where the word HockHocking originated. The Delaware Indians named the river Hockhocking (after which it was changed to Hocking). The word means 'a bottle' in their tongue and was derived from the fact there is a waterfall about 6 miles north of the city of Lancaster. The stream is straight and narrow above these falls but then swells like a bottle below them. Found this in a book where we had stayed at.
did this trail for the first time ever July 23/24. Had a fantastic time riding a well-shaded trail for the most part. It is open once you get to Athens and to S.Canaan rd (end point). Lots of things to see both historically and otherwise. We started in Nelsonville at the western trailhead by the Railroad Station. Plenty of pictures to be had if you are a railroad enthusiast. You can ride the high school connector by The Eclipse restaurant in The Plains and go see the Joe Burrow stadium (about 9/10 of a mile). But DON'T pass this place up. Stop and eat and grab one of the 32 draft craft beers. You won't be disappointed. About the only thing that needs some clarification is the mileage markers. It is a little confusing once you get to Athens and where they added the additional trail to the original 18 miles. I heard that there is plans (in the making) of connecting the Moonville Rail Trail up to Athens and the Athens-Belpre trail. That may be ambitious and I don't know if I'll be around to see it. However, that would be great if it happened.
Well maintained trail. The only thing missing is an ice cream shop.
We try to get to this one every year commuting nearly 3 hours and staying in the area. Flat paved trail runs from Danville to Mount Vernon. Crosses the Kokosing river several times over historic railroad bridges, goes through Kenyan College at Gambier and passes through the old stone arch in Howard. Mostly shaded with some open farmlands. We saw a few deer. Connecting trails are Heart of Ohio in Mt. Vernon and Mohican Valley in Danville. All around great trail!
We cycled the trail in its entirety located in Wayne & Stark Counties. Trail is mostly wooded providing a good bit of shade and also scenery of open fields/farmlands. Surface switches between crushed limestone to asphalt pavement. Some of the limestone was loose and other areas down to the dirt. Trail has many short bridges along it's 10 mile length. Very clean trail, zero trash and grass was cut. Dalton end of the trail you take streets into town. Massillon end is under a bridge. We ate a place near the trail on Bison Street which had sandwiches and cold drinks. Clean establishment with friendly service as well.
A beautiful scenery trail shared with Amish horse and buggy riders. Some areas ride a little rough, but overall well worth riding it.
Completed the newer section on July 9, 2025 and was disappointed, I was fortunate to find thanks to an out of state visitor parking at trail. Was peaceful and when the leaves change would be more scenic.
Excellent trail. We parked at the Pickerington Ponds Park trailhead. There are bathrooms there with running water/sewer even though the map doesn't show it. Plenty of parking and nice park in its own right. The trail starts right at the parking lot. If I had one complaint, there could be more pronounced maps and signs along the trail. We missed the trail towards 3 Creeks Park and continued northeast through Portman Park and up Hines Road.
Note: The map shows a break in the pavement for about 200 yards or so just south of Refugee road. It's pavement straight through now.
The section along Hines Road up to Trussing is OK, but the trail is a modified sidewalk along the road, and the road is loud and busy, and crossing the side streets can be concerning. I realized we were going the wrong way when we got to Trussing Rd. and we turned around. Backtracking we saw the sign we missed and got back on course.
The segment starting where the path leaves Hines Road, to the Three Creeks Park trailhead, is fantastic. There is lots of shade. The trail passes a lot of nice parks and things. We saw deer along the trail. The trail goes over or under many busy roads that we would otherwise have to cross. The uphill's and downhills are gradual. All and all this is a great trail. We will definitely come back.
Started on the north part of the trail going south. It switchbacks around a lot of major road infrastructure, but I didn’t have to cross a major road in any of the sections. I ended up getting a bit lost multiple times, but after about 3 miles in, it got a bit easier to navigate. It’s all paved and the part I road on was mostly good with a few sections of bumps. Definitely close to nature - i saw deer, rabbits, and a hawk catch another bird.
Really enjoyed this trail. We were thankful for all the shade since it was in the 90's. We stayed at the Lodge of Hocking College which was on the trail in Nelsonville. Highly recommend.
We traveled 100 miles to this trail and really not impressed at all. Reading from the other reviews I maybe expected more. Though it is a nice scenic trail, there are a lot of trails out there that are nicer and more scenic. There really isn't much to see. We parked at M/M 6 in Scio. Traveled east to Jewett at mile marker 11. One covered bridge, zero shade on this section. It was a hot sunny day. Too hot, too sunny. Not much in Jewett. The trail grass was well taken of, recently cut and there are trash cans along which appeared to be regularly emptied. Coming back into Scio we refilled our water bottles and headed the other direction, West to Bowerston. A few more covered bridges and maybe 5% shade cover. Not much to see along this section either. There was quite a bit of noise coming from some industrial sites just off the trail. I think there are some well traveled roads near the trail and not many trees to muffle the sound. Checked this one off the list, worth riding once but not a do-over.
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!
Scan the QR code to get TrailLink on your phone
