Explore the best rated trails in Emporia, KS, whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Flint Hills Trail State Park and Lake Shawnee Trail . With more than 5 trails covering 207 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.
I was traveling in the area and needed to kill a little time and found the Prairie Spirit Trail. I parked in Ottawa and rode south a few miles. I normally don’t ride gravel but this was superb. I turned around and rode back north on the paved trail in town to the end. I was not able to enjoy the entire trail but I will return here now that I’ve discovered it. I give this one five stars! Traveling cyclist Facebook
I rode an electric bike with 4" tires on three separate rides. All of them were about 10 miles out and back (in 2 days):
Council Grove heading East,
Allen heading West, and
Ottawa heading East.
I drove from Texas to ride them and they did not disappoint! I came for the solitude and the scenery. The western end was reminiscent of scenes from Dances With Wolves. The eastern end was more wooded and shaded. I hope to return to ride other parts too.
This trail is fantastic year round! Be sure to take the time to enjoy the Ted Ensley Garden along the way. So well maintained and easy to access.
Ottawa Trailhead to Richmond. About 27 miles round trip & 272 ft. climb. Quick, easy ride. Well maintained trail with good surface for our hybrid bikes. It was a destination trail for us and glad we made to effort to experience it.
Nice, level, well kept trail of small crushed gravel and about half sun & half shade. We rode from Ottawa 13 miles to Richmond and then back. There are restrooms & water fountains in Princeton & Richmond along with picnic tables & parking as well as a few benches at spots along the trail. We basically had the trail to ourselves, early on as we headed out we saw a couple of cyclists and then a single cyclist…..that was it. Just us and the deer, rabbits, squirrels and birds.
Today From HIE-Ottawa I rode The Prairie Spirit Tr to intersection with Flint Hills Nature Tr. Headed west at MM22 I encountered a detour that I did not want to deal with, so I set my sights on going about 22 miles east to MM0 at Osawatami¿. Trail was 1/2 very good condition n 1/2 was bigger gravel¿. The scenery was Beautiful Big AG to my liking. I met up with a red fox, a brown snake, and a big brown hawk!
Today I rode South from Holiday Inn Express corner of I35 and Main St Ottawa, MM61 to MM87 and back¿ for a total of 52 miles. Trail is in Great Shape and the agricultural views are amazing. This is rural riding at its best. I could no believe I did not see another biker during my entire ride ¿. The riders around here must have a rule regarding if wind is X-mph, they don’t ride ¿. I was severely beaten by the Great Plains Wind all day long¿.
April 2022 We rode east from Council Grove Ks for about 5 miles of the trail out to the Kaw monument. We have knobby cross over tires on our Pedego’s which handled the gravel just fine. We stayed at the COE campground just north of town and rode the bikes into town and on the try and back. It looks like it would also be fun to ride around town as well as the trail but rainy cold weather limited our riding during our stay in the area. Hoping to go back and ride more of the trail and around council grove.
This trail now officially/unofficially starts in Osawatomee or mile zero at the corner of 12th and South Street.
My wife dropped me off at mile zero trailhead in Osawatomee and I met her at the depot museum in Ottawa. We then rode to Pamona. Nice ride but a section is closed between Ottawa and Pamona and you must take gravel rodes for a short 3 miles or so.
Another lovely trail in Kansas. We were pleasantly surprised. We started our section in Garnett in mid-late Sept 2022. We drove south from Ottawa due to rain there and when we got to Garnett, the rain and moved on, so we rode south (40 miles return). The parking lot at the old train depot has water and toilets and is a good place to park. There is a delicious Amish run restaurant in town--a must stop for breakfast or lunch. The cycling was great--just watch for some dry cracks in the trail base and some limbs or trees can be down. This section was partly shaded, but more out in the open. Some of the trail was parallel to the north/south highway connecting Ottawa to Iola. Every small town had a nice rest stop complete with toilet and water. Only Garnett had anything worth stopping in, the others were small settlements with residents only (or that's what we saw anyway). The entire trail looks great, and we hope someday to return to do the entire trail from Humboldt to Ottawa.
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