Explore the best rated trails in Irvine, CA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Santa Gertrudis Creek Trail and Coastal Rail Trail. With more than 65 trails covering 416 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.
The Robert McCollum Memorial Bicycle Trail, also known as the Trabuco Creek Trail (East Bank), is a short paved path along Trabuco Creek in San Juan Capistrano. The trail begins at a junction with the...
The Duarte Recreational Trail is made up of paved and parallel dirt trails. Located in Southern California's San Gabriel Valley, Duarte is named for Andres Duarte, a Mexican soldier who was granted...
To the trail user, the West Irvine Trail and Peters Canyon Bikeway are one continuous trail with two names in three cities. The northern component of the Peters Canyon Regional Trail, both paths...
Open space is precious in South Gate, and the Southern Avenue Greenway—which runs under overhead power lines—provides an off-street walking and biking route, as well as play areas for the community....
The scenic University Trail begins at a connection with the San Diego Creek Trail and runs east along University Drive through southern Irvine. The trail stretches the length of William R. Mason...
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The Salt Creek Trail, with more arms than an octopus, offers a variety of experiences for trail users of all types in Dana Point and Laguna Niguel. Featuring two sections, several branches and a mix...
Yorba Linda's El Cajon Trail courses through the city on a former irrigation canal that was abandoned and filled in after a flood made it impractical to use. Paved with a parallel equestrian and...
To the trail user, the West Irvine Trail and Peters Canyon Bikeway are one continuous trail with two names in three cities. The northern component of the Peters Canyon Regional Trail, both paths...
The Venta Spur Trail travels along the narrow corridor of a former rail spur that began serving the Frances Packing House—a major citrus processing facility—in 1916. Today, the popular trail serves...
The Ballona Creek Bike Path follows the channelized Ballona Creek for 7 miles, from Syd Kronenthal Park in east Culver City (National Boulevard) to the Pacific Ocean, where it connects with the Marvin...
The Hicks Canyon Trail is a short but scenic blacktop trail along the landscaped Hicks Canyon Wash. It starts at the Peters Canyon Trail near Hicks Canyon Community Park and climbs up the wash to end...
The San Diego Creek Trail is the spine of the City of Irvine's extensive system of trails and bike lanes. It begins in Newport Beach, joining the Upper Bay Trail near where San Diego Creek empties...
The Turtle Rock Trail meanders its way through the neighborhood of the same name in southern Irvine. The path is a short—but serious—aerobic workout, as it features climbs to the trail's high point at...
The Coastal Rail Trail will one day run 44 miles from Oceanside to San Diego along the Coaster commuter rail. Today, short sections of the trail are coming together, with four disconnected stretches...
Irvine's Jeffrey Open Space Trail, currently open in three disconnected segments, has won awards for its landscaping and innovative design incorporating a series of intaglio panels in the concrete bed...
The Exposition Line, running from Downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica, carefully integrates light rail, bikeway and pedestrian facilities. The second phase of the light rail line opened in 2017,...
This urban trail travels along the side of North Colton Avenue and South Inland Center Drive, connecting San Bernadino and Colton. The corridor is an abandoned Southern Pacific rail line and will...
Quintessential Southern California, the Marvin Braude Bike Trail—commonly referred to as simply The Strand by locals—is featured in hundreds of TV shows and movies. Whether you are here on vacation,...
The Alton Avenue Bike Trail runs adjacent to both Alton Avenue and an active railroad line through Santa Ana. The path primarily serves the recreational and commuting needs of local residents,...
The North Redondo Beach Bikeway is a signed bike route that links Torrance to the Los Angeles Metro's Redondo Beach station (Green Line). Portions of the bikeway feature designated bike lanes, while...
The Culver Boulevard Bike Path is a short rail-trail located in a nicely landscaped median park in Culver City and Los Angeles. The trail was built on a former Pacific Electric interurban...
The Oso Creek Trail offers just over four miles of paved pathway connecting Jeronimo Open Space Park and Oso Viejo Community Park in the suburban southern California city of Mission Viejo. Much of...
Open space is precious in South Gate, and the Southern Avenue Greenway—which runs under overhead power lines—provides an off-street walking and biking route, as well as play areas for the community....
The Santa Ana River Trail is a 12-foot wide path following the Santa Ana River, a waterway that is cement-lined through much of Orange County but free flowing in Riverside and San Bernardino counties....
The Venta Spur Trail travels along the narrow corridor of a former rail spur that began serving the Frances Packing House—a major citrus processing facility—in 1916. Today, the popular trail serves...
The Tracks at Brea Trail provides a 4-mile route across the city of Brea, which lies about 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles. The trail consists of a two-lane paved bikeway for wheeled users and a...
The Aliso Creek Riding and Hiking Trail passes through the heart of Mission Viejo from South Laguna to Rancho Santa Margarita along an 18.5-mile corridor. The trail features many parks in Orange...
A neighborhood trail of the first order, the Pacific Electric Bike Trail links well-kept middle class neighborhoods on either side of tree-lined Maple Street near downtown Santa Ana. The trail runs on...
The Orange Line Bike Path is an 18-mile rail-trail paralleling the Los Angeles Metro's Orange Line rapid busway in the northern neighborhoods of Los Angeles. Both the busway and the trail stretch from...
The San Gabriel River Trail extends from the base of the San Gabriel Mountains all the way to the Pacific Ocean. A key component of Los Angeles County's transportation infrastructure, the trail...
The Chandler Bikeway is a jewel tucked nicely into a Burbank neighborhood. The bikeway begins as a well-maintained corridor that runs in the median between lanes of traffic on Chandler Boulevard. Like...
The Ballona Creek Bike Path follows the channelized Ballona Creek for 7 miles, from Syd Kronenthal Park in east Culver City (National Boulevard) to the Pacific Ocean, where it connects with the Marvin...
Running through large Los Angeles suburbs in both Los Angeles County and Orange County, the Coyote Creek Bikeway follows the channelized bank of the creek through residential and industrial...
The Oceanfront Boardwalk begins in West Newport Beach at the end of 36th Street and runs nearly 3 miles down the Balboa Peninsula. Along the way, trail-goers will find restaurants, dory fishermen,...
The Santiago Creek Trail is a scenic urban ride up a portion of Santiago Creek northeast from the Westfield MainPlace Mall to Collins Avenue in Orange. From Collins Avenue, the trail heads south to...
The Alton Avenue Bike Trail runs adjacent to both Alton Avenue and an active railroad line through Santa Ana. The path primarily serves the recreational and commuting needs of local residents,...
The San Juan Creek Trail starts where the creek meets the Pacific Ocean at Doheny State Beach in scenic Dana Point. From there, it runs on the levee along the western bank of San Juan Creek to its...
Quintessential Southern California, the Marvin Braude Bike Trail—commonly referred to as simply The Strand by locals—is featured in hundreds of TV shows and movies. Whether you are here on vacation,...
The Woodbridge Trail, while short, is one of the most scenic in Irvine's extensive trail network. Views of two lakes and surrounding mountains unfold around each bend. It's a great route for families...
Want an enjoyable loop hike through a new preserve and three parks with stunning ocean views throughout? Check out the trail system in the Dana Point Headlands, a scenic coastal area in Orange...
To the trail user, the West Irvine Trail and Peters Canyon Bikeway are one continuous trail with two names in three cities. The northern component of the Peters Canyon Regional Trail, both paths...
The Walnut Trail shares a wide corridor with an active railroad line, a BNSF route, through a section of Orange County known for producing oranges and strawberries. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe...
The Woodbridge Trail, while short, is one of the most scenic in Irvine's extensive trail network. Views of two lakes and surrounding mountains unfold around each bend. It's a great route for families...
The Exposition Line, running from Downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica, carefully integrates light rail, bikeway and pedestrian facilities. The second phase of the light rail line opened in 2017,...
The paved Los Angeles River Trail—also known as the Los Angeles River Bike Path, Los Angeles River Bikeway, Los Angeles River Greenway Trail and Lario Trail—is open in two disconnected segments along...
The Culver Boulevard Bike Path is a short rail-trail located in a nicely landscaped median park in Culver City and Los Angeles. The trail was built on a former Pacific Electric interurban...
The short Castaways Trail has expansive views of the mountains, ocean, Upper Newport Bay and Newport Harbor. Much of the 1-mile path runs along the bluffs in Castaways Park and the trail offers...
The Santiago Creek Trail is a scenic urban ride up a portion of Santiago Creek northeast from the Westfield MainPlace Mall to Collins Avenue in Orange. From Collins Avenue, the trail heads south to...
The Bellflower Bike Trail runs for more than 2 miles on the right-of-way of the old Pacific Electric transit system—also known as the Red Cars—across Bellflower. At its zenith in the 1920s, Pacific...
The Ballona Creek Bike Path follows the channelized Ballona Creek for 7 miles, from Syd Kronenthal Park in east Culver City (National Boulevard) to the Pacific Ocean, where it connects with the Marvin...
The Alton Avenue Bike Trail runs adjacent to both Alton Avenue and an active railroad line through Santa Ana. The path primarily serves the recreational and commuting needs of local residents,...
The Hoover Bike and Walking Trail is a utilitarian path adjacent to an active rail line in the western Orange County city of Westminster. Also paralleling Hoover Street for its entire distance, the...
The Peters Canyon Trail, currently open in two disconnected segments, runs northeast from Bill Barber Community Park to Portola Parkway, with a small gap from Warner Avenue to an active rail line that...
The Aliso Creek Riding and Hiking Trail passes through the heart of Mission Viejo from South Laguna to Rancho Santa Margarita along an 18.5-mile corridor. The trail features many parks in Orange...
The Mount Lowe Railway was created as a scenic tourist line to bring visitors to see Mount Lowe and Echo Mountain. The railway opened in 1893 and stopped services in 1938. Interestingly, the railway...
The Shoreline Pedestrian/Bicycle Path is a scenic multipurpose trail that runs from the tip of the breakwater opposite Island Grissom at the Long Beach Shoreline Marina to Long Beach's Belmont Shore...
The Turtle Rock Trail meanders its way through the neighborhood of the same name in southern Irvine. The path is a short—but serious—aerobic workout, as it features climbs to the trail's high point at...
Quintessential Southern California, the Marvin Braude Bike Trail—commonly referred to as simply The Strand by locals—is featured in hundreds of TV shows and movies. Whether you are here on vacation,...
Open space is precious in South Gate, and the Southern Avenue Greenway—which runs under overhead power lines—provides an off-street walking and biking route, as well as play areas for the community....
This urban trail travels along the side of North Colton Avenue and South Inland Center Drive, connecting San Bernadino and Colton. The corridor is an abandoned Southern Pacific rail line and will...
This was a really nice ride I went from the coast up and back. It's mostly flat and not too busy. I did this one on a single speed cruiser. Had a lot of fun.
Great trail to ride to the beach. I only rode on the 14 mile stretch from Amtrak Anaheim station to the beach but the trail was awesome Great surface to ride, parks and brides along the way many on and off access . but continuing trail with no autos to worry about.
Great beautiful trail to ride It can get difficult if the beach is very busy. You may have to ride around and through crowds but it is part of the fun a bit. Bathrooms and food is available all along the trail. Great scenery and mostly flat.
You can park for free in the lot next to the bus roundabout. If you come in at the north end of the trail (off of Warner) and turn right after the jack in the box you'll see a parking lot on the left. There's no fee to park there! 😉
Nice route to log in miles, pretty flat with some mild inclines. Great clean ride
A friend and I both have new e-Bikes. Both are city urban commuter type bikes and both of us over sixty-five. We used to ride years ago but for various reasons we stopped. Now we’re back on the road enjoying a lovely trail with wonderful sights. There are little parks and kiddy play areas along the way. We only managed nearly half this time around with a plan to finish the second half in the near future.
Breath taking - separate pedestrian and bike paths - Queen Mary, Marina, and an island with a bunch of man made waterfalls that turn into a light show at night
It's been a few years since my wife and I biked this path, but I always think about it this time of year whenever I smell the orange blossoms in my southern California neighborhood.
This is most certainly a slow, easy, ideal ride for a spring day. It's not too hot yet, the narrow path passes by some stately historic homes, and the aroma of the orange blossoms are absolutely intoxicating!
Consider leaving the path on the way back and riding up one of the side streets through the groves.
I suspect this trail is especially popular with the surrounding community. I know if I lived there I'd be cruising down to the beach every day on it! For a couple of out of towners, it was well worth the time we put into exploring it.
After spending the night in Dana Point's bluff hugging Blue Lantern Inn, we parked the car and unloaded the bikes in Dana Point Marina's Baby Beach parking lot so we could enjoy pedaling around the quiet marina streets as well as the San Juan Creek Trail.
After cruising over to Doheny State Beach to the trailhead, we began our trek along the bank of the creek. For the most part it's a nice, fairly quiet ride. On the way up, we took a detour and explored the Trabuco Creek Trail as well as Old Historic San Juan Capistrano.
The San Juan Creek Trail eventually concluded in a somewhat rural area of ranches and equestrian centers. After cruising back down to the trailhead, I must say it's pretty cool to relax on the beach in the cool, salty air and to bask in the sun.
I first rode this trail over forty years ago when it was one of the first Class I trails in southern California, and I must say it was so cool to go from the Inland Empire all the way to the OC beaches! In recent years I've also ridden the upper portion which is a completely different experience but still worthwhile. The lower portion is nice and flat with cool ocean breezes, while the upper portion is hilly in places and much warmer in the summer. Lower: 5 stars. Upper: 3 stars.
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