Explore the best rated trails in Johnston, IA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Galloping Goose Trail (IA) and Hubbard Prairie Trail. With more than 74 trails covering 457 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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Following a former railroad corridor, the River's Edge Trail (formerly known as Iowa River Trail) will one day span 34 miles from Marshalltown in Marshall County to Steamboat Rock in Hardin County....
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...
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 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...
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...
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...
A short, paved trail that connects neighborhoods and preserved open space to the Mark C. Ackelson Trail at Easter Lake Park, the Easter Lake Spine Trail is a useful asset to the community and forms a...
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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 Bob Layton Trail, dedicated in 2014 and named in honor of the city of Urbandale's former city manager, offers a little over a mile of paved trail through the city's Walnut Creek Regional Park. A...
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...
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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...
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...
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 Mills Civic Parkway Trail follows the route of its namesake roadway through suburban West Des Moines, helping to connect residents to popular destinations like local parks, schools, numerous shops...
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The Hiawatha Trail provides a convenient way to cross Perry's northeastern neighborhoods and provides a connection to Raccoon River Valley Trail, a scenic 89-mile rail-trail. The east end of the...
The Bloomington Road Trail is a shared use path along the road of the same name. The trail is located in Ames, near the northern city limits. It provides a safe, car-separate facility where residents...
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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...
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...
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...
Running through suburban neighborhoods on the western edge of Johnston, IA, the Green Meadows North Trail offers a pleasant dose of nature and serves as a great recreational amenity for nearby...
Nestled in the suburbs of Des Moines and traveling through the towns of Ankeny, Berwick, Pleasant Hill, and Altoona, the Gay Lea Wilson Trail is named for a local advocate who first conceived of a...
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...
Take a morning bike ride or evening stroll on the Des Moines River Trail. The paved trail diverges from the Meredith Trail and Prinicipal Riverwalk, continuing for 2.6 miles downstream to the James W....
The Summerset Trail links the two central Iowa communities of Indianola and Carlisle, both of which have embraced the trail, including providing helpful signs at each end with clear directions for...
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...
The Northwest 62nd Avenue Trail is a wide sidepath in Johnston, IA, that serves as an important off-road connector between many of the trails in the city's well-developed trail system and the greater...
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...
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...
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 Heart of Iowa Nature Trail traverses classic Iowa farmland along the former route of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad, also known as the Milwaukee Road. The trail transitions...
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...
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...
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 Bill Riley Trail delivers a short but immersive trail experience in a tranquil natural setting. The trail begins at the southern end of the Walnut Creek Trail, and follows the creek into Ashworth...
The Bloomington Road Trail is a shared use path along the road of the same name. The trail is located in Ames, near the northern city limits. It provides a safe, car-separate facility where residents...
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...
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 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...
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 Westridge Greenway Trail spans just shy of a mile, running along a beautiful shaded corridor in the heart of suburban West Des Moines. The flat trail is a mixture of concrete and asphalt paths,...
Take a morning bike ride or evening stroll on the Des Moines River Trail. The paved trail diverges from the Meredith Trail and Prinicipal Riverwalk, continuing for 2.6 miles downstream to the James W....
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...
The Westridge Greenway Trail spans just shy of a mile, running along a beautiful shaded corridor in the heart of suburban West Des Moines. The flat trail is a mixture of concrete and asphalt paths,...
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...
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...
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...
The Bloomington Road Trail is a shared use path along the road of the same name. The trail is located in Ames, near the northern city limits. It provides a safe, car-separate facility where residents...
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The Galloping Goose Trail is so called for the nickname of the old railroad that once ran through the area and upon which the trail sits. As of 2012, about 0.5 mile of trail have been built northeast...
Although short, the Reumpers Nature Trail runs under a beautiful canopy of trees along the former Chicago Northwestern Railroad in Radcliffe, a small town in central Iowa.
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 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...
A sidepath trail located along the side of the adjacent busy parkway that shares its name, the Martin Luther King Jr. Trail may not provide the sort of pleasant, natural trail experience that other...
The Summerset Trail links the two central Iowa communities of Indianola and Carlisle, both of which have embraced the trail, including providing helpful signs at each end with clear directions for...
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...
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...
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....
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,...
To the residents of Lastrobe, the Lincoln Avenue Rails to Trails Greenway is more than a simple off-road path: it also a social asset, a place where community members of all ages and walks of life can...
The Cinder Path in southern Iowa is notable as the state’s first rail-to-trail conversion. Following a shady route past farms and wetlands along the Chariton River between Chariton and Humeston for...
The John Pat Dorrian Trail, formerly known as the East River Trail, runs for nearly 3.5 miles from Pete Crivaro Park in south Des Moines to Birdland Park and Marina just north of downtown. At this...
Excellent walking trail for those who aren't fond of steep inclines. This trail has a few mild ups and downs but for the most part is level and flat. The surface is all paved and smooth and with the lake, the trees and blue sky, it's beautiful. Wildlife, a couple of walking bridges and a covered bridge make it even more enjoyable. Casual walking takes about 2-3 hours (5-6 miles).
This is one of the best rides we have found in Des Moines. Pretty level and wide. Couple of nice bridges including a covered one! Nice places to stop and rest and view the scenery.
Great ride, trail well maintained and the fall foliage was a perfect setting. The bridge after sunset was beautiful.
Went out and got to the first bridge from Jefferson that crosses the river and it was still down, the detour kind of sucked but other than that the trail was nice.
We are beginning bikers and older. Loved the wide paved path. Put in north of Carlisle and ride was great as was the view. Then we hit the HILL. Oh my. Benches on the way up and I can see why. We could ride up and took all we had to walk up. We turned around and what a ride down. whheeeee’. Won’t be doing this one sgsin
Started at Copper Creek and followed the trail out about 2 miles. Quiet, nicely paved wide walkway- few bikers but once we got around the lake- we didn’t see anyone else. Crosses over the road twice on our route but clearly marked and easy to get back on the trail.
I rode the entire path from Chariton to Humeston on 9/5/2020. After reading the reviews and confirmation from a friend who rode it earlier in the summer I was expecting an adventure of wading through foot high grass from Derby to Humeston. To my surprise this section was mowed very short so I think I saw this trail at its best. The section from Chariton to Derby is well maintained and scenery that is more than just cornfields or a tunnel of trees. Very nice. The southern section from Derby to Humeston was bumpy like riding on a short grass lawn. Pretty but not as appealing as the northern section. The reward is finishing in Humeston which is a wonderful little town with a nice cafe and an interesting variety store.
As of Sept 15 the trail is clear from the South Skunk River to the Trail Head on Broadway in Des Moines. That gives you about 15 miles of clear trail with Bondurant as the center point. Just to the east of the Skunk River there are trees down. Valeria still has trees down going both directions, so that is still a no go. Even though the trail is clear in places keep in mind there are still branch up high that are loose, so pay attention especially if there is any wind.
We attempted to get on the trail in Valeria and found that the trail is still blocked by limbs and downed trees from the derecho.
This trail can also be accessed from Banner Lakes at Summerset State park about 4 ? miles south of Carlisle (whichresults in avoiding the hot sun on that open stretch from Carlisle in August). The Parks address is either 1306 Elkhorn St ., Carlisle 50047 or 13084 Elkhorn, Indiaola 50125. In any event you can see the state park marker about 50 feet from the Summerset trail at the intersection of the two trails. Near there is the Banner Shooting Range - another access point with parking.
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