Explore the best rated trails in La Crosse, WI. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Elroy-Sparta State Trail and Vietnam Veterans Trail (WI). With more than 17 trails covering 200 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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The Swift Creek Trail combines a trail segment running the length of Isle la Plume and a walking trail that was the initiative of staff of the Gundersen Health System in La Crosse. The trail begins in...
The 4.3-mile Hillsboro State Trail will make you feel instantly at home. Easy and flat, this gravel trail will take you on a short excursion from Hillsboro to Union Center. But this trail is more of a...
The La Crosse River valley provides level terrain through a rugged area of western Wisconsin for the La Crosse River State Trail. This screened-limestone rail-with-trail passes through farmland,...
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La Crosse's Marsh Trail Network is a collection of paved and unpaved trails occupying the 1000 acre wetland where the La Crosse River meets the Mississippi River. The marsh, which lies minutes from...
The Grand Crossing Trail is a north-south trail located in La Crosse's marshlands. The hard-surface trail begins on River Valley Drive and extends south to Myrick Park Drive. The trail offers an...
The Harmony–Preston Valley State Trail runs 18 miles on a north-south line between the town of Harmony and the Root River State Trail, which it meets between Lanesboro and Fountain. The paved trail is...
This trail and bike-ped bridge are named for a La Crosse resident and trail lover, whose independent efforts to create a walking path in the 1950s would pave the way for this trail. The hard surface...
Along much of its route, the Root River State Trail follows the winding course of its namesake river for 42 miles through the Minnesota towns of Fountain, Lanesboro, Whalan, Peterson, Rushford, and...
La Crosse's marshlands sit on a thousand acres in the heart of the city. The wetlands occur where the La Crosse and Mississippi rivers meet. The Marsh Trail Network is a cluster of paved and unpaved...
The Pammel Creek Trail is a paved path in La Crosse. The trail mostly follows the alignment of the Pammel Creek channel. The trail travels through residential areas in the south part of La Crosse,...
Utter darkness is as much a part of the scenery along the Elroy-Sparta State Trail as the views of the rolling hills and farmland. That’s because visitors pass through three hand-dug railroad tunnels...
Traveling the 400 State Trail is a numbers game. The trail’s name refers to the old Chicago and North Western Railway’s “No. 400” passenger train that zoomed through here between Chicago and St....
The Jim Asfoor Trail is a paved hike-and-bike trail within La Crosse's marshlands. The trail is part of the Marsh Trail Network, cluster of paved and unpaved trails occupying the thousand-acre wetland...
The 12.5-mile Omaha Trail passes through a wonderland of towering buttes, mesas, and pinnacles that seem more at home in an arid desert than in fertile farmland. The steep sandstone formations, some...
The Trout Run Trail provides an experience unique to any other in Iowa, with a hilly landscape that reminds trail users of the meteorite that struck the area long ago. The trail actually loops all the...
The La Crosse River valley provides level terrain through a rugged area of western Wisconsin for the La Crosse River State Trail. This screened-limestone rail-with-trail passes through farmland,...
Traveling the 400 State Trail is a numbers game. The trail’s name refers to the old Chicago and North Western Railway’s “No. 400” passenger train that zoomed through here between Chicago and St....
This trail and bike-ped bridge are named for a La Crosse resident and trail lover, whose independent efforts to create a walking path in the 1950s would pave the way for this trail. The hard surface...
The Pammel Creek Trail is a paved path in La Crosse. The trail mostly follows the alignment of the Pammel Creek channel. The trail travels through residential areas in the south part of La Crosse,...
The 4.3-mile Hillsboro State Trail will make you feel instantly at home. Easy and flat, this gravel trail will take you on a short excursion from Hillsboro to Union Center. But this trail is more of a...
The Harmony–Preston Valley State Trail runs 18 miles on a north-south line between the town of Harmony and the Root River State Trail, which it meets between Lanesboro and Fountain. The paved trail is...
La Crosse's Marsh Trail Network is a collection of paved and unpaved trails occupying the 1000 acre wetland where the La Crosse River meets the Mississippi River. The marsh, which lies minutes from...
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Iowa's Yellow River State Forest contains a sprawling network of hiking, equestrian and bicycle trails. The Paint Creek Trail, which occupies a segment of an abandoned railroad corridor, is the only...
The Trout Run Trail provides an experience unique to any other in Iowa, with a hilly landscape that reminds trail users of the meteorite that struck the area long ago. The trail actually loops all the...
Along much of its route, the Root River State Trail follows the winding course of its namesake river for 42 miles through the Minnesota towns of Fountain, Lanesboro, Whalan, Peterson, Rushford, and...
The 12.5-mile Omaha Trail passes through a wonderland of towering buttes, mesas, and pinnacles that seem more at home in an arid desert than in fertile farmland. The steep sandstone formations, some...
The Jim Asfoor Trail is a paved hike-and-bike trail within La Crosse's marshlands. The trail is part of the Marsh Trail Network, cluster of paved and unpaved trails occupying the thousand-acre wetland...
The Grand Crossing Trail is a north-south trail located in La Crosse's marshlands. The hard-surface trail begins on River Valley Drive and extends south to Myrick Park Drive. The trail offers an...
La Crosse's marshlands sit on a thousand acres in the heart of the city. The wetlands occur where the La Crosse and Mississippi rivers meet. The Marsh Trail Network is a cluster of paved and unpaved...
Utter darkness is as much a part of the scenery along the Elroy-Sparta State Trail as the views of the rolling hills and farmland. That’s because visitors pass through three hand-dug railroad tunnels...
The Great River State Trail is named for the Mississippi River, but Ol’ Man River stays mostly out of sight if you follow this 24-mile trail through river marshes, wildlife preserves, hardwood...
The Swift Creek Trail combines a trail segment running the length of Isle la Plume and a walking trail that was the initiative of staff of the Gundersen Health System in La Crosse. The trail begins in...
The Swift Creek Trail combines a trail segment running the length of Isle la Plume and a walking trail that was the initiative of staff of the Gundersen Health System in La Crosse. The trail begins in...
Iowa's Yellow River State Forest contains a sprawling network of hiking, equestrian and bicycle trails. The Paint Creek Trail, which occupies a segment of an abandoned railroad corridor, is the only...
The 4.3-mile Hillsboro State Trail will make you feel instantly at home. Easy and flat, this gravel trail will take you on a short excursion from Hillsboro to Union Center. But this trail is more of a...
The Great River State Trail is named for the Mississippi River, but Ol’ Man River stays mostly out of sight if you follow this 24-mile trail through river marshes, wildlife preserves, hardwood...
The La Crosse River valley provides level terrain through a rugged area of western Wisconsin for the La Crosse River State Trail. This screened-limestone rail-with-trail passes through farmland,...
The Pammel Creek Trail is a paved path in La Crosse. The trail mostly follows the alignment of the Pammel Creek channel. The trail travels through residential areas in the south part of La Crosse,...
La Crosse's marshlands sit on a thousand acres in the heart of the city. The wetlands occur where the La Crosse and Mississippi rivers meet. The Marsh Trail Network is a cluster of paved and unpaved...
The 12.5-mile Omaha Trail passes through a wonderland of towering buttes, mesas, and pinnacles that seem more at home in an arid desert than in fertile farmland. The steep sandstone formations, some...
Traveling the 400 State Trail is a numbers game. The trail’s name refers to the old Chicago and North Western Railway’s “No. 400” passenger train that zoomed through here between Chicago and St....
The Trout Run Trail provides an experience unique to any other in Iowa, with a hilly landscape that reminds trail users of the meteorite that struck the area long ago. The trail actually loops all the...
The Jim Asfoor Trail is a paved hike-and-bike trail within La Crosse's marshlands. The trail is part of the Marsh Trail Network, cluster of paved and unpaved trails occupying the thousand-acre wetland...
This trail and bike-ped bridge are named for a La Crosse resident and trail lover, whose independent efforts to create a walking path in the 1950s would pave the way for this trail. The hard surface...
The Grand Crossing Trail is a north-south trail located in La Crosse's marshlands. The hard-surface trail begins on River Valley Drive and extends south to Myrick Park Drive. The trail offers an...
The Harmony–Preston Valley State Trail runs 18 miles on a north-south line between the town of Harmony and the Root River State Trail, which it meets between Lanesboro and Fountain. The paved trail is...
La Crosse's Marsh Trail Network is a collection of paved and unpaved trails occupying the 1000 acre wetland where the La Crosse River meets the Mississippi River. The marsh, which lies minutes from...
Along much of its route, the Root River State Trail follows the winding course of its namesake river for 42 miles through the Minnesota towns of Fountain, Lanesboro, Whalan, Peterson, Rushford, and...
Utter darkness is as much a part of the scenery along the Elroy-Sparta State Trail as the views of the rolling hills and farmland. That’s because visitors pass through three hand-dug railroad tunnels...
We did an 10.5 mile stretch from Elroy, WI to about 3 miles south of Wonewoc. Round trip 21 miles. We intended to do 30 miles but we're getting older and the air quality was terrible due to fires in Canada. That said this is a beautiful trail, very scenic, smooth, and a pretty flat easy ride. At a few of the road crossings the ends of the trail were filled in with sand instead of gravel, so watch out so you don't lose control. We chose the 400 due to having lots of stops with bathrooms. We were not disappointed. All of the facilities are clean and well maintained. Most of the small towns along the way have food and beer available, and the local folks are very welcoming and proud of their association with the trail. This has become our favorite WI trail. We hope to get back out there next year and finish the trail.
A group of us were in Wisconsin for the Ride Across Wisconsin (RAW) and this trail paralleled a portion of the days route from La Crosse to Sparta. Two of us were on gravel bikes so we experienced some of this trail. The trail was well maintained with two small locations that were rough due to heavy rains in the past. It is more of hard packed clay trail versus crushed limestone. It has a nice tree canopy for the portion we rode but if there was rain before your ride, there are sections that could be muddy.
Been coming here since 1974. It’s nice to see that the trail is still open and being somewhat well taken care of! The best campground to stay at is Tunnel trail campground! So if your staying please contact Julie and Scott for continuing the legacy of their father and mothers hard work and dedication to making the campground and the trail experience so amazing! John Mc
We rode this trail today south from Hustler into Elroy, so missed the Camp Douglas to Hustler portion. It is generally tree-lined, and the adjoining landscape transitions from dairy farming to wooded limestone bluffs to tunnel and then back to woods and then dairy as you approach Elroy. There are a multitude of wild flowers to enjoy this time of year, including multiple stands of the Michigan Lilly, rather rare to see along a trail.
The tunnel is the bomb. We caught it on a coolish morning so mist floated eerily into and around the tunnel. It's the length of a football field and pretty fun. Bring a flashlight or have a strong headlight so you can admire the barrel-vaulted ceiling.
The trail itself leaves a lot to be desired. It's old chip seal that has deteriorated into a bumpy-lumpy surface that is much rougher than a conventional packed gravel such as the Katy Trail in Missouri. We kept our speed down to about 8 mph, but by the time we returned, we were pretty beaten up. It is in fact the roughest rail-trail we've ridden on yet.
Elroy has nice bike facilities, with a sort of 'bike park' that includes restrooms, picnic facilities, bike racks, and a retail bike shop, which is a nice change. However, there was almost no food on this day. We resorted to the single open bar in town for the usual beer and burger.
My advice: If you're not prepared for a bumpy ride, then just ride the trail from Hustler (or Elroy) the few miles down to the tunnel, enjoy the tunnel, and then return and spend the rest of the day on another trail.
Of the four trails near Elroy (Elroy-Sparta, The 400, Omaha, and this one) it is the least impressive and it really needs to be resurfaced. That said, Hillsboro is a lovely little town with good food and a nice hotel. I used the trail to create a loop via The 400, The Elroy-Sparta Trail (at Kendall) that included amazing road riding (but very hilly). I peddled on County Roads W, WW and F. The scenery was fantastic and there were very few motor vehicles on the roads.
The Omaha Spur also connects in Elroy to the Elroy-Sparta and The 400 Trail. It is not as widely promoted as it is run by the country government (not the DNR), but it has its own tunnel and it is largely paved so the ride is faster. Nice rest area just to the east of the tunnel with toilets and. water pump.
The Elroy Sparta trail is a great experience. Some comments:
1. The first half from Sparta to Winton is the most popular part and is in the best shape.
2. While it is only at a 3% grade, the first 8 miles to Tunnel 3 is consistently up hill. Coming down is more fun!
3. The last section from Kendall to Elroy is closed because is bridge is out.
Suggestion for the intrepid, take County highway W instead. It is fabulously beautiful, but the hills almost killed me!
4. It took me five hours to ride the 34 miles. I’m not a particularly slow rider, but you have to keep in mind that there are three climbs (up to the tunnels), you must walk through these tunnels and one is ¾ mile long, and riding on crushed limestone is slow
5. I only saw the water and toilets at the middle stop, so don't skip them.
6. The 400 Trail connections at Elroy, as does the Hillsboro Spur (5 miles).
7. The Omaha Spur also connects in Elroy. It is not widely promoted as it is run by the country government (not the DNR), but it has its own tunnel and it is largely paved so the ride is faster.
I went from Fountain to Houston on Monday. Left my car in the lot and pedaled to Houston. Wow, what a beautiful trail! Having been on many trails I rate this in the top for sure! Heading east from Fountain is a breeze as it is almost 9 miles of downhill. More challenging at the end of 42 miles heading east on the return. The hills west of Houston are fun too.
I stayed at the Sawmill Inn in Houston (super comfy!!!!) and return biked Tues am.
Highly recommend this trail!
We picked up the trail at Riverside Park and found a good amount if the trail was on the streets, in neighborhoods not very scenic.
We enjoyed this trail riding with friends. We rode into Rockland for a water break. Crushed stone firmly pack made ride doable for my husbands road bike. Three trains passed us while riding, so glad we found Rails to Trails!
We road 30 miles on the trail, it was nicely packed down crushed rock. We were amazed at the temperature change between outside the tunnel and inside! The tunnel is such a neat experience! It’s cool in temp, dark and wet with water dripping from the top of the ceiling! Note- bikes must be walked through the tunnel, its about .75 mile, have light on your bike or a flashlight, maybe a towel to wipe off your bike and enjoy!
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