Find the top rated trails in Louisville, whether you're looking an easy walking path or a long bike trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Though not far from two of Ohio’s largest cities, Cleveland and Akron, the Bike and Hike Trail passes alongside beautiful natural areas, including the 65-foot Brandywine Falls, a stunning cascading...
The nearly 11-mile MetroParks Bikeway provides a scenic and well-designed link to communities and natural sites in this northeast region of Ohio. The rail-trail follows a corridor between Canfield and...
Following a portion of the former Wheeling & Lake Erie Railroad corridor, the Sippo Valley Trail spans 10 miles between Dalton and Massillon in northwestern Ohio, presenting a mix of rolling farmland,...
The Portage Hike and Bike Trail stretches nearly 10 miles between Kent and Ravenna, about 40 miles southeast of Cleveland and the southern shores of Lake Erie. As of December 2015, its entire length...
The Olde Muskingum Trail parallels the Tuscarawas River and the Ohio & Erie Canalway between Cherry Street in Canal Fulton and Forty Corners Road just north of Massillon. The 6-mile scenic trail has a...
The Maple Highlands Trail consists of 3 separate segments totaling more than 18 miles. A majority of the trail follows an abandoned Baltimore & Ohio Railroad corridor through a mostly rural landscape,...
The Lester Rail Trail in Ohio's Medina County runs 3 miles between Abbeyville Road and Lester Road in York Township. The trail passes through bucolic farmland with scattered remnants of prairie, where...
The Stark Electric Railway Trail runs on a former interurban rail line that linked Canton and Salem via Louisville, Alliance and Sebring from 1902 to 1939. The company was nicknamed the ‘Bachelor...
The Berlin Lake Trail lies mid-way between Cleveland and Pittsburgh in Deerfield Township of Portage County. The 2-mile crushed limestone rail-trail crosses Berlin Lake, traveling through wooded areas...
The Chippewa Inlet Trail runs for nearly 4 miles between Lafayette Road/State Route 42 and the Chippewa Nature Area. The trail traverses an open, pastoral landscape along the Chippewa Inlet, which...
Cleveland Metroparks’ Lake to Lake Trail links Lake Isaac and Lake Abram in Middleburg Heights via an asphalt- and boardwalk-surfaced path. The two lakes are the largest remaining glacial wetlands in...
The Brecksville Reservation All Purpose Trail offers a pleasant paved pathway connecting the community of Brecksville with the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail, a well-loved 81-mile route from...
Constructed in 1983 with the help of donations from the Stavich Family and local individuals, the Stavich Trail is unusual in several ways. First, unlike most rail-trails, it was built on an...
The Western Reserve Greenway travels 43 miles through a scenic, mostly rural area, cutting a north–south course from Ashtabula to Warren in northeastern Ohio. The route follows much of the...
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Ohio's Nickel Plate Trail runs for 2.5 miles from 5th Street near Ravenna Avenue (Metzger Park) to Swallen Avenue south of town. The wooded corridor follow an old railroad right-of-way through parks,...
The Harrison-Dillard Bikeway is a north-south urban path that not only connects the Lake Erie shoreline with the University Circle district, but connects trail users with Cleveland’s cultural past....
The Coshocton Three Rivers Bikeway provides safe and direct access from the City of Coshocton to the Coshocton Lake Park Recreational Complex and historic Roscoe Village. Two crossings under US 36...
The Chippewa Rail Trail runs for 2.4 miles between Chippewa Road (SR 50) in Chippewa Lake to suburban Wycliffe Drive southwest of Medina (Lafayette Township). The trail is mostly rural in feel,...
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The County Line Trail travels the path of the former Erie Lackawanna Railroad between Rittman and Creston. A highlight of the trail is a former Baltimore & Ohio freight station located just west of...
The Newton Falls Trail, built on a former railroad bed, follows the Mahoning River as it winds its way downtown. The route provides pleasant neighborhood views of the quaint township that was...
The Olde Muskingum Trail parallels the Tuscarawas River and the Ohio & Erie Canalway between Cherry Street in Canal Fulton and Forty Corners Road just north of Massillon. The 6-mile scenic trail has a...
For nearly 9 miles, the Mill Stream Run Reservation All Purpose Trail runs through a wooded park in Berea, a western suburb of Cleveland. Though the trail loosely parallels Valley Parkway, you will...
Don't let the Panhandle Passage Trail's small stature fool you, it is just the start of an incredible adventure that awaits you in Tuscarawas County and one that you will remember for years to come....
The Chippewa Inlet Trail runs for nearly 4 miles between Lafayette Road/State Route 42 and the Chippewa Nature Area. The trail traverses an open, pastoral landscape along the Chippewa Inlet, which...
The Brecksville Reservation All Purpose Trail offers a pleasant paved pathway connecting the community of Brecksville with the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail, a well-loved 81-mile route from...
The Gates Mills Interurban Bridge, known locally as simply The Walking Bridge, offers a pedestrian-only route over the scenic Chagrin River. The steel truss bridge was built in 1899 for the Eastern...
Cleveland Metroparks’ Lake to Lake Trail links Lake Isaac and Lake Abram in Middleburg Heights via an asphalt- and boardwalk-surfaced path. The two lakes are the largest remaining glacial wetlands in...
The Chippewa Rail Trail runs for 2.4 miles between Chippewa Road (SR 50) in Chippewa Lake to suburban Wycliffe Drive southwest of Medina (Lafayette Township). The trail is mostly rural in feel,...
The Maple Highlands Trail consists of 3 separate segments totaling more than 18 miles. A majority of the trail follows an abandoned Baltimore & Ohio Railroad corridor through a mostly rural landscape,...
The Zoar Valley Trail winds along the Tuscarawas River for 20 miles between the village of Schoenbrunn in the south and Fort Laurens State Memorial in Bolivar in the north. The path is mixture of...
Ohio's Nickel Plate Trail runs for 2.5 miles from 5th Street near Ravenna Avenue (Metzger Park) to Swallen Avenue south of town. The wooded corridor follow an old railroad right-of-way through parks,...
The Niles Greenway is a paved, multi-use path running northsouth between the county line on the south and the town of Niles. The pleasant trail passes through a mix of wooded areas, scattered light...
The Ohio to Erie Trail is a colossal project, not just for the state of Ohio but also nationally. Dreamed up more than 25 years ago, this route will eventually connect the Ohio River in Cincinnati to...
The Harrison-Dillard Bikeway is a north-south urban path that not only connects the Lake Erie shoreline with the University Circle district, but connects trail users with Cleveland’s cultural past....
The Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail is an amazing trail journey that takes users from the heart of this country’s industrial might in cities like Cleveland and Akron, to some of the most beautiful...
The Newton Falls Trail, built on a former railroad bed, follows the Mahoning River as it winds its way downtown. The route provides pleasant neighborhood views of the quaint township that was...
Though not far from two of Ohio’s largest cities, Cleveland and Akron, the Bike and Hike Trail passes alongside beautiful natural areas, including the 65-foot Brandywine Falls, a stunning cascading...
The Lester Rail Trail in Ohio's Medina County runs 3 miles between Abbeyville Road and Lester Road in York Township. The trail passes through bucolic farmland with scattered remnants of prairie, where...
The bucolic Headwaters Trail is a pleasant 8-mile journey through the rural landscape between Mantua and Garrettsville. The path has a crushed-stone surface and is mostly shaded. It follows the route...
The Garrett Wonders Bike Trail, formerly the Warren Bikeway, is an integral component of the Great Ohio Lake-to-River Greenway, which will eventually link Lake Erie and the Ohio River via a multiuse,...
The Newton Falls Trail, built on a former railroad bed, follows the Mahoning River as it winds its way downtown. The route provides pleasant neighborhood views of the quaint township that was...
The Panhandle Trail is another jewel in the Pittsburgh metro area trail system. A Conrail line, known as the Panhandle Railroad, once connected Pittsburgh to Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis on this...
The County Line Trail travels the path of the former Erie Lackawanna Railroad between Rittman and Creston. A highlight of the trail is a former Baltimore & Ohio freight station located just west of...
The nearly 11-mile MetroParks Bikeway provides a scenic and well-designed link to communities and natural sites in this northeast region of Ohio. The rail-trail follows a corridor between Canfield and...
The Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail is an amazing trail journey that takes users from the heart of this country’s industrial might in cities like Cleveland and Akron, to some of the most beautiful...
Holmes County, located in northeastern Ohio, is the heart of the state’s Amish country. Visitors to this rural enclave will find meandering country roads and bucolic natural areas, as well as the...
The Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail runs parallel to the Middle Fork of the Little Beaver Creek and has many beautiful and interesting features, including glacial outwashes, upland fields, mature...
The Berlin Lake Trail lies mid-way between Cleveland and Pittsburgh in Deerfield Township of Portage County. The 2-mile crushed limestone rail-trail crosses Berlin Lake, traveling through wooded areas...
The Zoar Valley Trail winds along the Tuscarawas River for 20 miles between the village of Schoenbrunn in the south and Fort Laurens State Memorial in Bolivar in the north. The path is mixture of...
The Lester Rail Trail in Ohio's Medina County runs 3 miles between Abbeyville Road and Lester Road in York Township. The trail passes through bucolic farmland with scattered remnants of prairie, where...
Following a portion of the former Wheeling & Lake Erie Railroad corridor, the Sippo Valley Trail spans 10 miles between Dalton and Massillon in northwestern Ohio, presenting a mix of rolling farmland,...
Once the corridor of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway, today the 11.2-mile Conotton Creek Trail offers complete immersion in a bucolic setting in northeastern Ohio. Situated in the rolling...
Constructed in 1983 with the help of donations from the Stavich Family and local individuals, the Stavich Trail is unusual in several ways. First, unlike most rail-trails, it was built on an...
The Chippewa Rail Trail runs for 2.4 miles between Chippewa Road (SR 50) in Chippewa Lake to suburban Wycliffe Drive southwest of Medina (Lafayette Township). The trail is mostly rural in feel,...
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Northern Ohio's Freedom Trail currently offers more than 8 miles of tree-lined pathway along the former Freedom Secondary Railroad. From Eastwood Avenue in eastern Akron, the paved trail follows a...
The Rocky River Reservation All Purpose Trail parallels Valley Parkway through several western suburbs of Cleveland, but this is no traditional suburban side path. Instead, the winding trail through...
The bucolic Headwaters Trail is a pleasant 8-mile journey through the rural landscape between Mantua and Garrettsville. The path has a crushed-stone surface and is mostly shaded. It follows the route...
The Coshocton Three Rivers Bikeway provides safe and direct access from the City of Coshocton to the Coshocton Lake Park Recreational Complex and historic Roscoe Village. Two crossings under US 36...
The Western Reserve Greenway travels 43 miles through a scenic, mostly rural area, cutting a north–south course from Ashtabula to Warren in northeastern Ohio. The route follows much of the...
Big Creek Reservation All Purpose Trail provides a paved pathway connecting the Mill Stream Run Reservation, Big Creek Reservation, and the Fern Hill Picnic Area. At its southern end, you can connect...
The only highlights on this trail from Rennerdale to Oakdale were some of the different bird species that we saw. There were no amenities, nor were there cute little picnic stops along the stream. The Helicon Brewing company should have consulted an architect and the Robinson run was completely rust colored. I was disappointed to say the least. The only other highlight of the day were the surprisingly good pretzel sticks at the Rennerdale Corner Store.
The Holmes County Trail is part of the Ohio To Erie Trail trans-Ohio Route. I have ridden this trail several times. The southern section is a great addition as it takes cross Ohio riders off of the very busy U.S. 62 which one previously had to navigate as part of connecting the Mohican Valley Trail from the Bridge of Dreams to the northern section of the Holmes County Trail in Killbuck, OH. The trail north out of Killbuck is a wide paved path designed to accommodate both cyclists, pedestrians and Amish horse-drawn buggies. All that is needed is the gap between Glenmont and Killbuck to be completed and this will be a 5 star trail.
This trail is part of the Ohio To Erie Trail Route and spans the distance between Dalton and Massillon, Ohio. It is paved on both ends with a 3 mile section of crushed gravel surface in the middle. The signage on the trail is excellent giving the rider names of road crossings and the distances to the next crossing. The trail is mostly flat with just a few short steep climbs near Massillon. The views consist mostly of well maintained local farms but as the leaves fill in on the trees in the spring I'm not certain how much a rider will be able to see of these. If you are planning to ride the Ohio to Erie route then you'll obviously experience this trail, otherwise it is not one that is a must ride.
May 1 was a beautiful evening so after work I rode from Vanderhoof Rd to Forty Corners. The section between Butterbridge Rd (south of Canal Fulton) to Forty Corners was pretty rugged after a hard winter/spring. Lots of washouts and craters so ride a little slower and keep your eyes on the trail. As an alternative ride the Olde Muskingum Trail on the west side. It can be accessed by crossing over the river on Cherry St in Canal Fulton or over the Forty Corners Bridge (now just pedestrians and cyclists) or in the middle on Butterbridge Rd.
I struggle to call this much of a trail as it really isn't more than a glorified sidewalk that replaced an old railroad line through town. From what I've been able to ascertain from Google Maps this trail seems as though it has the possibility of being extended in both directions. However, it's hard to tell if it's the businesses on the Railroad Street end of the trail, the residences on the First Street end of the trail, the rail lines still used by CSX in the area, or the funding that is holding up future expansion. Another reviewer talked about expanding south to the Berlin Lake Trail.
I last rode this trail in July 2017 after completing a ride from Ashtabula, Ohio on the Western Reserve Greenway. The southern end of the Western Reserve Greenway connects directly to this trail when it crosses North River Road in the north end of Warren, Ohio. This trail crosses through most of Warren and ends just a few miles north of the Niles Greenway. If this gap on the southern end of the trail were closed one could ride on a trail from Ashtabula all the way to Canfield, Ohio.
This is a typical urban trail. It crosses many streets and has a couple of on-street sections. As is often typical of trails in urban settings there are sections where the rider needs to be aware of glass and debris on the trail. I found this trail visually appealing as it went through industrial and residential areas as well as through a park. Overall, the Garrett Wonders Bike Trail isn't necessarily a great trail but if it can be connected to the Niles Greenway to the south it will become an incredibly useful one.
I've ridden this trail several times. The last time was at the end of July 2017. The Western Reserve Greenway is a long, straight, flat, bike path that is easy to ride. According to TrailLink the trail is 42.8 miles long, but I don't believe that includes the mileage of the Paul E. Heltzel segment of the Greenway which connects this trail with the Garrett Wonders Bike Trail that goes through most of the city of Warren. The trail is well-maintained, and on a beautiful weekend day you will encounter numerous cyclists and pedestrians around the greenway's trailheads. The trail is long enough that it never seemed crowded. It is an enjoyable path and after having ridden it several times (This was my first end to end ride.) I would say that your best bet is to ride this trail in sections.
Here are my reasons for my previous statement. First, the area that the greenway traverses is very rural in nature. Other than Ashtabula and Warren, the two cities that anchor either end of this trail, there are not many towns or services in between. I think that a good many riders would assume that they would come across at least several small towns or crossroads where they could buy some food, or find some water, etc. I have seen several folks in previous Rails to Trails posts explain at which crossroads to turn and bike into a town for food/drink. That is all well and good, but if you are unfamiliar with the area or are someone who rides greenways and bike trails because you don't like to encounter automobile and truck traffic when riding then be warned that there really is not much along or right off this trail to service your needs. This could be a serious problem if you are riding this trail on a very hot day and run out of water. I know this from personal experience. Secondly, I personally find this trail somewhat boring. It is mile after mile of riding through a tunnel of trees or wide open farm country when it does open up. I think the fact that there are so few turns throughout the trail's length may contribute to this feeling. In addition, this does not mean that there are not some interesting spots along the trail. There is the Rock Creek Trestle, the observation deck at the Mosquito Creek Wildlife Area, the old bridge near Austinburg, and the tunnels under the freeways south of Ashtabula. However, to see all of these things one has to ride a lot of miles of very repetitive scenery.
I rode this trail in June of 2017. One feature that I found unique or interesting about this trail was a sign at either end of the trail that pointed out different points of interest and their mile marker location on the upcoming trail. When you reached that point of interest their would be a sign indicating the mile marker and what you were looking at. I thought that was both interesting and helpful.
The Niles Greenway is designed to be part of the bigger Great Ohio Lake to River Greenway, a developing corridor that when completed will allow trail users to travel from Lake Erie to the Ohio River. The unfinished section in Niles could really open up the GOLR Greenway because it would link the Western Reserve Greenway, the Garrett Wonders Bike Trail, the Niles Greenway, and the Mill Creek Metroparks Greenway into one trail from Ashtabula, OH to Canfield, OH.
I rode this trail on June 24, 2017. The Mill Creek MetroParks Bikeway is a gem. It is well maintained and from the number of riders I saw on the trail on this Saturday, appreciated by local residents. It is well marked, features an award-winning trailhead design at Kirk Road, and also has a trail map available at the Mill Creek MetroParks Farm trailhead. You've got to love a 10.5 mile trail that comes with its own printed map. My only complaint is the number of road crossings that you experience on this trail and the odd crossing angles and near blindspots at a few of those crossings.
The MetroParks Bikeway is designed to be part of the bigger Great Ohio Lake to River Greenway, a developing corridor that when completed will allow trail users to travel from Lake Erie to the Ohio River. At its current southern end the trail just ends at Western Reserve Road. There is a small parking lot on the other side the road. There is the possibility that this trail could be extended beyond this current terminus and connect up with the Little Beaver Creek Greenway in Washingtonville, Ohio. When you ride north you will pass under the Ohio Turnpike (I-80) and when you cross into Trumbull County the trail becomes the Niles Greenway. If the gap between Niles and Warren, Ohio is filled in you will connect with the Western Reserve Greenway and will be able to travel all the way to Ashtabula, Ohio.
This was a fairly straight trail from Struthers, Ohio through Lowellville, Ohio and then on to close to New Castle, Pennsylvania. The trail follows pathway of an old electric rail line that traveled between the cities previously mentioned. I don't know if the original line was any longer than the route we traveled and I don't think that there is much chance of this trail being extended in either direction as it parallels a fairly active rail line.
This trail isn't exactly flat, but the length of climbs and the gradualness of the trails grade don't make this trail particularly difficult. I mention it simply because you find yourself comparing the elevation of the bikeway to that of the parallel active rail lines. Sometimes you find yourself looking down on the tracks, sometimes you actually find yourself several feet below them.
I rode this as an out and back on what was probably the first really hot day of the summer. Bring plenty of water, as the only source of water would be in Lowellville, Ohio at a grocery or convenience store. I did not see a source of water along the 10 miles of trail.
I rode the Little Beaver Creek Greenway in June of 2017. The trail is located in Columbiana County which is southwest of Youngstown, Ohio. It runs between Lisbon, Ohio and a little town called Washingtonville, Ohio. The trail is 12.5 miles long from end to end. It is a trail that is a part of the larger Great Ohio Lake to River Greenway a planned route that will run from Lake Erie in Ashtabula, Ohio to the Ohio River in East Liverpool, Ohio. On the northern end of the current trail a gap between Washingtonville and The Mill Creek Metroparks Bikeway south of Canfield, OH must be filled. On the southern end there is currently nothing beyond Lisbon toward East Liverpool.
What I found surprising about this trail was the amount of tree cover there was on the southern end of the trail between Lisbon and Leetonia. As you drive to the trailheads on either end of this trail you'll pass through farm country and plenty of wide open fields. I expected to be lathering up with the sunscreen to protect my fair skin. I put in the sunscreen but I really probably didn't need it until reaching Leetonia. From Leetonia north the trail is more exposed to the sun.
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