Find the top rated trails in Mattoon, 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.
For just over a mile, the Sangamon River Trail in western Monticello follows the former route of the Illinois Central Railroad, which carried passengers from Chicago to New Orleans. The trail includes...
The Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail runs 12 miles, much of the way along an old railroad right-of-way between County Highway 2 east of Charleston and the ball fields at 10th Street in Mattoon; an...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail offers a paved route paralleling East Oak Street/Route 150 on Mahomet's east side. The pathway begins at South East Street, just a block from Sangamon Elementary School,...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
The General Dacey Trail, which first opened in 2006, is a beautiful and richly varied trail located between the city of Shelbyville to the west and large Lake Shelbyville to the east. Its surface is...
The first portion of the TREC (Trail Recreation Effingham County) system, totaling approximately 3 miles, is complete, although eventually 30 miles of county-wide bicycling and walking trails will be...
The Lincoln Prairie Trail runs between County Road 12 at State Route 29 west of Pana and Paw Paw Street in Taylorville. The trail parallels SR 29 for nearly the entire route. Built upon an abandoned...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
The Wabashiki Trail sits on the traces the perimeter of the Wabashiki Fish and Wildlife Area, leaving travelers with the dual experience of nature and suburbia on either side. Great for wildlife...
Except for short-distance walkers, the principal attraction of the Kiwanis Park/West Side Trail is its connection to the other parts of Decatur's trail system. From its western terminus, one can...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
The first portion of the TREC (Trail Recreation Effingham County) system, totaling approximately 3 miles, is complete, although eventually 30 miles of county-wide bicycling and walking trails will be...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail offers a paved route paralleling East Oak Street/Route 150 on Mahomet's east side. The pathway begins at South East Street, just a block from Sangamon Elementary School,...
Except for short-distance walkers, the principal attraction of the Kiwanis Park/West Side Trail is its connection to the other parts of Decatur's trail system. From its western terminus, one can...
The Wabashiki Trail sits on the traces the perimeter of the Wabashiki Fish and Wildlife Area, leaving travelers with the dual experience of nature and suburbia on either side. Great for wildlife...
The Lincoln Prairie Trail runs between County Road 12 at State Route 29 west of Pana and Paw Paw Street in Taylorville. The trail parallels SR 29 for nearly the entire route. Built upon an abandoned...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
The Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail runs 12 miles, much of the way along an old railroad right-of-way between County Highway 2 east of Charleston and the ball fields at 10th Street in Mattoon; an...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
The General Dacey Trail, which first opened in 2006, is a beautiful and richly varied trail located between the city of Shelbyville to the west and large Lake Shelbyville to the east. Its surface is...
For just over a mile, the Sangamon River Trail in western Monticello follows the former route of the Illinois Central Railroad, which carried passengers from Chicago to New Orleans. The trail includes...
North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
Except for short-distance walkers, the principal attraction of the Kiwanis Park/West Side Trail is its connection to the other parts of Decatur's trail system. From its western terminus, one can...
The General Dacey Trail, which first opened in 2006, is a beautiful and richly varied trail located between the city of Shelbyville to the west and large Lake Shelbyville to the east. Its surface is...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
The Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail runs 12 miles, much of the way along an old railroad right-of-way between County Highway 2 east of Charleston and the ball fields at 10th Street in Mattoon; an...
North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
For just over a mile, the Sangamon River Trail in western Monticello follows the former route of the Illinois Central Railroad, which carried passengers from Chicago to New Orleans. The trail includes...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
The Wabashiki Trail sits on the traces the perimeter of the Wabashiki Fish and Wildlife Area, leaving travelers with the dual experience of nature and suburbia on either side. Great for wildlife...
The Lincoln Prairie Trail runs between County Road 12 at State Route 29 west of Pana and Paw Paw Street in Taylorville. The trail parallels SR 29 for nearly the entire route. Built upon an abandoned...
The first portion of the TREC (Trail Recreation Effingham County) system, totaling approximately 3 miles, is complete, although eventually 30 miles of county-wide bicycling and walking trails will be...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail offers a paved route paralleling East Oak Street/Route 150 on Mahomet's east side. The pathway begins at South East Street, just a block from Sangamon Elementary School,...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
My 14 year old son and I rode the trail from Pana to Taylorville and back, nearly the full distance twice for the boy scout cycling merit badge (50 miles). About a mile before reaching the end of the trail in Taylorville, there is a bridge that is closed and there is no easy way to detour around it. The pathway has a few places where the pavement has separated or had tree roots have raised it, but they are marked with white paint. Some of the cracks have been filled with tar and others with very fine gravel. The northern half of the trail is mostly shaded with trees on both sides of the trail (so there are some leaves and small twigs on the trail) whereas the southern half is mostly without shade. There are two small towns where you take a short detour from the otherwise very straight trail. The elevation is slightly higher on both ends of the trail with the middle about 150 feet lower (but it is a very slow, gradual change in elevation). We drove an hour to get to the trail head and it was definitely worth it!
Scenic and smooth. Great for a walker and a partner in an electric wheelchair. A wonderful way to share the outdoors together.
I first rode this trail several years ago and was not impressed: the surface was full of washouts and 4 wheeler ruts. However it now seems to be better maintained. The easternmost section is the best, a narrow corridor with lots of wildflowers and birds. As you get closer to Mattoon the trail opens up and there is no protection from the sun and wind. For a nice bit of shade take the spur into the Douglas Hart Nature Center.
I rode this trail yesterday beginning at the parking lot outside Pana and heading to Taylorville. It was quite enjoyable. Obviously it's an older asphalt trail that suffers from some pretty large cracks along the way. Those jolted me more than once. But I'd certainly ride it again.
Other then IN where else can you go ride your bike through a cover bridge and follow the trail of the Bison. Very nice peaceful ride. You do have to cross a highway if you do the whole trail. There also is other trails but these aren't paved and are good for a soft off roading.
I do like to park my car near the 172 exit off 74 there is a bathroom there and the parking lot is a bit bigger. If you are coming from the east as you get off turn right and a few feet on your left is the parking lot.
This is a great trail.
We took the advice from other reviewers and started near the Lake in Taylorville as we passed the bridge that was closed.
This is a awesome trail. Fairly flat and easy to ride. We passed a few people also enjoying the path. It's well maintained. Lovely scenery, peaceful and quiet. (at least the day we was on it)
Highly recommended.
This is a unique bike trail whigh is good and bad. First I rode from Taylorville Lake to the parking lot near Pana and back...24 plus miles. During the whole time I only saw 4 bikers and 1 walker. This is the good part because I am used to crowded bike paths. and since I like to ride sort of fast (17 mph max) I didn't have to be concerned for others. The lack of others is a good thing since some parts of the trail were not wide enough to pass others due to weeds and tree limbs on the sides and weeds growing up in the middle of the trail. Some weeds were mid wheel height. Another reason it is good that I did not need to be concerned with others is that I needed to be concerned about ridges and holes on the trail surface. Thank you to those who took time and painted the worst of these areas so I could avoid them. I want to say thank you and bless you to the people who take care of the trail. One section was mowed on both sides. I am sure these are acts of kindness by volunteers. Also the bridge between Taylorville and Taylorville Lake has been closed so park at the lake to head south to Pana.One last thank you to those who took time to plan and build this trail. It is just too bad that no one is responsible for maintaining it.
my only real complaint is that I started at the trailhead in Taylorville and rode a half mile only to discover that a section of the trailer been closed. I loaded my bike back up and drove out to Taylorville Lake and parked there and rode the trail 6 miles and then came back. it has a few service issues due to the age of the blacktop but I've ridden much worse.
The 5 trails shown on the west side of Decatur all intersect, so you can enjoy over 20 miles of continuous paved bike trail all through natural areas and parks.
My girlfriend and I drove thirty minutes down from Springfield. We started in Taylorville and rode to Paw Paw. They trail was empty. It was nice cause we could really cruise without having to worry about running into families out for a walk. Make sure to pack a snack if you're going both ways.
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!
