Find the top rated trails in Minneapolis, 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.
This trail is so nice they named it twice: Sakatah is the Dakota word for “singing hills.” The Dakota people of the Great Sioux Nation originally lived in this scenic part of Minnesota, where the Big...
The Hardwood Creek Regional Trail is actually two parallel trails running along US 61 in rural Washington County. The paved trail is open for biking, walking, running, and in-line skating, while the...
The Courthouse Loop Trail is one of several trails located in the Carver County city of Chaska. As the name suggests, the trail forms a loop around Courthouse Lake, which sits directly behind the...
Although only stretching a half mile, the paved Red Wing Riverfront Trail, which opened in 2016, offers an important connection between two parks along the Mississippi River in the charming community...
Beginning at the southern tip of the Crow-Hassan Park Reserve in Hanover, the Lake Independence Regional Trail spends most of its 15.9-mile span paralleling County Road 19, cutting a straight path...
The Afton to Lakeland Trail links its namesake towns on the Minnesota side of the St. Croix River. The trail runs between Quinlan Avenue North/Eighth Street at Crocker Park in Lakeland and Pike Avenue...
Minnesota’s Hiawatha LRT Trail runs along a north-south route paralleling both Hiawatha Avenue and the Metro Transit Blue Line in Minneapolis. The trail connects downtown Minneapolis and the vibrant...
The St. Paul Grand Round is a 26-mile route encircling Minnesota's capital. The loop was designed by Horace Cleveland, the landscape architect who also designed the Grand Rounds in neighboring...
_137412_sc.jpg)
Rush Creek Regional Trail stretches 9.6 miles across forests and farmland, offering a convenient connection to some of Hennepin County’s most interesting parks. The path is smooth, wide and mostly...
The North Mississippi Regional Park is a fitting place to access and enjoy the Mississippi River. The linear park is walled by the I-94 freeway. The riverine trail follows the west bank of the languid...
As of spring 2016, bridge access to the Minnesota Valley State Trail was still closed at Memorial Park in Shako-pee until further notice. Check the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources website...
The Gateway State Trail is an 18.3-mile-long pathway that offers an urban link to the countryside. The western end of this paved trail begins on the north end of Saint Paul and heads northeast through...
The Luce Line Trail occupies the former railbed of the Electric Short Line Railroad, started in 1908. The tracks continued to be expanded into the late 1920s, when the rail line became known as the...
The St. Anthony Falls Heritage Trail is a 1.8-mile loop along the Minneapolis riverfront within the St. Anthony Falls National Register Historic District. Maps, finding aids, and the area’s...
The Cedar Lake Light Rail Transit (LRT) Regional Trail is an integral component of Hennepin County’s extensive trail network, in which rail-trails feature prominently. The trail directly links four...
Medicine Lake Regional Trail offers a plethora of experiences along its nearly 16-mile length. Kicking off in the Elm Creek Park Reserve in the north, the trail cuts a swath through the Maple Grove...
Opened in the summer of 2017, the Point Douglas Regional Trail offers a picturesque link along the Mississippi River between Prescott, WI, and Hastings, MN, on a former railroad called the Peanut...
Minnehaha Trail connects two popular parks in the Twin Cities as it follows the course of the Mississippi River through a corridor that is a mix of woodland and open areas. At the trail’s southern...
Highway 96 Regional Trail parallels the roadway of the same name. The trail crosses Ramsey county, traveling west from White Bear Lake to New Brighton. The scenery alternates between residential and...
The Hudson to Lakeland/Afton Trail begins at Buckeye Street in Hudson, Wisconsin, not far from the eastern bank of the St. Croix River. The paved trail parallels 2nd Street, heading south through...
Sections of the Dakota Rail Regional Trail, which extends westward from the Minneapolis suburbs situated along Lake Minnetonka, have been opening since June 2009. The trail occupies the former Dakota...
The Sunrise Prairie Trail runs north-south atop an unused right-of-way along a Burlington Northern Railroad corridor, traversing residential neighborhoods in the towns and mostly farmland in its...
The Wildwood Trail follows a former railroad right-of-way once owned by the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway Company. The trail runs between Woodville and Spring Valley and is open to...
Although only stretching a half mile, the paved Red Wing Riverfront Trail, which opened in 2016, offers an important connection between two parks along the Mississippi River in the charming community...
Minnesota’s Hiawatha LRT Trail runs along a north-south route paralleling both Hiawatha Avenue and the Metro Transit Blue Line in Minneapolis. The trail connects downtown Minneapolis and the vibrant...
Nokomis-Minnesota River Regional Trail contributes 7 miles to the Twin Cities’ extensive network of regional trails. The paved path is 10-foot wide, providing room for a variety of trail users...
This trail is so nice they named it twice: Sakatah is the Dakota word for “singing hills.” The Dakota people of the Great Sioux Nation originally lived in this scenic part of Minnesota, where the Big...
The Gateway State Trail is an 18.3-mile-long pathway that offers an urban link to the countryside. The western end of this paved trail begins on the north end of Saint Paul and heads northeast through...
The Stower Seven Lakes State Trail runs for nearly 14 miles along an old railroad corridor between Amery and Dresser, passing through the towns of Deronda, Wanderoos and Nye. In Amery, the trail...
The developing Swedish Immigrant Trail will one day span 22 miles from Taylors Falls on the banks of the St. Croix River to the central Minnesota town of Wyoming. The paved trail will run east-west...
As of spring 2016, bridge access to the Minnesota Valley State Trail was still closed at Memorial Park in Shako-pee until further notice. Check the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources website...
Highway 96 Regional Trail parallels the roadway of the same name. The trail crosses Ramsey county, traveling west from White Bear Lake to New Brighton. The scenery alternates between residential and...
_121068_sc.jpg)
The 5.5-mile Midtown Greenway follows a former railroad corridor through the heart of south Minneapolis, heading due west from the Mississippi River to the neighborhood of West Calhoun in the scenic...
The Courthouse Loop Trail is one of several trails located in the Carver County city of Chaska. As the name suggests, the trail forms a loop around Courthouse Lake, which sits directly behind the...
_137413_sc.jpg)
Shingle Creek Regional Trail branches out of the Rush Creek Regional Trail at Noble Parkway and tracks alongside the road heading south from Brooklyn Park through Brooklyn Center. Passing through...
Lake Phalen Trail offers a 3-mile paved loop around a popular lake in St. Paul. The tree-dotted pathway offers views of the lake on one side and pleasant neighborhoods on the other. It is nestled...
The Cedar Lake Light Rail Transit (LRT) Regional Trail is an integral component of Hennepin County’s extensive trail network, in which rail-trails feature prominently. The trail directly links four...
The Kenilworth Trail runs through dense forest along the eastern side of Minnesota's Cedar Lake. Occasionally, trail users can catch glimpses of some of the stately residences in the ritzy Minneapolis...
The Hudson to Lakeland/Afton Trail begins at Buckeye Street in Hudson, Wisconsin, not far from the eastern bank of the St. Croix River. The paved trail parallels 2nd Street, heading south through...
The Afton to Lakeland Trail links its namesake towns on the Minnesota side of the St. Croix River. The trail runs between Quinlan Avenue North/Eighth Street at Crocker Park in Lakeland and Pike Avenue...
As of spring 2016, bridge access to the Minnesota Valley State Trail was still closed at Memorial Park in Shako-pee until further notice. Check the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources website...
The Kenilworth Trail runs through dense forest along the eastern side of Minnesota's Cedar Lake. Occasionally, trail users can catch glimpses of some of the stately residences in the ritzy Minneapolis...
The Lake Minnetonka LRT Regional Trail begins in the vicinity of Eighth Avenue North in downtown Hopkins, just a few blocks north of the eastern endpoint of the Minnesota River Bluffs LRT Regional...
Shingle Creek Regional Trail branches out of the Rush Creek Regional Trail at Noble Parkway and tracks alongside the road heading south from Brooklyn Park through Brooklyn Center. Passing through...
The mighty Mississippi and Minnesota River are the two waterways connected by the River to River Greenway. (The project was formerly known by the less colorful moniker North Urban Regional Trail.)...
The Cattail State Trail runs for nearly 18 miles along an old railroad corridor between the communities of Amery and Almena, passing through the village of Turtle Lake in between. The trail traverses...
This trail is so nice they named it twice: Sakatah is the Dakota word for “singing hills.” The Dakota people of the Great Sioux Nation originally lived in this scenic part of Minnesota, where the Big...
The St. Paul Grand Round is a 26-mile route encircling Minnesota's capital. The loop was designed by Horace Cleveland, the landscape architect who also designed the Grand Rounds in neighboring...
Minnehaha Trail connects two popular parks in the Twin Cities as it follows the course of the Mississippi River through a corridor that is a mix of woodland and open areas. At the trail’s southern...
The Afton to Lakeland Trail links its namesake towns on the Minnesota side of the St. Croix River. The trail runs between Quinlan Avenue North/Eighth Street at Crocker Park in Lakeland and Pike Avenue...
Rush Creek Regional Trail stretches 9.6 miles across forests and farmland, offering a convenient connection to some of Hennepin County’s most interesting parks. The path is smooth, wide and mostly...
The Elm Creek Park Reserve is an outdoor lovers’ dream. At 4,900 acres, it’s the largest park in Hennepin County. The park provides enough amenities to keep people coming all year round. Cyclists...
The North Mississippi Regional Park is a fitting place to access and enjoy the Mississippi River. The linear park is walled by the I-94 freeway. The riverine trail follows the west bank of the languid...
The Straight River Trail forms a backwards L as it runs north-south through Faribault and then curves west. The paved trail begins at the Cannon River Reservoir, then travels through woodlands in Two...
Opened in the summer of 2017, the Point Douglas Regional Trail offers a picturesque link along the Mississippi River between Prescott, WI, and Hastings, MN, on a former railroad called the Peanut...
The Wildwood Trail follows a former railroad right-of-way once owned by the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway Company. The trail runs between Woodville and Spring Valley and is open to...
The Bassett Creek Regional Trail is envisioned as an important connector between French Regional Park and Theodore Wirth Regional Park through the cities of Plymouth, New Hope, Crystal and Golden...
The developing Swedish Immigrant Trail will one day span 22 miles from Taylors Falls on the banks of the St. Croix River to the central Minnesota town of Wyoming. The paved trail will run east-west...
A quintessential part of St. Paul's extensive trails system, the Samuel H. Morgan Regional Trail offers a variety of sights and sounds along its nine-mile path, from gorgeous views of the Mississippi...
The Great Northern Trail offers a paved north-south route across the city of Elk River on the fringe of the northwestern outskirts of Minneapolis. For nearly 5 miles, the rail-trail winds through the...
Having riden most trails in SE MN we thought we’d give the Vermillion River Regional Greenway a try since we were passing by and we prefer loop trails. TrailLink parking info directed us to Vermillion Falls Park, which was very well kept and had ample parking. The map board at the trailhead entrance was cryptic and offered no indication that there was a contiguous loop trail around Hastings. The first couple miles were well paved and traversed along the edge of the city. Unfortunately, the trail meandered into the city and was poorly marked. We eventually lost any semblance of a bicycle trail and ended up utilizing our phone gps to direct us back to Vermillion Falls Park. Having biked thousands of miles across countless trails throughout the US, this was the first time we’ve had to use gps. While the region offers excellent scenery, until the trail offers better directions we probably will not return.
We've ridden this trail at least once a year and it's a local favorite. It connects with the Gateway Trail and follows the creek down to Stillwater. Its popular with the locals and well as tourists. There's no parking in the western start of the trail, so I would recommend parking at the Pine Point trailhead (tons of parking, water and bathrooms). There is a tiny parking lot off of Highway 96, but it's almost always full on weekends, even early in the morning.
If you start at the western trailhead off of the Gateway, the trip to Stillwater is downhill, but you really don't notice it too much, even the trip back is pleasant. There are a few places where you traverse a local golf course but the majority of the trail is through some lovely wooded areas. I've almost ridden off into the trees because I've been gawking at the beautiful scenery!
You can continue to explore Stillwater at the trail's end, or head north to William O'Brien State Park and the lovely river towns of Marine on St. Croix and Copas. It's a great little trail!
If you have bikes on car rack - park your car at the Beer Stube Restaurant and bowling alley in Red Wing. Unload in parking lot and across the street you will find start of a Red Wing city asphalt trail that will take you to the Goodhue Trail. (Added bonus is that there will be a cold beer waiting for you upon your return at the Stube). The Goodhue state park trail meanders on asphalt path along hay creek. Lots of birds - watch during summmer for nesting Rose Breasted Groossbeak and Baltimore Oriole - among others. Trail abuts horse trail - lots of horse riders. Lots of bridges over creek to cross. Trails ends at campground - nice saloon there to whet your whistle or grab a bite to eat. Find it hard that anyone could give this trail less than five stars. Round trip mileage was 13 miles for the route above.
Surprised by the rave reviews on here. I rode this trail recently for the first time in several years. Like many of our Twin Cities trail, it is amazing in potential and horrible in reality. These trails are worthless if not maintained correctly. I will not ride this trail again with my road bike until it is patched or resurfaced. Probably great for mountain bikes, but a little tender loving care would make it amazing for everyone.
Rode from Webster to halfway to danbury, uphill... No wind, high temps, high humidity. Lots of black flies. Couldn't stop for bugs would have a field day enjoying my sweat. Bailed on a side road. Started again at Luck and hoping to have better downhill luck, went to Milltown. Much better as it was not uphill, but still had limited shade. Sag wagon/re-supply husband couldn't find TH asked locals "where is the gandy dancer bike trail head" and no-one knew. Probably should have asked where the snowmobile trail was...maybe in better conditions would I try again. Or use my time on others trails.
Rush line bus project 2018. No more Bruce Vento trail!
This was a very nice trail to bike on. It’s separated most of the way from the walking trail which is nice as I found a lot of people running/walking which would have crowded the trail if it was combined all the way around. There are plenty of different parking places located around the lake for easy access to the trail. Shading around the lake so you aren’t always riding in the sun.
This is wonderful trail with some incredible views of the two largest metro lakes, Minnetonka and Waconia. Plenty of stopping points along the way for photo opportunities or a bite to eat or drink, including a couple of craft breweries, a drive-in that features homemade rootbeer, and several bistros. I'd like to give the Dakota trail 5 stars, but it lacks a safe, connecting trail from the north side of the lake into the city of Waconia. Also, it would be awesome if this trail could someday branch off to Victoria to connect with the Lake Minnetonka Regional Trail.
This trail has been newly surfaced, so it is a nice smooth ride. It's not very busy so it is a good place to go for a family ride with younger children. However, there is nothing to see. If you get bored easily, this might not be the best trail for you. It is still worth doing once.
In follow up to my review about a road crossing issue, I contacted CVT staff and they reached out to the city of Red Wing and the response from the public works department was basically, no it was not a detour issue, but rather a standing pattern as several factories in town all end work between 3 and 330. So if you intend to go into Red Wing from the west or come out of Red Wing from the east, be forewarned and plan to do so before 3 or after 330. I did then again contact CVT to suggest that maybe this should be an advisory on their website so you could check and see if they've posted something.
Except for this, it's a great trail.
Normally this is a really wonderful trail, a real nature bath, and it was for 8 miles today. We were out on the trail today heading from Welch to Red Wing - beautiful as usual - until we got close to Red Wing - I don't know the name of the street we were trying to cross but is is being used as a vehicle detour for another road that apparently is closed or has some issue. Basically, it was impossible to cross - there was continuous traffic and the trail crossing does not have a cross walk - I don't know if there are signs for the vehicles cautioning for the trail crossing but we waited about 5 minutes and not one vehicle showed even the slightest sign of recognition of the trail crossing. We wound up just turning around as we were not about to put ourselves into oblivious traffic. It seems that whoever designed the detour did not take the trail crossing into account. Very disappointing as we were hoping to reach the end of the CVT and hook up with the Hay Creek Trail. The fact that there is no cross walk suggests that it might normally be a low traffic crossing, clearly not the case today - this was about 3:15 PM, not even rush hour yet. I did send an email to the CVT organization and asked if there was something they could do or to contact the powers that be in Red Wing to make this a safer situation. While this is most likely a temporary situation, the time frame is not obvious, and the crossing needs to be safer now.
Get Your 2018 RTC TrailNation Jersey!
Download the TrailLink mobile app and take TrailLink with you!
Donate and Get a FREE 2018 RTC Guidebook!
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!
Map Search
_121068_st.jpg)
_133790_st.jpg)
_137412_st.jpg)
_137413_st.jpg)
