Explore the best rated trails in Parsons, KS. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Ruby Jack Trail and Southwind Rail Trail. With more than 8 trails covering 84 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.
Opened in 2015, the Missouri Pacific Recreational Trail (or Mo-Pac Trail) is a half-mile multi-use pathway located in Iola, Kansas. While short, the trail nonetheless provides valuable connections: it...
Thom Station Trail sits on an old Frisco railbed in the town of Carl Junction, just 15 minutes north of Joplin, Missouri. It’s a relatively short trail, 2.8 miles roundtrip. The southern half of the...
The Watco Trail, named for the short-line railroad operator headquartered in Pittsburg, stretches diagonally through the Kansas city just west of downtown. The trail is open on a portion of the former...
The southern terminus of the Frisco Greenway Trail is tucked into an unassuming neighborhood in Joplin. From there, the gravel trail winds northward along the former St. Louis–San Francisco Railway,...
The Southwind Rail Trail opened in 2013 for recreation and active transportation use on a converted railroad corridor stretching between the small southeast Kansas cities of Iola and Humboldt. The...
Spanning 51 miles, the Prairie Spirit Trail State Park runs from Ottawa to Iola, offering plenty of recreation and enjoyment for birdwatchers, cyclists, walkers, joggers and anyone with a desire to...
The Watco Trail, named for the short-line railroad operator headquartered in Pittsburg, stretches diagonally through the Kansas city just west of downtown. The trail is open on a portion of the former...
The southern terminus of the Frisco Greenway Trail is tucked into an unassuming neighborhood in Joplin. From there, the gravel trail winds northward along the former St. Louis–San Francisco Railway,...
Thom Station Trail sits on an old Frisco railbed in the town of Carl Junction, just 15 minutes north of Joplin, Missouri. It’s a relatively short trail, 2.8 miles roundtrip. The southern half of the...
Opened in 2015, the Missouri Pacific Recreational Trail (or Mo-Pac Trail) is a half-mile multi-use pathway located in Iola, Kansas. While short, the trail nonetheless provides valuable connections: it...
Spanning 51 miles, the Prairie Spirit Trail State Park runs from Ottawa to Iola, offering plenty of recreation and enjoyment for birdwatchers, cyclists, walkers, joggers and anyone with a desire to...
This collection of trails was built of the site of a former cement plant and quarry along the banks of Elm Creek in Iola, Kansas. There are over 2.25 miles of gravel rail-trails occupying the railbeds...
The Ruby Jack Trail runs for 16 miles between Carthage, MO, and the Kansas state line. The trail links the towns of Carthage, Oronogo, and Carl Junction, traversing farmland, wetland, and woodland....
The Southwind Rail Trail opened in 2013 for recreation and active transportation use on a converted railroad corridor stretching between the small southeast Kansas cities of Iola and Humboldt. The...
The Watco Trail, named for the short-line railroad operator headquartered in Pittsburg, stretches diagonally through the Kansas city just west of downtown. The trail is open on a portion of the former...
Spanning 51 miles, the Prairie Spirit Trail State Park runs from Ottawa to Iola, offering plenty of recreation and enjoyment for birdwatchers, cyclists, walkers, joggers and anyone with a desire to...
The Southwind Rail Trail opened in 2013 for recreation and active transportation use on a converted railroad corridor stretching between the small southeast Kansas cities of Iola and Humboldt. The...
The Ruby Jack Trail runs for 16 miles between Carthage, MO, and the Kansas state line. The trail links the towns of Carthage, Oronogo, and Carl Junction, traversing farmland, wetland, and woodland....
Opened in 2015, the Missouri Pacific Recreational Trail (or Mo-Pac Trail) is a half-mile multi-use pathway located in Iola, Kansas. While short, the trail nonetheless provides valuable connections: it...
Thom Station Trail sits on an old Frisco railbed in the town of Carl Junction, just 15 minutes north of Joplin, Missouri. It’s a relatively short trail, 2.8 miles roundtrip. The southern half of the...
The southern terminus of the Frisco Greenway Trail is tucked into an unassuming neighborhood in Joplin. From there, the gravel trail winds northward along the former St. Louis–San Francisco Railway,...
This collection of trails was built of the site of a former cement plant and quarry along the banks of Elm Creek in Iola, Kansas. There are over 2.25 miles of gravel rail-trails occupying the railbeds...
First time on any section of this trail, and rode from Ottawa to Richmond and back. The trail is in good shape - no vegetation overgrowth, no trees blocking the path. Care should be taken when crossing roads, as there are some significant bumps at the intersection - if you don't stop or slow down significantly it could be problematic. The trailheads at Ottawa, Princeton, and Richmond all had working restrooms and maps. The only challenge with this trail is that it's not particularly scenic, however that's the nature of my home state and not on the folks who created and maintain the trail. It's flat, straight, and a great option for a safe and pleasant ride.
First time riding this trail. Well maintained, very quiet trail. Rode Humboldt to Iola today, and only saw one other rider the whole time.
Road this trail from Iola to Humboldt on a fall afternoon in 2018.Very well kept and actually met the individual who takes great pride in keeping up the trail.There are still many railroad features along the trail and the crushed surface is well maintained.Both Iola and Humboldt have several new restaurants and accommodations being renovated which makes staying in the area quite enjoyable
Rode this trail from Iola to Humbolt and back, and then stumble on the single track trail outside of Iola. That was really nice too! We camped in Humbolt and that was disappointing with the noise from a local plant and the bathrooms were quite dirty.
I ride this trail everyday. There is not a ton of people on it so it's really nice. Not a lot of elevation gain. Perfect for people wanting to get into cycling. I can't wait till JTC can link up CJ to Carthage!
The Frisco Greenway is within a mile of my house. It is supported by local volunteers and donations. The surface is hard packed gravel that is appropriate for runners and hybrid bikes. It is well traveled during the daylight and has very few road crossings. There are some connecting paved bike paths (extra wide sidewalks) at about the midpoint of the trail. There is no water on the trail, but there is a porta-potty at the mid point and the south end.
We took a ride from the trailhead at Princeton KS, about 17 miles to Garnett KS, where we ate lunch at a restaurant on the town square, and returned that afternoon. This trail has excellent surface condition, good vegetation control, safe bridges, and nice variety of scenery in open space and deep forest cover. Bathrooms and water available at Princeton, Richmond, and Garnett. Its a nice day trip from Kansas City to get out in the country.
The Lehigh Trail, at the south edge of Iola, KS has something for everyone. The main trail offers a hard-packed limestone screening surface, firm enough for hiking, biking, wheel chairs, and strollers, and is an excellent surface for the casual hiker/biker. For those who want something more challenging, there are single-track trails over rocks, through wooded areas, through tall grass, and along the edge of its namesake rock quarry. Lehigh has it all!
Had a great ride yesterday on the trail. Met nice folks along the way. Trail is well maintained. If the state could do something about the 23 mph SSW headwind, that would be nice. :)
Plenty of place to stop and enjoy the prairie.
We ran a 25k on this trail. Started at Carthage parking lot in the park due to more parking for race participants and entered the trail at trailhead and went to Grant St in Oranogo and back to Carthage. Round trip 15.6 miles. It was small white crushed chat similar to the Frisco Trail in Joplin. Pretty level with only noticeable incline getting on the trail at Carthage Trailhead. A few areas had some grass grown up on the trail but paths were still easy to run thru or ride a bike thru. Scenery past a salvage yard at the start then mostly farm and ranch land. No lose pets. Heard a couple dogs in 2 yards and farm with a loud rooster. Absolutely pleasant Trail experience! If it was paved I would give it a 5. Would love to have a trail similar in our community!!
We rode this from Riverside Park south for about 3 miles. It is a flat trail that is maintained pretty well. We enjoyed it, but it was right at sundown so we couldn't go any farther..
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