Explore the best rated trails in Valparaiso, IN. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Illinois & Michigan Canal State Trail and Old Plank Road Trail. With more than 58 trails covering 4389 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 northern section of the Tinley Creek Trail is a series of color-coded connected loops and spurs that weave through several forest preserves in Cook County. The 24-mile trail system is paved,...
The Major Taylor Trail is named after legendary African American cyclist Marshall “Major” Taylor, who was one of the most celebrated bicycle racers of the late nineteenth century, setting several...
Although less than 1 mile long, the West Bank Walkway offers lovely views of the St. Joseph River in downtown South Bend. Midway, a converted railroad trestle over the waterway connects trail-goers to...
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The Monon Trail in Lake County, Indiana—not to be confused with the trail of the same name in Indianapolis—links the two Chicago suburbs of Hammond and Munster. The paved trail occupies an abandoned...
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The Riverside Trail winds along the west bank of the St. Joseph River for just over 3 miles in northern Indiana's South Bend. Several benches along the way allow you to take in the beautiful river...
In just a few short miles, the Wauponsee Glacial Trail leaves the urban confines of Joliet to bask in open farmland and reclaimed tallgrass prairie where the bison roam again. Named for a glacial lake...
The Thorn Creek Trail offers a paved route traversing woodlands abundant with wildlife through several communities on the southern outskirts of Chicago. The trail travels from Brownwell Woods in...
The Chesapeake and Ohio Greenway (also referred to as the C&O Trail) offers a short, paved route through Merrillville, a town just a few miles south of Gary and the southern tip of Lake Michigan. The...
South Bend’s Northside Trail closely follows the east bank of the St. Joseph River from Howard Park to the western edge of Mishawaka. Along the way, you’ll have access to Viewing Park and Veterans...
Little Calumet River Levee Trail stretches from Munster to Gary, Indiana. The trail zigs and zags through a number of local parks including Riverside Park, Wicker Memorial Park, Homestead Park,...
The Calumet Trail traverses the south side of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, a unique ecosystem of forest, marsh, dunes and beach along Lake Michigan. This dirt and crushed limestone path...
El Paseo runs through the vibrant Chicago neighborhood of Pilsen, once home to a large Czech population but now the center of the Lower West Side’s Latino community. The neighborhood is filled with...
The Erie Lackawanna Trail connects Crown Point and Hammond, two former rail junctions whose early fortunes were tied to the tracks carrying people and goods to and from Chicago. Despite traveling...
The North Shore Channel Trail extends from the junction of Green Bay Road and McCormick Boulevard in northern Evanston to the junction of Lawrence Avenue and Francisco Avenue in Chicago. All but the...
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The Salt Creek Trail travels nearly 27 miles from the Brookfield Zoo to Busse Woods Forest Preserve. Along the way it connects several beautiful county forest preserves and other woodland...
The Des Plaines River Trail runs alongside the Des Plaines River for just over 56 miles, protecting watershed habitat and forestland through much of Lake and Cook Counties. The trail is a natural...
The community of Granger is tucked into the north end of Indiana, bordering Michigan. The community itself, through the Friends of Granger Paths recognized the need for safe, separate areas for...
The Cal-Sag Trail (or, Calumet-Sag Trail) is currently under active construction. It currently has a competed section of over 15 miles, stretching from near its western terminus at the John Husar I&M...
Leave the cars at home: the Route 30 Bike Path gives users an alternative way to travel from the Village of Frankfort in the east, through Mokena to New Lenox in the west, a distance of over 7.5...
First-time visitors to the Oak Savannah Trail might be surprised at the profusion of natural areas they’ll encounter as they travel the 9.5 miles between Hobart and Griffith in northern Indiana’s...
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Illinois’ Centennial Trail runs through parts of three suburban counties from Willow Springs Road to Romeo Road/135th Street southwest of Chicago. The trail occupies a thin strip of land between the...
The Des Plaines River Trail runs alongside the Des Plaines River for just over 56 miles, protecting watershed habitat and forestland through much of Lake and Cook Counties. The trail is a natural...
The Burnham Greenway is composed of two distinct portions that both run along a former railroad corridor between Chicago and Lansing, Illinois. There are plans to extend and connect these short...
The Cal-Sag Trail (or, Calumet-Sag Trail) is currently under active construction. It currently has a competed section of over 15 miles, stretching from near its western terminus at the John Husar I&M...
The Kankakee River Trail is fairly wooded and runs primarily through Kankakee River State Park. Walkers, bicyclists, and cross-country skiers can enjoy more than ten miles of trail along the north...
The Calumet Trail traverses the south side of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, a unique ecosystem of forest, marsh, dunes and beach along Lake Michigan. This dirt and crushed limestone path...
The community of Granger is tucked into the north end of Indiana, bordering Michigan. The community itself, through the Friends of Granger Paths recognized the need for safe, separate areas for...
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The Bloomingdale Trail, part of “The 606” park system, is a 3-mile, elevated rail-trail on Chicago’s northwest side. Built on a former rail line, the trail sits 17 feet above four of the city’s...
The Illinois and Michigan Canal State Trail follows the eponymous waterway alongside the Illinois River. It traverses the I&M Canal National Heritage Corridor, designated in 1984 and the first...
Note: Erosion caused by surging waves off Lake Michigan has caused the trail to collapse in sections. The eastern half of the trail along Lake Michigan is closed indefinitely. See the Chicago Park...
The Illinois Prairie Path (IPP) was one of the nation’s first rail-trail conversions. It consists of five connected trail segments with three main branches that converge at Volunteer Park (West...
Leave the cars at home: the Route 30 Bike Path gives users an alternative way to travel from the Village of Frankfort in the east, through Mokena to New Lenox in the west, a distance of over 7.5...
The Riverside Trail winds along the west bank of the St. Joseph River for just over 3 miles in northern Indiana's South Bend. Several benches along the way allow you to take in the beautiful river...
The Marquette Trail, also known as the Marquette Greenway, will one day span more than 50 miles through Northwest Indiana, connecting communities along the southern shore of Lake Michigan. The...
The Iron Horse Heritage Trail in Portage, Indiana, runs for over 2 miles between Max Mochal Road (SR 149) at the east end and Hamstrom Rd. at the west end. The trail passes through a greenway corridor...
The northern section of the Tinley Creek Trail is a series of color-coded connected loops and spurs that weave through several forest preserves in Cook County. The 24-mile trail system is paved,...
The Dunes Kankakee Trail is a 5.5-mile walking and bike path that It exists in 2 discrete segments: one that is 2.4 miles paralleling County Road 25 East, and the other segment east of that that is...
The trail system in Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve makes a loop around the entire park. The preserve is geologically significant, featuring glacier-carved rock ridges, ravines and wetland potholes,...
The John Husar I&M Canal Trail is the northernmost trail developed on the Illinois & Michigan Canal National Heritage Corridor. The Illinois & Michigan Canal provided the final link in the water route...
Although less than 1 mile long, the West Bank Walkway offers lovely views of the St. Joseph River in downtown South Bend. Midway, a converted railroad trestle over the waterway connects trail-goers to...
The Chesapeake and Ohio Greenway (also referred to as the C&O Trail) offers a short, paved route through Merrillville, a town just a few miles south of Gary and the southern tip of Lake Michigan. The...
Turkey Creek Trail is a short but sweet walk or ride through the beautiful Ivan Gatlin Nature Preserve in the northwestern Indiana community of Schererville. This wetland area provides the opportunity...
The Southern Dupage County Regional Trail connects multiple of the larger forest preserves in Dupage county together. Starting near the intersection of 75th st and Ogden Ave in Aurora, the trail runs...
The North Branch Trail follows the North Branch of the Chicago River over 20 miles through Cook County. The trail was originally a dirt path often used for horseback riding; though it’s now paved, an...
Illinois’ Centennial Trail runs through parts of three suburban counties from Willow Springs Road to Romeo Road/135th Street southwest of Chicago. The trail occupies a thin strip of land between the...
The North Shore Channel Trail extends from the junction of Green Bay Road and McCormick Boulevard in northern Evanston to the junction of Lawrence Avenue and Francisco Avenue in Chicago. All but the...
When complete, the LaSalle Trail will travel an arrow-straight 3.5 miles between Roseland Town Park in Roseland and the Indiana–Michigan state line. Michigan is currently working on building a trail...
Although less than 1 mile long, the West Bank Walkway offers lovely views of the St. Joseph River in downtown South Bend. Midway, a converted railroad trestle over the waterway connects trail-goers to...
The Erie Lackawanna Trail connects Crown Point and Hammond, two former rail junctions whose early fortunes were tied to the tracks carrying people and goods to and from Chicago. Despite traveling...
The Illinois Prairie Path (IPP) was one of the nation’s first rail-trail conversions. It consists of five connected trail segments with three main branches that converge at Volunteer Park (West...
The North Judson Erie Trail occupies the railbanked right-of-way of the former JK Line Railroad, running over eleven miles from downtown North Judson southeast to County Road 700 near Bass Lake....
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Closure Notice: Due to damage to the trail bridge over Leeper Avenue, a portion of the East Bank Trail will be closed between North Shore Drive and Michigan Street/IN-933 until the spring of 2022. Be...
The northern section of the Tinley Creek Trail is a series of color-coded connected loops and spurs that weave through several forest preserves in Cook County. The 24-mile trail system is paved,...
The trail system in Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve makes a loop around the entire park. The preserve is geologically significant, featuring glacier-carved rock ridges, ravines and wetland potholes,...
In just a few short miles, the Wauponsee Glacial Trail leaves the urban confines of Joliet to bask in open farmland and reclaimed tallgrass prairie where the bison roam again. Named for a glacial lake...
The Dunes Kankakee Trail is a 5.5-mile walking and bike path that It exists in 2 discrete segments: one that is 2.4 miles paralleling County Road 25 East, and the other segment east of that that is...
The Union Pacific Recreation Path offers a short route through the Village of Lincolnwood's east side between Devon and Touhy avenues. Following the former Union Pacific Railroad, the rail-trail...
The Bloomingdale Trail, part of “The 606” park system, is a 3-mile, elevated rail-trail on Chicago’s northwest side. Built on a former rail line, the trail sits 17 feet above four of the city’s...
The Calumet Trail traverses the south side of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, a unique ecosystem of forest, marsh, dunes and beach along Lake Michigan. This dirt and crushed limestone path...
The Salt Creek Trail travels nearly 27 miles from the Brookfield Zoo to Busse Woods Forest Preserve. Along the way it connects several beautiful county forest preserves and other woodland...
Rode all the way too Joliet. Once you get too lemony it turns into crushed gravel but you get too see some illinois history. It’s got some bumps and cracks here and there but imperial brewing at the beginning of this trail makes the ride so much better once you are finished.
Have walked this trail 10 times and love it Awesome 2.7 mile walk landscape is gorgeous ,city has done an awesome job on this ,pleasant parks along the trail ,plenty of access points along the trail am anxious to take more photographs of this especially at night it was awesome.
It's small and kind of gravelly, so use a mountain bike or hybrid. But it's a great little trail - not too long for the kids and gorgeous scenery!
Rode north one day and south the next. They have many places for repairs along the way, which was good, as I needed a tire replaced.
Great trail. Great views.
Easy for those not used to hills.
What an amazing experience Hope and I had! Was able to jump off the trail and be hosted at a nearby barn mid-way back to homebase (my Barn in Carol Stream) located ON the path. Awesome scenery rolling by and big thank you to the cyclists who were so kind to my horses as they went on their merry way. I recommend this to anyone. My horse wears a diaper bag to take care of any piles for consideration of other users. Truly a joyful experience that took two days travel. This is the second time I have done this by horse. The portion from Carol Stream to Villa park is equally horse friendly (I did that stretch under saddle) and is one days ride there and back to my home base. I can't thank the RTT enough for this amazing system in our area that makes horse travel amazing and feel like I'm in the middle of serenity...with urban amenities close at hand. http://buffalomoonexpedition.blogspot.com. Tomorrow we continue up to South Elgin and I'll be back to review that section when we complete it in about another 4 days travel time.
I started in Wheaton and rode to South Elgin, and it turned out to be the longest bike ride I have ever taken at 14.4 miles one way! It is a very easy ride and the elevation changes are for the most part subtle. The trail itself is by my standard very well maintained, and it was nice to ride on around 3 miles of paved trail after crossing Stearns/ Route 25. If you like to be alone, there are long LONG stretches of just you and the path. With that in mind, it would be advisable to carry a bicycle pump or tire patches. Be observant of horse apples and in the Autumn, walnuts. My goodness, there is a lot walnut trees lining that path.
Perfect weather. Not crowded, but it was a Thursday. Nice trail. Will ride again.
Explored this trail, and it’s really good with lot of forest area and greenery. The paved road through the entire ride is a big plus for the trail. And the loop is a plus as well. We don’t feel like going straight and getting back.
I won’t repeat all of the good reviewers before me, but will emphasize that if you are biking the trail that you should get there early before it gets really busy. The loop makes for a good 1 hour ride and a wonderful place to take your dog, family and friends for a stroll. Enjoy!
This trail is very poorly marked. It was very difficult to find the trail when crossing streets and such. Also no signs pointing which way to go when the trail intersected with another path. Also to much of the trail is along busy streets! It’s also very short. also
I love it because i saw everything and see cool boats and it was not dirty it's so clean and beautiful i have fun and it was awesome
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