Explore the best rated trails in Vandalia, OH. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Mad River Trail and Iron Horse Trail (OH). With more than 41 trails covering 4499 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 James Ranch Connecting Spur provides an important link between two major trails spiraling out of the trail hub of Xenia. On its east end, the trail connects to the Little Miami Scenic Trail, which...
The short Union City Gateway Trail is significant in that it was the first trail to cross the Indiana–Ohio border. A highlight along the paved pathway is the beautifully landscaped park on both sides...
Celina's West Bank Trail follows the shoreline of the Grand Lake St. Marys, Ohio's largest inland lake, and offers beautiful views of the lake and Rotary Lighthouse, as well as providing access to...
Hydraulic Canal Run begins in picturesque French Park, where stands of mature trees provide the perfect shady spots to picnic. From here, you can also connect to Piqua City Linear Park, a rail-trail...
The Mad River Trail offers a paved route connecting a handful of parks along its namesake river in northeastern Dayton. The scenic pathway is also part of one of the nation's largest network of paved,...
The Xenia–Jamestown Connector links these two eponymous communities and travels east beyond Jamestown to the Greene–Fayette County line at Rosemoor Road. It’s part of Ohio’s Miami River Valley trail...
The Great Miami River Trail is the backbone of one of the nation’s largest paved trail networks, spanning 340 miles throughout Ohio’s Miami Valley. The route connects beautiful natural areas, small...
The Canal Feeder Trail begins at Graceland Cemetery on the south end of Sidney and continues southwest on a former historical canal towpath dating back to the 1840s. The paved trail parallels the...
The Paint Creek Recreational Trail is the flagship pathway of a planned trail network in the Ohio counties of Fayette, Ross and Highland. Nearly 35 miles of paved trail are currently open linking the...
The Sharon Woods Loop Trail encircles a picturesque lake in popular Sharon Woods in Sharonville. The county park offers a visitor center, boathouse, golf course, picnic areas and athletic fields over...
The Towler Road Spur is a short but pleasant route in the trail hub of Xenia, Ohio. Although the paved pathway parallels the roadway, it's separated from traffic by a wide grassy median dotted with...
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 Dayton Kettering Connector combines a historic rail-trail and bike lanes, and shared road riding for 7 miles between the two municipalities. The off-road portion is 1.9 miles long and sits in the...
Opened in 2017, the Clinton-Fayette Friendship Trail, spanning 7.1 miles, is the longest rail-trail in central Ohio's Clinton County. Following a former railroad corridor, the rail-trail spans the...
The Greenville Creek Trail is a nice, albeit short, retreat through suburban Greenville. The paved path follows its namesake creek, passing under streets and linking neighborhood parks with downtown....
The Lowe's Connector Trail parallels Lowe's Drive in Wilmington, OH, and links Rombach Avenue with Prairie Road; however, this is no sidewalk once you reach Prairie Road. The trail is best used to...
D Street Trailhead Park is nestled along Richmond’s waterfront on the East Fork of the Whitewater River. From the park, travelers can go north on the Cardinal Greenway (which, at 62 miles, is...
The Roberts Pass Trail runs from downtown London, Ohio, to rural Fairfield Township. The trail passes through farmland for 6.5 miles, although dense tree cover shades the route at all...
The Little Miami Scenic Trail is a jewel in the crown of Ohio rail-trails, spanning just over 78 miles from the outskirts of Cincinnati to Springfield over historical bridges and through tranquil...
The Celina Coldwater Bikeway is an early rail-with-trail project from the 1980s. Long a popular trail, users follow the Penn Central Railroad between the village of Coldwater and the city of Celina,...
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The Buck Creek Trail runs between Buck Creek State Park and Plum Street by Wittenberg University. At its eastern end in Buck Creek State Park, the trail makes a loop and heads into 2 different...
Celina's West Bank Trail follows the shoreline of the Grand Lake St. Marys, Ohio's largest inland lake, and offers beautiful views of the lake and Rotary Lighthouse, as well as providing access to...
The James Ranch Connecting Spur provides an important link between two major trails spiraling out of the trail hub of Xenia. On its east end, the trail connects to the Little Miami Scenic Trail, which...
The Towler Road Spur is a short but pleasant route in the trail hub of Xenia, Ohio. Although the paved pathway parallels the roadway, it's separated from traffic by a wide grassy median dotted with...
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 Sharon Woods Loop Trail encircles a picturesque lake in popular Sharon Woods in Sharonville. The county park offers a visitor center, boathouse, golf course, picnic areas and athletic fields over...
The Greenville Creek Trail is a nice, albeit short, retreat through suburban Greenville. The paved path follows its namesake creek, passing under streets and linking neighborhood parks with downtown....
Seamlessly spanning the 35.5-mile distance between the Ohio communities of Bellefontaine and Springfield, the Simon Kenton Trail presents visitors with ample opportunities for recreation and wildlife...
The 4C Bicentennial Trail is one of several throughout Wilmington, OH, and runs between Southeast Neighborhood Park and Fife Avenue (CR 82), just across the road from the south end of Denver Williams...
The short Union City Gateway Trail is significant in that it was the first trail to cross the Indiana–Ohio border. A highlight along the paved pathway is the beautifully landscaped park on both sides...
Piqua City Linear Park was constructed on an abandoned railroad bed from the city's easternmost point to its westernmost point. Midway, it connects to the Great Miami River Trail and is part of the...
The Little Miami Scenic Trail is a jewel in the crown of Ohio rail-trails, spanning just over 78 miles from the outskirts of Cincinnati to Springfield over historical bridges and through tranquil...
The Cardinal Greenway, the longest rail-trail in Indiana, connects Marion, Muncie, Losantville, Richmond and a host of other small towns in rural northeastern Indiana. The trail takes its name from...
The Tecumseh Trail Multi-use Pathway offers a pleasant route, partially on the former Pennsylvania Railroad's Columbus-to-Saint Louis freight mainline. The rail route was also once used for Lincoln's...
The Franklin Township Greenway Trail runs on flat terrain through conservation, agriculture and residential areas just beyond the southern shoreline of Grand Lake, Ohio’s largest inland lake. Portions...
The Stillwater River Bikeway winds through Dayton's northern suburbs, following the tree-lined eastern shore of its namesake waterway for much of the way. Two disconnected segments of trail are...
The Canal Feeder Trail begins at Graceland Cemetery on the south end of Sidney and continues southwest on a former historical canal towpath dating back to the 1840s. The paved trail parallels the...
The paved Tecumseh Trail skirts the quaint city of New Carlisle. The trail takes users through some beautiful wooded areas along a former railroad corridor and connects to Smith Park. At the popular...
The Wright Brothers Huffman Prairie Bikeway runs from South Street in downtown Fairborn, along the north side of Kauffman Avenue adjacent to an active rail line, to National Road. At that point, the...
The Paint Creek Recreational Trail is the flagship pathway of a planned trail network in the Ohio counties of Fayette, Ross and Highland. Nearly 35 miles of paved trail are currently open linking the...
Hydraulic Canal Run begins in picturesque French Park, where stands of mature trees provide the perfect shady spots to picnic. From here, you can also connect to Piqua City Linear Park, a rail-trail...
The Dayton Kettering Connector combines a historic rail-trail and bike lanes, and shared road riding for 7 miles between the two municipalities. The off-road portion is 1.9 miles long and sits in the...
The Great Miami River Trail is the backbone of one of the nation’s largest paved trail networks, spanning 340 miles throughout Ohio’s Miami Valley. The route connects beautiful natural areas, small...
Seamlessly spanning the 35.5-mile distance between the Ohio communities of Bellefontaine and Springfield, the Simon Kenton Trail presents visitors with ample opportunities for recreation and wildlife...
D Street Trailhead Park is nestled along Richmond’s waterfront on the East Fork of the Whitewater River. From the park, travelers can go north on the Cardinal Greenway (which, at 62 miles, is...
The Paint Creek Recreational Trail is the flagship pathway of a planned trail network in the Ohio counties of Fayette, Ross and Highland. Nearly 35 miles of paved trail are currently open linking the...
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Ohio’s Miami River Valley, with 340 miles of off-road trails, is home to one of the nation’s largest paved trail networks. Heading northwest from Dayton, the Wolf Creek Trail is one piece of this...
Celina's West Bank Trail follows the shoreline of the Grand Lake St. Marys, Ohio's largest inland lake, and offers beautiful views of the lake and Rotary Lighthouse, as well as providing access to...
The Lowe's Connector Trail parallels Lowe's Drive in Wilmington, OH, and links Rombach Avenue with Prairie Road; however, this is no sidewalk once you reach Prairie Road. The trail is best used to...
The Stillwater River Bikeway winds through Dayton's northern suburbs, following the tree-lined eastern shore of its namesake waterway for much of the way. Two disconnected segments of trail are...
The Lebanon Countryside YMCA Trail offers 8 miles of paved pathway winding through Lebanon, from downtown to a connection to the 78-mile Little Miami Scenic Trail. The trail begins in the north near...
The Steve Whalen Boulevard Bikeway is a short neighborhood trail in East Dayton. The trail parallels the boulevard of the same name, starting at its intersection with Hamilton Avenue, and then heading...
Piqua City Linear Park was constructed on an abandoned railroad bed from the city's easternmost point to its westernmost point. Midway, it connects to the Great Miami River Trail and is part of the...
The 29-mile Prairie Grass Trail is one of four rail-trails that radiate from Xenia Station, the hub of a vast, paved trail network in southwestern Ohio. The site is a former Baltimore & Ohio (B&O)...
The James Ranch Connecting Spur provides an important link between two major trails spiraling out of the trail hub of Xenia. On its east end, the trail connects to the Little Miami Scenic Trail, which...
The Luther Warren Peace Path is shady 1.2-mile journey along a level paved surface, delightfully cool in summer. The trail includes two old railroad bridges, one covered and built as a local Boy Scout...
The 4C Bicentennial Trail is one of several throughout Wilmington, OH, and runs between Southeast Neighborhood Park and Fife Avenue (CR 82), just across the road from the south end of Denver Williams...
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The 7-mile Iron Horse Trail (open in two disconnected segments) utilizes approximately 2 miles of former Penn Central right-of-way, providing users a pleasant route through neighborhoods, as well as a...
The Wright Brothers Huffman Prairie Bikeway runs from South Street in downtown Fairborn, along the north side of Kauffman Avenue adjacent to an active rail line, to National Road. At that point, the...
The Canal Feeder Trail begins at Graceland Cemetery on the south end of Sidney and continues southwest on a former historical canal towpath dating back to the 1840s. The paved trail parallels the...
I have traveled to ride this trail several times, and will continue to do so as it gives you open space to speed up your pace for a good workout. The trail is smooth with not too many cracks or crevices in the surface, and lends itself to really getting your speed up. Wolf Creek is like a lot of other rural trails in the Midwest which are mostly flat with some gradual inclines. Most of the trail is located in rural setting, and gives some good distance between road crossings.
I have only ridden the Verona-Trotwood portion and find that it is not too busy when I have been here. Brookville is a nice town with several places to eat, and convenient trailhead parking just off of I-70. The trail is marked very well with mileage between places, and you can also easily access Sycamore State Park.
My bike riding partner and I enjoy riding the trail from Bellefontaine, the northern part, but it is challenging on the rough stone path really meant for erosion protection of the rails. It is too bad that this part of the trail hasn't been developed yet except for 3 miles at the beginning in Bell. If this what the finished trail will look like, it will be great! The stretch from Bell to W Liberty is beautiful and full of wildlife. Only a short way out of Bell one will encounter Deer, Wild Turkey, Rabbits, and enough birds to satisfy any avian enthusiast! Looking forward to the completion of the trail!
I rode this trail in October 2018. The Celina Coldwater Bikeway is a straight as an arrow converted rail line that connects the two towns of Celina and Coldwater, Ohio. As with most of the farmland in the western Ohio, it is very flat with little variation in elevation. This allows the rider to ride at a good clip and cover quite a bit of ground. On this Sunday, there were a number of bikers, walkers, and runners out on the trail, but it was not busy at all.
An interesting feature of this trail is how they mark mileage. There are two sets of tiles that are placed along the trail indicating how far you have ridden from your starting town. Heading south out of Celina the markers are green and heading north out of Coldwater the markers are red. They are placed in the pavement every quarter mile and at the end of the trail with a 4.61 mile marker which is the length of the trail. In addition when you reach a street crossing, there will be a sign telling you the name of the road and the exact mileage to the town you are heading toward.
The Celina Coldwater Bikeway is a nice trail for what it is, a local commuter trail. It is not a trail I would recommend going out of your way to ride. But for these two local communities it serves a purpose. Looking at the map of the area around Grand Lake St. Marys I could see that a plan could be drawn up to use the CCB, the Franklin Township Greenway, and the Miami & Erie Canal Towpath could be used as the basis of creating a greenway all the way around Grand Lake in the future.
The trail is about a half hour from my home. Made for a nice Sunday afternoon ride. It would be nice to see the trail extended but I rode it several times. Easy access from the CMH parking lot. Scenic. Look forward to coming here again.
I rode this trail in August of 2018 in my effort to ride all TrailLink.com listed Ohio trails. This half mile trail seems to only serve the purpose of connecting the Greenville City Park with the nearby Caddie Shack driving range. I'm not sure that there would be many Greenville golfers who would take a half mile walk from the city park with golf bag on their shoulders to hit a bucket of balls. The trail might be of more importance should the Piqua City Linear Park, the Tucumseh Trail Multi-use Pathway and the Union City Gateway Trail were eventually connected to commemorate the path that was taken by President Lincoln's Funeral Train through western Ohio in 1865 but until such time this trail will not be of interest of anyone outside of Greenville, Ohio.
I’ve ridden the two bottom sections of this trail, Fairfield/Hamilton and Trenton/Middletown. The trail is well paved and good for easy riding. It will be nice once or if they connect the two bottom sections to the main section in Franklin, Oh. So you can ride the whole trail without getting on the road.
I rode both the Northern and Southern Sections of this trail. It is an interesting trail from the stand point that it combines pieces of rail-trail, widened sidewalk "trail," on-street bike lane, and on-street riding. The route is inconsistently identified on the trail as 1) the Iron Horse Trail, 2) the Iron Horse Recreational Trail, 3) Bike Route K, 4) Bike Route 9 and possibly 5) Bike Route K2. If you attempt to ride the route of either section of this trail, as shown here in TrailLink, you will come to the end of each particular section and find that a bike route continues from where TrailLink says the Iron Horse Trail ends. However, it is not entirely clear at these points whether you are still riding on the Iron Horse Trail or some other connecting route. While the on-street riding occurs on what appear to be relatively lightly traveled streets, the widened sidewalks tend to cross some heavily trafficked roads. Dayton has recently announced a new trail called the Flight Line which appears that it will parallel parts of the current Northern Section of the Iron Horse Trail. Whether this new trail will run parallel just a number of feet from the Iron Horse or will incorporate part of what is currently the Iron Horse is yet to be seen. It also appears that both sections of the Iron Horse and the new Flight Line Trail could all come together near the old Tenneco Plant in Kettering, Ohio.
I rode from WCH to Hopewell Mounds and back (50 mi) and found the trail to be very enjoyable, scenic and worth doing. The trickiest part is navigating the portion where the trail winds through multiple industrial parks and then dumps you on Robinson Rd for a stretch. Had the map noted there is parking lot by Shaw Wetlands- the place where you turn off the street, it would have been the ideal starting point. Please add. I note that if you magnify that area significantly the parking is noted in blue. You wouldn’t know unless you are searching for it. Otherwise very enjoyable
I like this trail quite a bit. There were a number of interesting things to see along the route -- the Clarence J. Brown dam and reservoir, Old Reid Park, the Springfield Art Museum, Veterans Park Amphitheatre, and Wittenberg University. The trail surface is well maintained and I did not see any poor conditions or concerns that were expressed in a previous review. Getting across the dam on the Engineers Road was a challenge due to a very strong headwind. The trail seemed pretty quite for a Thursday afternoon, but that might have been because of the recent change in the weather that put a chill in the air. I saw a number of cyclists out by the reservoir but not a one on my way into, nor back from Springfield. There were a number of pedestrians I passed by in town. I think that this trail probably gets a lot of use in the summer.
Since this trail intersects with the Simon Kenton Trail I will be back in the area once again. I did see one sign that stated if you wanted to connect with the Little Miami River Trail follow the signs, but I did not see any signs suggesting an actual route. In fact, I would not have known that the one bridge over the Buck Creek trail actually carried the Simon Kenton Trail at all if not for the fact that there was one small spur off of the trail near this bridge that I decided to explore. There definitely needs to be better signage to and from all connecting trails in this town.
Biked from Xenia Station toward Dayton. Largely shaded, at least during our ride. Several busy traffic crossings - be careful! Seemed to be a bit of a gradual upward grade for a good chunk of the ride toward Dayton. You’ll see walkers, people with kids on bikes and strollers, rollerbladers, skateboarders, speedy bikers and more leisurely bikers (like me!). Several decent places to stop and rest or get water. Xenia Station is a great place to pick up several wonderful trails including this one. Only a few spots where the asphalt needed attention.
As a Saint Mary’s resident living a few blocks from a trailhead (High Street) I love being able to just take,off on my bike, no transporting said bike to the park required. Parts of the trail are smooth sailing, parts are very rough... but it’s flat and beautiful. If you have any trail riding/mountain biking experience, this will be an easy ride for you headed North from St Mary’s. South is harder, longer prairie grass can slow you down or make you walk your bike. Always hoping for more trail improvements to make riding even better.
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