Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Bloomington, whether you're looking for an easy short cross country skiing trail or a long cross country skiing trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a cross country skiing trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The Bloomington Rail Trail is a 2-mile segment of crushed stone that runs through a suburban wooded corridor. The trail extends between W. Country Club Drive in the north and Church Lane in the...
The Vandalia Trail is the longest open component of the National Road Heritage Trail (NRHT), a proposed border-to-border trail stretching between Terre Haute and Richmond, a span of more than 150...
The Tracy Trail is a short suburban greenway in the town of Greenwood. The trail runs northsouth between Summerfield Park and just north of Woodman Park near Southwest Elementary School. The open...
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Bloomington's Clear Creek Trail runs between Tapp Road in the north and the Blooming Rail Trail in the south, linking with the latter just north of Church Lane. Although the Clear Creek Trail is...
The Central Canal Towpath, also known as the IWC Canal Greenway, features two 19th-century iron bridges that cross the waterway, designated an American Water Landmark. As you follow the tree-lined,...
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Providing a slice of scenic beauty in an urban setting, the Fall Creek Trail follows the titular creek along a quiet, forested corridor in northern Indianapolis. Offering a variety of recreation...
The Tracy Trail is a short suburban greenway in the town of Greenwood. The trail runs northsouth between Summerfield Park and just north of Woodman Park near Southwest Elementary School. The open...
Bloomington's Clear Creek Trail runs between Tapp Road in the north and the Blooming Rail Trail in the south, linking with the latter just north of Church Lane. Although the Clear Creek Trail is...
The Bloomington Rail Trail is a 2-mile segment of crushed stone that runs through a suburban wooded corridor. The trail extends between W. Country Club Drive in the north and Church Lane in the...
Providing a slice of scenic beauty in an urban setting, the Fall Creek Trail follows the titular creek along a quiet, forested corridor in northern Indianapolis. Offering a variety of recreation...
Pogues Run gets its name from one of the earliest pioneers to the area, a blacksmith named George Pogue who settled on the banks of the creek now bearing his name in 1819. The corridor itself predates...
The Vandalia Trail is the longest open component of the National Road Heritage Trail (NRHT), a proposed border-to-border trail stretching between Terre Haute and Richmond, a span of more than 150...
The Central Canal Towpath, also known as the IWC Canal Greenway, features two 19th-century iron bridges that cross the waterway, designated an American Water Landmark. As you follow the tree-lined,...
Providing a slice of scenic beauty in an urban setting, the Fall Creek Trail follows the titular creek along a quiet, forested corridor in northern Indianapolis. Offering a variety of recreation...
Pogues Run gets its name from one of the earliest pioneers to the area, a blacksmith named George Pogue who settled on the banks of the creek now bearing his name in 1819. The corridor itself predates...
The Vandalia Trail is the longest open component of the National Road Heritage Trail (NRHT), a proposed border-to-border trail stretching between Terre Haute and Richmond, a span of more than 150...
The Tracy Trail is a short suburban greenway in the town of Greenwood. The trail runs northsouth between Summerfield Park and just north of Woodman Park near Southwest Elementary School. The open...
The Central Canal Towpath, also known as the IWC Canal Greenway, features two 19th-century iron bridges that cross the waterway, designated an American Water Landmark. As you follow the tree-lined,...
The Bloomington Rail Trail is a 2-mile segment of crushed stone that runs through a suburban wooded corridor. The trail extends between W. Country Club Drive in the north and Church Lane in the...
Bloomington's Clear Creek Trail runs between Tapp Road in the north and the Blooming Rail Trail in the south, linking with the latter just north of Church Lane. Although the Clear Creek Trail is...
The West one third or so through Terre Haute is mostly just wide sidewalks and is not well marked. But the East side is the great. Typical rail trail thru somewhat rural type scenery. Lots of benches, rest areas and even restrooms by football field at Rose Holcomb college.
We set out from Greencastle and the gravel surface there is sound but the bike path isn't on the railroad bed so it winds a bit with small ups and downs. Not for skinny tires! But it was lovely and ride-able on our mid-tire bikes. The section from Coatesville to Amo was asphalt that was smooth as glass. What a lovely treat! The whole distance was partly tree covered so the sun didn't bake us, but enough open places to enjoy the fields and flowers.
My wife and I parked at Blue Heron Park just off Rt-31 and rode eastward. The route is paved all the way, but it pays to be familiar with the route. We made a few wrong turns since there are very few signs directing us where to go. For example, the route goes through a cemetery. When we got to it, there was no indication which road in the cemetery to take. We eventually found the right way, but had to "hunt around" a bit. A map at the trailhead would have been helpful. A big plus is that much of the trail in Franklin is shaded. It's a bit more "open" when you travel farther east.
I have done about 75 trails in 28 states including the Minuteman in Boston, the Little Miami in Cincy, Riverfront in St. Louis and several trails in Chicago, etc and this trail is simply the best urban trail I have ever ridden or heard about. 26 miles with scenery from Indy light industrial to Broad Ripple hipster to Carmel upscale ( maybe the best five miles of the trail) to Hamilton county farm country, through two major parks and Carmel's truly unique downtown, there is something for everyone. But what stands out are the amenities along the trail, from restrooms, water stations and numerous places scattered in many locations to get something to eat or drink, most catering to the bicycle crowd. If you are a bicycle tourist, this is a must ride trail.
I really like this trail. It is newer and the pavement is mostly even. Railbed trails are far better overall surfaces, but that should not be held against this path. North of Washington St (US 40) the path runs on both sides of the divided highway! Along the length of this short trail, however, there is NO lighting for early morning or night commutes/ training rides and it gets DARK. This makes the trail more hazardous due to the zig zags near intersections and limited lighting nearby. The very fine silt dust that accumulates on the path from the nearby fields is also extremely slick. I fell on this path recently without warning due to silt+moisture and got a bad concussion. Overall, add some lighting and more miles to this and it could be a great run that connects to the B&O snd Vandalia Trails.
Beautiful trail, lots of wildlife.
Beautiful trail - plenty of access points. We were impressed by how well thought out the trails extras were. Porch swings, super clean bathrooms, even a bike repair station. There are quite a few required stops for busy roads but 9 out of 10 times the traffic stops for you.
We ride this trail quite often. The portion which passes the Art Museum and Butler are very nice. Once you get closer to Broadripple, the trail starts to get narrow and crosses many busy intersections. The really narrow section is the portion right before Broadripple where it is barely wide enough for a bike. Beware if there is someone coming towards you. Portions of the trail are currently closed due to construction of a flood wall. You have to ride the road from the Rocky Ripple area towards 56th and Illinois. Don't ride this trail after a rain unless you want to be covered in limestone grit and muck.
Pros:
This trail is well-tended and clean with even pavement over most of it. There is a small portion where the trail crosses E County Rd 300 N that is gravel, but it is otherwise very clean. The trail is shielded from traffic by trees on both sides. The sides only open up a few times along its length. The trail is relatively flat and wide making it an easy path to walk and bike. This path is very quiet.
Cons:
The trail is only 6 miles which is short if you want to run a long distance. The entrance to the trail at Raceway Rd is difficult to get to as there are no sidewalks leading to it, and it ends very close to a road that has no shoulder. I usually have to access the trail by parking in a local business and walking across grass to get to it. Another con is that, while the trail is well-groomed and trees are plenty, there are very few turns or hills that provide interest to the trail.
All-in-all, it's a fantastic,quiet path to run, walk, or bike, although it could use a little more interesting scenery and the east entrance is difficult to access.
Without a doubt, this trail is the location of some of the most scenic vantages of the Indianapolis skyline. From the Zoo at Washington to the bridge at 10 St is the most well kept portion of the trail. South of the Zoo at Washington, things can get sketchy real quick due to the White River basin and some blind turns causing hazard. Northbound @ 10th, you either hang a left over the bridge and loop back South (nice loop) or, you head right on the sidewalk in front of Eskinazi. This portion is unmarked and not intuitive, because the trail actually picks up again North of 10th on a suspension bridge just before the light at St Margaret’s drive. Go left (west) at the end of the bridge, (the right leg ends quickly at Indiana) and there is.a paved trail that continues north. Once you hit 16th, this path is adequately titled t”the nutcracker because it is very uneven all the way to where it connects to the towpath @
I have ridden the entire Pennsey, with the Eastern most Portion being the best with signage, mileage and sights. Perhaps someday the segments will be connected, but at least we have the opportunity to ride the preserved miles.
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