Find the top rated birding trails in Carroll, whether you're looking for an easy short birding trail or a long birding trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a birding trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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I like the Raccoon River Valley Trail so much that I moved to Iowa and bought a house just a few blocks from it so that I can ride it every day. I do, too. I've been over every inch of this trail multiple times and just find it to be delightful. My wife and I are annual pass holders and can't possibly thank those who made this possible near enough. We live in Jefferson, so I'm most familiar with the northern end of the trail. My daily rides typically take me to Yale or Panora if I'm heading south, or to Dawson or Perry if I'm heading east. The trail runs through 3 counties (Greene, Guthrie and Dallas) and local conservation officials are responsible for maintaining it. They do a great job, too. I've ridden all the way to Des Moines and back on both legs. Just an unbelievably good trail experience all around. If you're in from out of town, buy a day pass for $2 and help support the trail. Better yet, buy an annual pass $10 and come back again and again. It never gets old.
We just rode this trail for the first time and I highly recommend it! It is all either concrete or blacktop which is so easy on the tires and the bottom. It was very well maintained and the small towns you encounter about every 6 miles were quite accommodating. The people seemed happy to see us, not annoyed by our intrusion into their town. We came from another state because we were looking for an easy day drive to a trail. The pride of the Iowa people for their trail and their state is so obvious and appreciated. Love the Midwest. The trailhead restroom facilities were overall excellent. Would love to see more bed and breakfasts and food options spring up along the trails. The trail has a lot of open stretches so remember that when deciding when to ride and watch out for the walnuts in the fall, yikes! We hear they are going to connect the high trestle trail with this 89 mile trail which will make it even better!
I'd never even heard of this trail until my wife and I found it this weekend. We didn't have time to cover the entire trail, but road about 26 miles RT from Lake View to Breda. Lake View is a nice town where there are a couple of trail heads with plenty of parking. The trail itself is flawless and runs along the lake at the beginning and through the beautiful Iowa countryside the rest of the way. The scenery has rolling hills although the trail itself is flat. Can't wait to ride the rest of it!!
We rode the trail today from Lake View to Carroll. One feature we really like is the mile markers (for both directions) We ride this trail a few times each year so we definitely liked the bridge improvements with cement replacing the wooden bridge floors. And the addition of so many bike fix- it stations is a nice thing to have along the way. We also like the shelter at the 2 mile location out of Lake View. Love the improvements. Great maintenance all along the way. One of our favorite Iowa trails. (we drive 2 hours to access and ride this trail) Thank you!!!
I sincerely appreciate that this trail is directly adjacent to Audubon's airport. We were able to fly in and unload our bikes. We were immediately on the trail. Terminal facilities at Audubon's were airport were first rate and clean. The trail it's self was excellent and being able to ride from town to town made it more fun....Great ride!
Parked at the corn crib. Next time will pick up trail in town because of gravel by the marsh.Otherwise wonderful trail to rollerskate on.
This was a perfect stop on 80 for lunch and a walk with out puppy. We could even let him off lease.
I'm from Kansas City and rode this trail on Labor Day weekend. It was a peaceful, quiet ride thru corn fields and the beautiful country sides of rural Iowa. The trail is in great shape and is very smooth until you have to cross several gravel roads. Like others have said, bring extra hydration and snacks as there's not much along the way to stop.
We parked off of exist 60 of I80, and parked south of the interstate in between the hotel and gas station(a small parking lot and the trail head) We headed north to Hamlin, 15 miles. We didn't go all the way to Audubon due to a strong wind in the open areas. It is a nice ride, nice scenery. We stopped in Exira at the Casey's in town for a water and restroom break. The route is 99% flat with only slight inclines that you don't really notice. We got to see some wildlife and it is the country, so you do go by some farms. Good ride for all levels.
95% of this ride is smooth riding. It is rough from Yale to Jefferson. Whoever repaired this part of the trail should be forced to get on a bike and ride it. This should be repaired ASAP. Now for the rest of the ride, we LOVED IT! We ate lunch in the town of Perry at David's Milwaukee Diner. The food was good, the service great, prices fair and most of all ... Air Conditioning.
We stopped in the town of Dallas Center and ate ice cream at the Korner Kone Ice Cream and Deli, which is right off the trail about 150 ft away. AC was great. It might seem we are in need of AC a lot, but the heat index was almost 100% during our ride. We didn't see the reported Mountain Lion (LOL) but we saw deer, geese, rabbits, grass hoppers, birds and even a mouse walking on the trail. I was so glad I brought two 24 oz bottles of drink, I think a third bottle would have been better. We crossed paths with about 15 different riders on the loop, and all were friendly. One person had a Bluetooth speaker playing their music, which is NOT a bother at all. Really, in passing it is only for a few seconds. So I upgrade the riders in IOWA to very polite and trail friendly over one interview here. Summary: You need to ride this trail if you get the chance. I drove 600 miles to do it, and i am glad I did!
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