Find the top rated walking trails in Decatur, whether you're looking for an easy short walking trail or a long walking trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a walking trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
The Towanda Route 66 Parkway is the longest and most developed of the Route 66 trails in northeast McLean County. Its centerpiece is the well-appointed, community-sponsored linear parkway within the...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
This trail is an extension of the Lost Bridge Trail that goes from Springfield to Rochester. From its western terminus, the first half mile is a heavily wooded section of urban rail-trail. It has a...
At just under a mile in length, Leland Grove's trail is the kind of space people go to for a quick workout or simply a breath of fresh air. The tree-lined trail parallels Outer Park Drive from Bates...
The first 5.5-mile segment of the 38-mile Sangamon Valley Trail opened in summer 2011 and runs between Centennial Park and Stuart Park in Springfield. In 2017, a 6-mile extension was opened between...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail is a safe, paved route that connects all the major parts of the village. On the north, there are the various and popular facilities of the Lake of the Woods Forest...
The Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail runs 12 miles, much of the way along an old railroad right-of-way between County Highway 2 east of Charleston and the ball fields at 10th Street in Mattoon; an...
While you’re in the land of Lincoln, visit the Lincoln Prairie Trail to make the trip complete. Starting at the trailhead in northwest Pana, leisurely stroll along a paved trail that is nicely...
The Harold E. Ruppel sits in a perfect location to provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and non-motorized transportation for residents of Savoy Village, in the Champaign-Urbana metro area. It...
The Lost Bridge Trail, jointly managed by the Springfield Park District and the village of Rochester, is one of the area's earliest and most popular multiuse trails-even for locals taking a weekday...
The Wabash Trail is the epitome of an urban rail-trail link. It's straight and flat. It has bridges over its only intersecting roadways. Just keep moving and enjoy. The trail connects city...
The sprawling Constitution Trail covers nearly 42 miles throughout the Bloomington-Normal area. The trail was officially named and dedicated in 1987 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the...
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The paved Interurban Trail provides 8.4 miles of suburban and rural scenery for users between Chatham and Springfield. It follows the former route of the electrified Illinois Terminal Railroad...
Dedicated on August 5, 2000, the Green Diamond Rail-Trail was the first bicycling/pedestrian trail in Montgomery County. Partially funded by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the trail is...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historical downtown train depot. And...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
Except for short-distance walkers, the principal attraction of the Kiwanis Park/West Side Trail is its connection to the other parts of Decatur's trail system. From its western terminus, one can...
While you’re in the land of Lincoln, visit the Lincoln Prairie Trail to make the trip complete. Starting at the trailhead in northwest Pana, leisurely stroll along a paved trail that is nicely...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
The Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail runs 12 miles, much of the way along an old railroad right-of-way between County Highway 2 east of Charleston and the ball fields at 10th Street in Mattoon; an...
The General Dacey Trail, which first opened in 2006, is a beautiful and richly varied trail located between the city of Shelbyville to the west and large Lake Shelbyville to the east. Its surface is...
Dedicated on August 5, 2000, the Green Diamond Rail-Trail was the first bicycling/pedestrian trail in Montgomery County. Partially funded by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the trail is...
The Harold E. Ruppel sits in a perfect location to provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and non-motorized transportation for residents of Savoy Village, in the Champaign-Urbana metro area. It...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail is a safe, paved route that connects all the major parts of the village. On the north, there are the various and popular facilities of the Lake of the Woods Forest...
The Wabash Trail is the epitome of an urban rail-trail link. It's straight and flat. It has bridges over its only intersecting roadways. Just keep moving and enjoy. The trail connects city...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
The Lost Bridge Trail, jointly managed by the Springfield Park District and the village of Rochester, is one of the area's earliest and most popular multiuse trails-even for locals taking a weekday...
At just under a mile in length, Leland Grove's trail is the kind of space people go to for a quick workout or simply a breath of fresh air. The tree-lined trail parallels Outer Park Drive from Bates...
The paved Interurban Trail provides 8.4 miles of suburban and rural scenery for users between Chatham and Springfield. It follows the former route of the electrified Illinois Terminal Railroad...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historical downtown train depot. And...
This trail is an extension of the Lost Bridge Trail that goes from Springfield to Rochester. From its western terminus, the first half mile is a heavily wooded section of urban rail-trail. It has a...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
The Towanda Route 66 Parkway is the longest and most developed of the Route 66 trails in northeast McLean County. Its centerpiece is the well-appointed, community-sponsored linear parkway within the...
The sprawling Constitution Trail covers nearly 42 miles throughout the Bloomington-Normal area. The trail was officially named and dedicated in 1987 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the...
The sprawling Constitution Trail covers nearly 42 miles throughout the Bloomington-Normal area. The trail was officially named and dedicated in 1987 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
Except for short-distance walkers, the principal attraction of the Kiwanis Park/West Side Trail is its connection to the other parts of Decatur's trail system. From its western terminus, one can...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
The Harold E. Ruppel sits in a perfect location to provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and non-motorized transportation for residents of Savoy Village, in the Champaign-Urbana metro area. It...
The first 5.5-mile segment of the 38-mile Sangamon Valley Trail opened in summer 2011 and runs between Centennial Park and Stuart Park in Springfield. In 2017, a 6-mile extension was opened between...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historical downtown train depot. And...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail is a safe, paved route that connects all the major parts of the village. On the north, there are the various and popular facilities of the Lake of the Woods Forest...
The Lost Bridge Trail, jointly managed by the Springfield Park District and the village of Rochester, is one of the area's earliest and most popular multiuse trails-even for locals taking a weekday...
The Wabash Trail is the epitome of an urban rail-trail link. It's straight and flat. It has bridges over its only intersecting roadways. Just keep moving and enjoy. The trail connects city...
While you’re in the land of Lincoln, visit the Lincoln Prairie Trail to make the trip complete. Starting at the trailhead in northwest Pana, leisurely stroll along a paved trail that is nicely...
The General Dacey Trail, which first opened in 2006, is a beautiful and richly varied trail located between the city of Shelbyville to the west and large Lake Shelbyville to the east. Its surface is...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
Dedicated on August 5, 2000, the Green Diamond Rail-Trail was the first bicycling/pedestrian trail in Montgomery County. Partially funded by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the trail is...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
The paved Interurban Trail provides 8.4 miles of suburban and rural scenery for users between Chatham and Springfield. It follows the former route of the electrified Illinois Terminal Railroad...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
But be warned at the entrance of the trail on Prairie view Road it has quite a bit of heaved asphalt and you don’t see it until it’s too late, other than that issue at the beginning most of it is smooth going, there are plenty of hills, twists and turns and beautiful scenery.
Chenoa, Lexington, Towanda...why has Pontiac not done this to it's retired section of 66? From the old Kmart to the old State Police HQ then cross over at E. 1600 North Road and connect to the path at the Rec Plex that runs alongside the prison.
Nice trail, fair amount of shade and open, could of used a little trimming little overgrown in spots overall good experience just wish they would get the bridge back open
Excellent trail considering it runs between 2 small towns. Waggoner has no businesses left. I didnt see any soda machines.Nice parking.trail is level, in good condition
My daughter uses a wheelchair and we all really felt like we could enjoy the park on this path. The whole area is extremely accessible!
I fully agree with other reviews great trail. Thanx to those responsible for getting it paved. All in sun however, might want cloudy day. Easy 20+ mile ride if you want, goes into 2 towns for food also.
This trail used to have some gravel but no longer..., it’s all asphalt now. It is a nice little jaunt to Mattoon and back. There is no shade except under I-57 near Mattoon. Wildflowers are beautiful. There are access points from the trail to the Charleston Country Club ( golf course) and Douglas/Hart Nature Center just outside of Mattoon. Port
This trail has been greatly improved and is now asphalt from Mattoon to Charleston.
Overall, trail was great! There are a few spots where some of the gravel was deeper and more difficult to navigate but our hybrid bikes handled this okay. The area around the trail was very well maintained and is in a very beautiful area along lake Shelbyville. We grabbed breakfast in town before our ride but would recommend parking at the visitors center (near the dam) to begin your ride. The trail is not marked in town.
We started our ride at the Pana end of the trail with plans to have lunch in Taylorville. The trail was an easy, flat ride with short sections of bumpy trail but our hybrid bikes handled this well. Near Taylorville there was a lot of debris (branches/leaves) on the trail including a fallen tree. Despite being able to get around that, we ran into the bridge closure that prevented us from grabbing lunch in Taylorville. Very disappointing!
Very nice paved 12 mile trail from Centennial Park to Irwin bridge road the SVT has a lot of tree coverage. Has limited parking so but several access points. The trail highlight is the bridge that crosses Sangamon River which a young Abraham Lincoln navigated. You can ride on the road 2 miles to Athens,Il on the northern end of the trail.
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