Find the top rated bike trails in East Hartford, whether you're looking for an easy short bike trail or a long bike trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a bike trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
The first phase of the New Milford River Trail runs southeast from Gaylordsville via the scenic but lightly traveled River Road, through Sega Meadows to Boardman Bridge, a distance of about 5 miles....
Note: Per the State of Connecticut's website, the trail is open from dawn to dusk April 1–November 14. Eagle nesting activities can delay the opening of the southern trail head in Windsor...
The Quinebaug River Trail exists in two segments in northwest Connecticut. The northern section parallels Park Road and Tracy Road for about 2 miles in an industrial section of Putnam with few trail...
Bloomfield Greenway Multi-Use Trail is 1.8 miles between Bloomfield and Simsbury. The trail is envisioned to someday act as a connector between the City of Hartford and the Farmington Canal Heritage...
The Bissell name looms large in this part of New England, and has been immortalized in multiple ways, including the Bissell Ferry, the Bissell Memorial Bridge and now, the Captain John Bissell trail,...
The Pequonnock River Trail is not a name you will see on the ground along this developing trail in southwestern Connecticut. Formalized in 2001 by the state, the regional trail pieced together...
The Manhan Rail Trail, well integrated into the local communities it serves, offers a pleasant ride or stroll. It conveniently weaves together parks, community points of interest, neighborhoods, and...
Burrillville Bike Path runs for just over a mile through its namesake rural community in northwest Rhode Island. It connects the villages of Pascoag and Harrisville through a corridor that once...
The Connecticut River Walk and Bikeway, which will one day run 21 miles along the river, currently has two open segments. The longest stretches 3.7 miles from the Chicopee town line to the South End...
First a canal, then a railroad, and now a trail define the history of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail. Completed segments span Connecticut south to north, from New Haven to the Massachusetts...
The Putnam River Trail extends between Arch Street in the Putnam District and Providence Street to the south. The trail follows the east bank of the Quinebaug River between the river and Kennedy...
When complete, Connecticut’s Shoreline Greenway Trail will be a scenic 25-mile route through four quaint New England towns off Long Island Sound. From Lighthouse Point to Hammonasset Beach State Park,...
A dozen miles west of Connecticut’s capital of Hartford, the Farmington River Trail forms a 16.5-mile arc that connects to the larger Farmington Canal Heritage Trail on both ends. The rail-trail was...
The Redstone Rail Trail is built on the former New York, New Haven & Hartford Armory Branch, which in turn is a former branch line of the New York & New England RR. Its name comes from the numerous...
Over 2 miles from start to finish, this U-shaped trail meets both the commuting and the recreational needs of local residents in Middletown. The trail begins on Middle St, marked by a trailhead with a...
The Quinnipiac River Gorge Trail is a 1.3-mile rail-trail in Meridan, Connecticut. The trail occupies the former railbed of the Meriden, Waterbury & Connecticut River Railroad, a 17-mile line which...
The Southwick Rail Trail extends from the Massachusetts–Connecticut state line north to the Westfield town line and connects to the Columbia Greenway Rail Trail. Along the way, it travels through...
The Charter Oak Greenway offers more than 16 miles of paved pathway through Hartford and its eastern suburbs. At first glance, the trail looks as if it is simply a highway side path, but the journey...
The Qunnipiac Linear Trail is an easy multipurpose path in Wallingford, Connecticut. The trail skirts Community Lake while traveling a heavily wooded corridor along the Quinnipiac River. It is one of...
The Windsor River Trail is a paved trail along the Connecticut River in Windsor Meadows State Park. The trail begins at the state park’s parking lot on E Barber St. The Captain John Bissell Trail,...
Open in several disconnected segments, the Billings Trail is a dirt path that traverses a lovely scenic and wooded landscape outside Norfolk in northern Connecticut. Built on the abandoned railbed of...
The Columbia Greenway Rail Trail offers just over 2 miles of paved, tree-lined pathway through Westfield in southwestern Massachusetts. The trail runs from Main Street, across the Great River Bridge...
The Qunnipiac Linear Trail is an easy multipurpose path in Wallingford, Connecticut. The trail skirts Community Lake while traveling a heavily wooded corridor along the Quinnipiac River. It is one of...
The Naugatuck River Greenway will one day span 44 miles from Torrington to Derby in western Connecticut, but is currently open in a few short disconnected segments totaling just over 5 miles. The...
Note: Per the State of Connecticut's website, the trail is open from dawn to dusk April 1–November 14. Eagle nesting activities can delay the opening of the southern trail head in Windsor...
The Rocky Hill Trail weaves through the tranquil greenery of the Burts Bog Greenway Conservation Area in Northampton, Hampshire County. The 121-acre peat bog is an ecologically sensitive site that's...
Paralleling the Connecticut and Massachusetts borders, which lie only a few miles away, the Harlem Valley Rail Trail is a beautiful paved wooded pathway along the former New York & Harlem Railroad...
The Savin Rock Trail offers just over a mile of paved pathway along West Haven’s coastline. Along the way, you’ll enjoy picturesque views of Long Island Sound and access to its sandy beaches. The west...
Over 2 miles from start to finish, this U-shaped trail meets both the commuting and the recreational needs of local residents in Middletown. The trail begins on Middle St, marked by a trailhead with a...
When complete, Connecticut’s Shoreline Greenway Trail will be a scenic 25-mile route through four quaint New England towns off Long Island Sound. From Lighthouse Point to Hammonasset Beach State Park,...
A part of Connecticut's first bus rapid transit line, the CTfastrak Trail serves as recreational and multi-use path for walking and bicycling between Downtown New Britain and Newington Junction. The...
The Quinebaug Valley Rail Trail runs on the corridor once occupied by the Southbridge & Blackstone line of the Providence & Worcester Railroad, transforming a corridor once designed to link rural...
The Air Line State Park Trail winds nearly 55 miles from the northeast corner of Connecticut, where the state borders Massachusetts, down to East Hampton in the heart of the state. The pathway is...
The Connecticut River Walk and Bikeway, which will one day run 21 miles along the river, currently has two open segments. The longest stretches 3.7 miles from the Chicopee town line to the South End...
The South Spencer Rail Trail runs for less than 2 miles from downtown Spencer to an area south of town near Spencer State Forest. The path, which is also known as the Depot Trail, occupies a former...
First a canal, then a railroad, and now a trail define the history of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail. Completed segments span Connecticut south to north, from New Haven to the Massachusetts...
The Westville Lake Community Trail offers a short, scenic excursion along the east bank of Westville Lake in Southbridge. Much of the crushed-stone pathway is under a lush tree canopy. Along the way,...
Coming in at just under 3 miles, the Sue Grossman Still River Greenway is anchored by the towns of Winchester to the north and Torrington to the south. It occupies the right-of-way of the Naugatuck...
At the turn of the 20th century, Groton & Stonington Railway Company began to move passengers between Groton to Mystic via electric trolleys. But in 25 years, the line had been discontinued due to...
The Cheney Rail Trail follows part of the corridor of the South Manchester Railroad, built by the Cheney brothers in 1869. The line was a 2.5-mile spur from the main Hartford, Providence, and Fishkill...
The South Spencer Rail Trail runs for less than 2 miles from downtown Spencer to an area south of town near Spencer State Forest. The path, which is also known as the Depot Trail, occupies a former...
Burrillville Bike Path runs for just over a mile through its namesake rural community in northwest Rhode Island. It connects the villages of Pascoag and Harrisville through a corridor that once...
The Bissell name looms large in this part of New England, and has been immortalized in multiple ways, including the Bissell Ferry, the Bissell Memorial Bridge and now, the Captain John Bissell trail,...
The Cheney Rail Trail follows part of the corridor of the South Manchester Railroad, built by the Cheney brothers in 1869. The line was a 2.5-mile spur from the main Hartford, Providence, and Fishkill...
First a canal, then a railroad, and now a trail define the history of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail. Completed segments span Connecticut south to north, from New Haven to the Massachusetts...
The Hartford Riverwalk is a charming network of paved pathways for cyclists and pedestrians that runs along the banks of the Connecticut River through the state capital. The trail provides an off-road...
The 3.1-mile Kress Family Trail in Roxbury occupies the former route of the Shepaug Valley Railroad (the Shepaug, Litchfield and Northern Railroad). The railroad was famously known as the “crookedest...
The Charter Oak Greenway offers more than 16 miles of paved pathway through Hartford and its eastern suburbs. At first glance, the trail looks as if it is simply a highway side path, but the journey...
Running alongside both the Housatonic and Naugatuck Rivers, the Derby Greenway demonstrates a seamless integration of Connecticut’s natural river systems and parks with man-made interventions of the...
The Windsor River Trail is a paved trail along the Connecticut River in Windsor Meadows State Park. The trail begins at the state park’s parking lot on E Barber St. The Captain John Bissell Trail,...
The Rocky Hill Trail weaves through the tranquil greenery of the Burts Bog Greenway Conservation Area in Northampton, Hampshire County. The 121-acre peat bog is an ecologically sensitive site that's...
Note: Per the State of Connecticut's website, the trail is open from dawn to dusk April 1–November 14. Eagle nesting activities can delay the opening of the southern trail head in Windsor...
The Chicopee Center Canal Walk offers a short pleasant route in Chicopee, a small city on the outskirts of Springfield in southern Massachusetts. The pathway closely follows the slow-moving canal and...
A part of Connecticut's first bus rapid transit line, the CTfastrak Trail serves as recreational and multi-use path for walking and bicycling between Downtown New Britain and Newington Junction. The...
The Middlebury Greenway provides a paved, off-road option for a self-propelled journey across suburban Middlebury. The trail touches on several business districts and parks, ending at an amusement...
The Air Line State Park Trail winds nearly 55 miles from the northeast corner of Connecticut, where the state borders Massachusetts, down to East Hampton in the heart of the state. The pathway is...
The Qunnipiac Linear Trail is an easy multipurpose path in Wallingford, Connecticut. The trail skirts Community Lake while traveling a heavily wooded corridor along the Quinnipiac River. It is one of...
The Connecticut River Walk and Bikeway, which will one day run 21 miles along the river, currently has two open segments. The longest stretches 3.7 miles from the Chicopee town line to the South End...
The Quinnipiac River Gorge Trail is a 1.3-mile rail-trail in Meridan, Connecticut. The trail occupies the former railbed of the Meriden, Waterbury & Connecticut River Railroad, a 17-mile line which...
The Westville Lake Community Trail offers a short, scenic excursion along the east bank of Westville Lake in Southbridge. Much of the crushed-stone pathway is under a lush tree canopy. Along the way,...
My actual rating on this one is 2.5 stars. One glorious day, probably in a couple of decades, this will be an amazing trail. Right now, it is an extremely mixed bag, and very challenging to do all the way. Me and the friends I rode with didn't make it to the end.
We started on this one as a continuation of the Air Line State Park Trail in Connecticut, heading from west to east, with the Forge Park/495 train station as our destination. The Douglas portion of this one was fine; none of it is paved, but it's maintained, free of ballast and standing water, and our bikes (one loaded tourer and two old-fashioned/90s mountain bikes) were fine on it, if not quite as fast as they would be on asphalt. There was very little traffic; most of the way was reasonably shaded, and the grades are gentle. At some point in Douglas State Forest, it starts skewing downhill, but not really enough to be noticeable. I probably wouldn't take a road bike on it, but a decent all-purpose bike should do fine.
Things became a little harder in Uxbridge. The trail got narrower, rockier, with some overgrowth. There were some pools of standing water, felled trees, the occasional stretch of ballast, and a few above-grade road crossings (i.e., steep hill to the road, then steep hill to get back on the trail), and heavy damage from ATVs. I, on a touring bike, was able to negotiate it, but I had to *negotiate*. And, more than once, walk my bike.
Things continued to be mediocre-to-challenging as we we approached Route 146. At the highway -- which is an uncrossable, shadless, multi-lane freeway -- the trail became complete garbage. We waded through deep pools of standing water and fought our way through fetid, swampy overgrowth before the way basically just disappeared. We had to ride *right* next to the highway itself for a short distance to find a steep, rocky little side path that drops you onto a surface road.
According to the information we had, the trail could be reacquired by riding through some nearby industrial parking lots, but this turned out not to be the case. Thank Cthulhu for Google Maps, because it seems you actually have to detour about a mile on the local roads, which are wide, fast, and without shade, in order to find the entrance to the Blackstone River Greenway, which is the next stretch of the trail. There is next to no signage for any of this.
After the mess that was Uxbridge, the BRG was *exceptional*. Smooth, shady, not heavily trafficked, and some beautiful views from river bridges. I enjoyed every single foot of it. Unfortunately, it dead-ends at a bridge that's still under construction. We needed to leave the BRG anyway, since it will ultimately connect to an existing trail in Rhode Island.
Returning to surface streets, there was no sign of the trail at this point, so we consulted Google Maps again and went up Castle Hill Way, which is a subdivision of condos, devoid of any indication that the trail's right-of-way is there. You have to ride up the road and then go through a little grassy area to get to the gate where the trail picks up. It was doable, but rocky and overgrown, with pockets of ballast and standing water, and stretches damaged by ATVs. Fun for mountain and gravel bikers, maybe, but not so much for us. There was a fenced-off road crossing, but we could maneuver our bikes around it.
The trail continued to be in poor condition, and eventually, somewhere in Bellingham, we ran into a long section of standing water and ballast. Amid the bugs, the heat, and the horrible, nearly impassable terrain, we decided we'd had enough and exited onto Old Elm St., taking the road the rest of the way. Had we gone another mile or so, we would have reached Center St., which we'd heard is where the trail becomes a smoothly paved path all the way to Grove St. in Franklin. We did pass an intersection with the trail on our way to the train station, so that seems to be correct.
So, as I said, this will be an incredible bike path one day. For now, except for the Douglas section, the Blackstone River Greenway ,and the paved section in Franklin and Bellingham, it is best used by people with strong mountain/gravel biking skills, and equipment to match. The painful parts are just not worth it.
Rode most of this one with some friends, picking it up in Danielson. Finding it was a tad tricky, but maybe that was related to where we picked it up. Once we got going, we really liked it. Smooth pavement, very well-shaded, and right next to a peaceful river. Absolutely wonderful after a long day of riding in near-90 degree heat. I wish it could have gone on longer.
Rode most of this with some friends. I was on a hardcore touring bike (Surly Disc Trucker), under load, and they were on older '90s-style mountain bikes. We made it, but a lot of it was rough going. Many parts are rocky and heavily damaged by ATVs. We occasionally had to slog through deep pools of standing water and mud; this was also the case on the Trestle Trail in Rhode Island, with which this trail connects. Overall, on the bikes we had with us, it wasn't much fun. If you're a causal rider and prefer paved rail trails, you won't have a good time. But, if you have a very capable gravel or mountain bike, and you know how to use it, then you might enjoy this one. Otherwise, avoid. Hopefully this trail gets fixed up and at least re-graded and re-surfaced someday, but I'm not holding my breath.
I rode this trail out and back on 7/15/2021. Total out and back ride clocked in at 9.55 miles, 150 feet elevation change down heading North, so 150 feet uphill heading back South. I parked in the shopping plaza by the Taco Bell and rode the bike lane to the CTfastrack station where the trail starts.
For the most part the trail was clean except for a broken bottle just outside the first station, and a couple of trash cans that were left out for pickup on one of the sidewalk sections. There were not many people on the actual trail and every single one of them said hello and or thanked me for signaling when passing. The trail parallels not only the bus lane, but also an active train line, Amtrak is doing work on the line so in some places you can smell the new ties that they are installing. On the north end of the trail I stopped at a Dunkin' that was across the street from the station, and at the south end I stopped by the bike shop that is next to the hotel and part of the parking garage. There is a mix of businesses along the trail including convince stores and places to get food. The scenery is a mix of urban, industrial, tree lined, train tracks, and bus depots, if you pay attention you will even see a fiberglass Cobra Shelby along the sidewalk section. You will see plenty of busses, and if you are lucky maybe a train.
[Biked from Bushnell Park to Charter Oak Park and back, 7/11/21]
If you're driving to a trail, don't make it this one. As many have said, the experience of biking next to the I-384 is less than stellar. There were two places where the vegetation had overgrown the trail to the point where some cyclists are going to crash sooner rather than later. The trail is boring, the street portions are boring, there's really nothing that makes this trail stand out. If you don't want to see people but you want to hear cars anyway, this might be the trail for you. Hardly anyone else on the trail, must be that everyone else is wiser than I. Aside from being a boring, noisy trail with occasional Jumanji hazards, the pavement itself is in decent shape and the hills give a workout so I'll refrain from giving this 1 star.
I won't blame this on the trail given the recent storms, but there was also a downed tree blocking the entire path and the only way around was a muddy, flooded detour some intrepid souls must've carved.
Also protip: Labyrinth appears to be closed on Sundays, I'd call ahead if you're planning a beer with your ride :(
I like this trail to walk because it is well paved, flat, no hills, and friendly considerate people especially the bike riders who usually indicate when they are passing me. There is some industrial and kind of dumpy areas that abut the trail unlike where I came from, Woodstock NY, where the paths are pristine and beautiful. However, I like where the trail crosses a bridge across the Mill River just past Veterans Field in Northampton.
This is a great ride for me to test my novice skills. I find myself coming back to here twice a week after work just to get a quick workout in
I went from West St., Uxbridge, MA to the Connecticut boarder, it was around 8 1/2 miles on the way and over 16 miles round trip. Nice ride, saw 1 horse along the ride along with a few walkers and bikers.
Easy access and very flat and straight. Nice trail to cycle for couples and families.
We finished this part of trail on June 18. All paved. The newest section had interesting concrete panels for bridge decks. Good mix of open and wooded areas helpful on 80 degree day. Great Scenery. Very flat. Would suggest some added signage inside state park where road is used. Also at north end of park no signage to indicate how to get to Hillsdale section.
My son and I did a pre-fathers day ride. Trail was terrible. Many dead birds on trail and not well maintained. Would not recommend. No trail markers, or mile markers.
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