Find the top rated walking trails in Fort Atkinson, 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 Glacial River Trail provides bikers, pedestrians, and in-line skaters with a 55.8-mile off-road/on-road rural route winding through farmland, prairie, wetlands, and woodlands as it passes through...
The Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor Trail follows a lush wooded creek through Middleton, a northwestern suburb of Wisconsin’s state capital. Its east end is anchored by the beautiful Pheasant Branch...
The Charles Street Community Path offers a neighborhood route through southeastern Rockford, connecting residents to CherryVale Mall on its eastern end. On its western end, Alpine Park is just north...
The Eisenbahn State Trail gives a nod to Wisconsin’s German heritage in its name—Eisenbahn is German for “railway.” The strict translation, “iron road,” refers to the iron rails originally used as...
The Willow Creek Path is a pleasant, tree-lined trail that follows its namesake creek for most of its journey through the communities of Machesney Park and Loves Park in the Rockford metropolitan...
The Muskego Recreation Trail follows a corridor originally used by the Milwaukee Electric Railway & Light, an interurban railroad in southeastern Wisconsin. The corridor was later acquired by...
The Military Ridge State Trail finds the high ground as it rolls across 40 miles of idyllic farmland from the outskirts of Madison to the historic mining town of Dodgeville. It follows an American...
The Pheasant Branch Conservancy Trail forms a loop within the scenic Pheasant Branch Conservancy, a natural area containing a marsh, meadows, forest and hills. The area is home to a vast array of...
Baumann Park is adjacent to the Kishwaukee River in Cherry Valley, a community on the outskirts of Rockford in northern Illinois. A paved pathway runs through the park and loops around Baumann Park...
The Brown Deer Recreational Trail runs through the Village of Brown Deer, a suburb of Milwaukee. The tree-line route parallels an active rail line through commercial and residential areas. Mid-way,...
If you can’t make it to Switzerland, then you can do the next best thing: take the Sugar River State Trail to “America’s Little Switzerland,” New Glarus, Wisconsin. Settled in 1845 by a small group...
Swanson Park Recreation Path is sometimes known as the Cherry Valley Path as it's located in the Village of Cherry Valley on the outskirts of Rockford in northern Illinois. The paved path travels...
The Kishwaukee Riverfront Path winds nearly 7 miles through downtown Belvidere, east of Rockford in northern Illinois. As its name implies, the paved scenic trail follows the waterway for most of its...
Dane County's Lower Yahara River Trail offers an incredibly scenic experience in the Madison area. On its western end, the 2.5-mile paved pathway connects to the Capital City State Trail near the...
If you’re going to visit the historical communities that lie just west of Lake Michigan, why not use the former route of the venerable interurban railroad? The Ozaukee Interurban Trail stretches the...
The Seven Waters Bike Trail is a scenic corridor stretching more than 17 miles northsouth between Burlington and Muskego Lake into Waukesha County. The trail was originally three trails, locally...
The Riverside Recreational Path begins as a gravel lane at the base of Riverside Park on the banks of the Rock River in Roscoe. From there, it continues along Rowena Street, paralleling State Route...
The Chain O' Lakes Bike Path is a paved trail that runs between E. Grand Avenue in Fox Lake and Grant Woods Forest Preserve to the east. The trail parallels the railroad track and Rollins Road/CR 31,...
Although a relatively short trail, the Leland Path provides an important connection between the Hononegah Recreation Path and the Stone Bridge Trail. The pleasant, tree-dotted pathway travels through...
The Harlem Township Bike Path lies not far from the Rock River in western Machesney Park in the Rockford metropolitan area. The trail consists of a lower (southwest) and an upper (northeast) loop in...
The Glacial River Trail provides bikers, pedestrians, and in-line skaters with a 55.8-mile off-road/on-road rural route winding through farmland, prairie, wetlands, and woodlands as it passes through...
The Rockton Main Street Path is situated off the Rock River on the southern end of downtown Rockton, a charming Midwestern village near the Illinois–Wisconsin border. It begins at Settler's Park,...
The Eisenbahn State Trail gives a nod to Wisconsin’s German heritage in its name—Eisenbahn is German for “railway.” The strict translation, “iron road,” refers to the iron rails originally used as...
Built on a former rail bed dating back to the 1850s, the Stone Bridge Trail provides a crushed limestone pathway through rural countryside. A highlight of the trail is passage on Stone Bridge over the...
The Charles Street Community Path offers a neighborhood route through southeastern Rockford, connecting residents to CherryVale Mall on its eastern end. On its western end, Alpine Park is just north...
The US Highway 12 Path offers a convenient, non-motorized alternative to traveling on the highway. The paved pathway begins in Middleton and heads northwest paralleling the roadway, separated from...
The Chain O' Lakes Bike Path is a paved trail that runs between E. Grand Avenue in Fox Lake and Grant Woods Forest Preserve to the east. The trail parallels the railroad track and Rollins Road/CR 31,...
If you’re looking for an invigorating motorized-trail experience, the Cheese Country Recreation Trail (aka the Tri-County Trail) won’t disappoint. If you’re on foot, hoof, or self-propelled two...
Madison’s Campus Drive Pedestrian and Bicycle Path is a short trail linking the city’s west side with the University of Wisconsin’s agricultural facilities. Both the heart of the university and the...
The Yahara River Bike Path, on the northeastern side of Madison, is anchored by Tenney Park on one end and the 17-mile Capital City Trail on the other. From one recreational amenity to the other, the...
The Brown Deer Recreational Trail runs through the Village of Brown Deer, a suburb of Milwaukee. The tree-line route parallels an active rail line through commercial and residential areas. Mid-way,...
The Pheasant Branch Conservancy Trail forms a loop within the scenic Pheasant Branch Conservancy, a natural area containing a marsh, meadows, forest and hills. The area is home to a vast array of...
The Cannonball Path runs on a railbanked Union Pacific corridor from near downtown Madison to Fitchburg, a southern suburb. A majority of the paved trail is complete between Madison's...
Meadowbrook Trail parallels Meadowbrook Road offering a useful and convenient off-road route through northwest Waukesha. It begins at a connection to Lake Country Recreation Trail, a 15-mile east-west...
The Muskego Recreation Trail follows a corridor originally used by the Milwaukee Electric Railway & Light, an interurban railroad in southeastern Wisconsin. The corridor was later acquired by...
The Capital City State Trail contributes to the impression that you’re never far from a bike path in the Madison area. The paved trail meanders for 17 miles from the suburb of Fitchburg in the...
The Wild Goose State Trail is a premier rail-trail, spanning approximately 35 miles in Dodge and Fond du Lac counties. If you are looking for a peaceful and beautiful place to visit, this trail has it...
This is a newly constructed path that runs between S. Main Street and the Rock River in Rockford. It was built as part of the re-building of S. Main Street and runs from South Park south to the...
The Kiwanis Bike Trail, named for the Kiwanis Club that spearheaded the effort to build the trail, parallels the western bank of the Rock River through the southern Wisconsin community of Janesville....
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The Prairie Trail runs the length of McHenry County and is managed by the McHenry County Conservation District. The rail-trail spans just over 26 miles from the Wisconsin border and the farms and...
The Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor Trail follows a lush wooded creek through Middleton, a northwestern suburb of Wisconsin’s state capital. Its east end is anchored by the beautiful Pheasant Branch...
The Kishwaukee Riverfront Path winds nearly 7 miles through downtown Belvidere, east of Rockford in northern Illinois. As its name implies, the paved scenic trail follows the waterway for most of its...
In the Village of Roscoe, a paved path of just over a mile parallels Main Street (which becomes Frontage Road) and then continues along the south side of McDonald Road, a quiet residential street....
The Charles Street Community Path offers a neighborhood route through southeastern Rockford, connecting residents to CherryVale Mall on its eastern end. On its western end, Alpine Park is just north...
The Lake Geneva Bike Path runs through the scenic resort city, offering connections to many of the community’s amenities. The trail has five unique, color-coded segments. The Blue Route is the...
The Stone Mill Trail runs between Lawrence Road in Harvard and Maxon Road in Chemung. The 1.5-mile, paved trail mostly parallels County Highway 17 (Ramer Road) and active railroad tracks, and will...
Swanson Park Recreation Path is sometimes known as the Cherry Valley Path as it's located in the Village of Cherry Valley on the outskirts of Rockford in northern Illinois. The paved path travels...
This path runs along the north side of Highway 11 and south of the city of Janesville. The eastern end starts about 3/4 of a mile west of I-39 and runs all the way to S County Road D, crossing over...
The Eisenbahn State Trail gives a nod to Wisconsin’s German heritage in its name—Eisenbahn is German for “railway.” The strict translation, “iron road,” refers to the iron rails originally used as...
The Pecatonica Prairie Trail, formerly known as the Pecatonica Prairie Path, is a 14.3-mile rail-trail extending from the western edge of Rockford to N. Farwell Bridge Road west of Pecatonica. The...
The US Highway 12 Path offers a convenient, non-motorized alternative to traveling on the highway. The paved pathway begins in Middleton and heads northwest paralleling the roadway, separated from...
The Brown Deer Recreational Trail runs through the Village of Brown Deer, a suburb of Milwaukee. The tree-line route parallels an active rail line through commercial and residential areas. Mid-way,...
The Hononegah Recreation Path begins near the State Route 2 bridge over the Rock River in Rockton, a small town about 4 miles south of the Illinois–Wisconsin border. The paved trail follows Hononegah...
This path runs along Mitchell Road, starting in Machesney Park. The trail heads north and then travels east where it terminates at Sunny Meadow Drive outside of Russ Park. This short path is just...
The Pelishek-Tiffany Nature Trail runs for 6 miles along an abandoned railroad corridor, between the towns of Allens Grove and Clinton. The trail is open to snowmobiles, cyclists, horseback riders and...
The paved Rock River Recreation Trail winds throughout downtown Rockford and environs, following the east bank of the Rock River through Shorewood Park and Martin Memorial Park. Officially, the trail...
The Perryville Path runs nearly 7 miles, connecting the communities of Loves Park and Rockford, not far from the northern border of Illinois. A pleasant place to begin your journey is Rock Cut State...
The 53-mile Glacial Drumlin State Trail between Cottage Grove and Waukesha provides a glimpse into the past when glaciers bore down on southeastern Wisconsin in the last Ice Age. Those gigantic sheets...
The Milwaukee RiverWalk provides a pleasant way to get around Milwaukee from the Historic Third Ward, through downtown, and north to the Lower East Side. It also has easy connections to three other...
The Rock Valley College Path is a paved route looping around and through its namesake campus in Rockford. At its southern end, it connects to the Spring Brook Road bike lanes that continue east to the...
This was a difficult trail for bike riding. I must say that ALL ATV riders we encountered were respectful. They all slowed down and gave us space. Won’t be doing this again unless with an ATV.
August 7th. Almost a perfect summer day and definitely perfect for a ride. Did a 30 mile round tripper from just south of Wisconsin line to south of McHenry and back. Condition of trail for that portion was about the best I've ever seen on any trail. Highly recommend parking at the trailhead for the Hebron Trail off Keystone Road at the north end of the trail. Hebron Trail will then take you straight east to hook up with Prairie Trail where you can begin and head south. No problems, well maintained all the way. Passes through several small, medium sized towns on this stretch with McHenry being the biggest. Plenty of access to services, food, water if you need it. Plan is to continue from McHenry on down south for my next leg of this trail. Can't wait to see what's ahead.
We rode the Sugar River round-trip the weekend of July 27-28, 2019. We are experienced riders and were on hybrid bikes. The trail was in very poor condition, with many ruts, potholes and even mole holes. On the return ride, I caught the side of a pothole, fell, and broke a bone in my hand. Not good. The trail is in serious need of maintenance.
We planned to bike from Albany to New Glarus. The trail out of Albany is in terrible condition. Two "tracks" with overgrown weeds in the middle and many branches overhanging. About 5 miles in my wife hit a pothole and went over her handlebars. She landed off the trail and, minus a few bruises and scrapes, wasn't hurt. The hole was about 15" across and about 6" deep. We feel fortunate she wasn't hurt. We decided to abandon our trip. We won't be back.
I rode the entire Long Prairie Trail today, round trip, from its east trailhead just east of Capron, over to the west trailhead at Roland Olsen FP. The ride is roughly 30 miles round trip. At both ends of the path there's a parking lot with a bathroom, picnic tables and maps.
The path itself is totally enjoyable. Except for a small section of path near the end of the east trailhead, the trail is in great shape. It transitions from blacktop to limestone, both of which are in good condition. Along the way there are plenty of benches, bathrooms and small towns where some amenities can be found. Most of the trail has a tree-covered canopy which was nice on a day like I had with total sunshine. There are some smaller stretches where you do get full sun exposure. The trail has an ample amount of signs warning riders about farm entrances, changes to the trail composition, informative signs and directions. I only saw 5-10 bikers on my route and maybe a few walkers/joggers. For the most part I think you can count on some peace and quite out here! Once I arrived at Roland Olsen FP I realized that the trail continued east. This isn't part of the Long Prairie Trail but as the map indicated, it goes up into Roscoe then turns north and goes all the way to Rockton Rd not far from the WI border. I suspect this is a nice section of trail.
A few pieces of advice while riding this trail, especially if you'll be riding the entire stretch. Wear glasses. Lots of bugs out here and they'll kill your eyes if they aren't covered. If it's sunny you'll want to put sunscreen on. Even though the majority of the path has tree cover, the sun still gets through. Apply bug spray in 'bug season'. You probably only need to do this if you plan on stopping frequently. Bring a couple of waters. Aside from a gas station in Capron and a small restaurant in Polar Grove, food and drinks are tough to find. Enjoy!
Mel & I drove from Raleigh to Milwaukee to see the Braves play the Brewers for a Mon-Wed series. We brought the Tandem bike. On Mon-Tues we rode out 6.2 miles from the west trail end-point to the Three Bridges Park and back. For convenience, We parked @ the Target parking lot. Along this section, The trail is mostly flat, well-paved, and very clean. It passes behind some industrial complexes, the State Fair complex, and some residential subdivisions. The street crossings requiring more care, were few, as the major street intersections utilized trail overpasses! As baseball fans, we felt honored to ride the HANK AARON TRAIL! If I come back with my single trail bike, I would love to ride the entire trail, and also the Oak Leaf Trail which joins up right where we began our ride!
I recently rode this trail from south of Burlington to Wind Lake round trip. I'll be honest, I thought it would be more scenic than it was, but it didn't disappoint either. The portion through Burlington goes fast as there's plenty to see in the town, including nice views along the river. In between, there are long-winded stretches that don't excite. Think crushed limestone path, lots of sun, and nothing else. Case Eagle Park and Saller Woods were nice, but not a large segment of path either. Heading north you've got a few places to stop for amenities like Rochester, Waterford and Wind Lake, where I chose to stop. I know the trail extends up close to Franklin but I chose to turn around near Muskego Lake. This provided me with a 30+ mile round trip ride. Along the way and I can't recall where it was, is a VFW (or similar entity) that houses a tank, helicopter and a couple of jets. They're right on the path and worth stopping to admire. Cheers.
My review if for three paths; South Main Street Path north to the top of the Bauer Memorial Path. I really enjoyed this trail. I'm not sure why it's not all interconnected, a few lapses can easily be considered part of the trail. Well, at least, that's what I did. The three paths combine to offer great views of the Rock River, Rockford and it's surrounding area. Along the way there are great nature views as well as man-made. If you're looking for a challenge try to find the trail-side pay phone and the massively oversized basketball hoop. All in all I think I came away with around 30 miles from all three paths round trip and can easily see myself riding it again. Cheers.
I parked in western Rockford and picked this trail up at it's far eastern point. A mile or so into the trail heading west, it turned from compacted earth/small rock to full-on grass, at which point a pool of water from treeline to treeline made it impossible to continue. Ok, headed back to the car and drove down to Winnebago where I picked up the trail heading west again. The trail isn't bad, but I ride a hybrid bike with smaller tires than a mountain bike. Riding wasn't hard, but it wasn't easy either. Halfway between Winnebago and Pecatonica I got tired of the trail and its inconsistent composition and went off-road down hilly side streets to complete my ride to the north side of Pecatonica. What you should know about this path is that the trail is comprised of flattened earth and some gravel (ranging sizes from crushed to large pebbles). The trail also has grass areas either in full, or partially. Personally, I don't care for the grass. The trail itself is 95% non-canopy. For those looking for direct sun and a lot of it..this trail is for you. Along the trail there isn't much in the way of scenery. I'd say it's mostly a 'put your head down and peddle' path. The trail composition wasn't favorable for me nor was the scenery, so I'm at two stars here. I think the trail could be maintained more to improve that side of it. Cheers
Nice trail and well maintained
The trail is paved and used by many in West Bend. As you travel north, the trail is limestone and has loose top gravel that will slow your pace from hard packed limestone. A scenic and tranquil ride from Kewaskum to Eden. I've ridden it several times and will come back.
I rode the Sugar River State Trail from New Glarus to Albany on July 2, 2019. The scenery was beautiful, and the grade mild.
The trail conditions from New Glarus to Monticello (5.6 mi) was very good: mostly crushed limestone surface and the trail width 5 feet. The shoulder was recently mowed, this was the best portion of the ride.
South of Monticello into Albany (10.4 mi), the trail conditions were really unsatisfactory. The surface was overgrown with grass, weeds, and wild flowers, with a resulting pair of narrow trail paths, ranging from 6- 12 inches.
There were multiple gopher holes in the trail, some marked with dead branches and one with an orange traffic pylon. These were hard to see given the weed and grass overgrowth.
Until the trail in overhauled between Monticello and Albany, I recommend turning around in Monticello.
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