Find the top rated hiking trails in Morganton, whether you're looking for an easy short hiking trail or a long hiking trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a hiking trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Nice little trail that is half paved and half gravel. Some nice little hills to climb and drive down. Overall a pleasant experience.
Went to trail and was surprised to find entire trail is in upgrade phase. All rails being pulled out and no warning or notice ANYWHERE!! I am hoping they will create a dry walking/biking path. Don't know the plans, but NOT the time to go there!!
This is a nice short, flat trail. Nice indoor permanent facilities (closed in winter). There is a link at the end of this trail to go up into the hills- really nice but steep start to it. You can veer off to the left and loop back to the main road (not highly traveled and fine for running) or keep going up to the top for great views of Boone - but be warned - it is a trek to get up there. The main, flat trail is great for biking or running - the hill trails I don't think would work for biking - at least not for the average biker.
This trail continues under Rt 421 on to a country road - if you follow that, it connects about a mile down to the Boone Greenway trails. All in all it is 4 miles - 8m round trip and makes for a nice, scenic long run.
This trail has a lot of pros but one big con. Pros are: extremely well maintained (hats off to those maintaining it), no big inclines which is great if you have joint pain like I do, freakin' AWESOME. suspension bridge, beautiful walnut trees and blackberry bushes, trail follows river so nice views of that. Con: noise from highway can be heard during nearly the entire hike. This is a major turn off for me because when I hike, I want to be immersed in the sites and sounds of nature and leave the outside world behind.
The Catawba River Greenway in Morganton is one of the nicest biking/walking paths I have ever experienced. The trail is listed the at 3.80 miles, we logged 10 miles on it. There are some side paths to take.
I parked at the Catawba Soccer Complex, there are five other parking areas that I saw, Greenlee Ford, River Village (NC 181), Catawba Meadows (Sanford Drive) ,Rocky Ford (US 64/NC 18), and Freedom Park (NC 126)
My recommendation, and this is what I am going to do the next time, because I will definitely go back, is to park by the restaurant named Judge's Riverside. The parking there is shaded and right on the path.
I would estimate that ninety percent of the path is shaded, the path runs right along the Catawba river and has numerous decks with seating that have been built and they hang out over the river. Nice places to stop, relax and listen to the water, additionally, there are distance markers every tenth of a mile. On the eastern end of the trail is a native american village interpretive center, it is located in Catawba Meadows Park. We will check it out on the next trip. There are also a couple of restaurants located along the path and I guess we will have to check them out on subsequent trips. I have a bunch of pictures on my facebook page, here's the link: https://www.facebook.com/BikesBeerandGrub/
The short loop trails are a great way to unwind. Either the Butterfly Garden or at the top of Cardio Hill. Also offers workout stations which I haven't seen in sometime. Will maintained and great facilities at the trail head. Great view of Crowders and Kings Mountain from the top of Cardio Hill.
Nice area but very short. There is an area where you can walk down from the trail to the water but it's quite steep.
Lovely trail with some interesting points of interest along the way.
Started riding the trail when it first opened and loved it overall. However, we would love to see it extended to Roan Mountain. Also, people need to clean up after their pets and the trail is not as well maintained as it was in the beginning. On our last ride, there was quite a bit of storm related debris along the trail and it had washed the trail in several areas. Despite these issues, the trail is a great addition to our community and looking forward to future expansion (great potential for tourism growth and improved health of our region). Keep the trail safe & clean! Take some tips from Chattanooga's Riverpark Trail - AMAZING TRAIL - Extremely well maintained with great design & a sense of permanence - A Must See Trail!
I love rails-to-trails and this one is a beauty. I run instead of bike so i did 7 miles that took you by creeks, mountains, and ponds. Awesome morning.
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