Find the top rated mountain biking trails in Parsons, whether you're looking for an easy short mountain biking trail or a long mountain biking trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a mountain biking trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
0n 9/20/24, we rode on mostly crushed stone for a round trip distance of 20 miles. 32 c tires would be suitable. Need to be careful of the many deep ruts in the direction of travel. They will surely ruin your day. The trail was mostly shady. We encountered many branches across the trail. There must have been a severe storm the day before. There were also numerous spider webs across the trail. In the 20 mile trip, we never encountered another person on the trail. Restrooms at Caryle and Colony trailheads. Water at Colony and Iola trailheads.
I was traveling in the area and needed to kill a little time and found the Prairie Spirit Trail. I parked in Ottawa and rode south a few miles. I normally don’t ride gravel but this was superb. I turned around and rode back north on the paved trail in town to the end. I was not able to enjoy the entire trail but I will return here now that I’ve discovered it. I give this one five stars! Traveling cyclist Facebook
Ottawa Trailhead to Richmond. About 27 miles round trip & 272 ft. climb. Quick, easy ride. Well maintained trail with good surface for our hybrid bikes. It was a destination trail for us and glad we made to effort to experience it.
Nicely shaded well packed gravel trail. Parked our RV at the Carthage Trailhead in the nearby park. Parking available for cars at the trailhead. Remote trail so bring water and snacks.
My wife and I rode the Ruby-Jack. It was a good trail for our cruiser e-bikes. There was quite a bit of shade and the chat was packed good in most places. We enjoyed it. The trail still hasn’t been extended to the state line. Actual cleaned out and rideable miles are about thirteen which includes a railroad carryover at Carl Junction. We would recommend this trail and kudos to the the area cyclists club for this trail!!
Trail was very well-maintained, even after a hard rain. Humboldt community was amazing, lunch in Iola at Sharky’s was incredible… Try the beer, battered onion rings:-)
Nice, level, well kept trail of small crushed gravel and about half sun & half shade. We rode from Ottawa 13 miles to Richmond and then back. There are restrooms & water fountains in Princeton & Richmond along with picnic tables & parking as well as a few benches at spots along the trail. We basically had the trail to ourselves, early on as we headed out we saw a couple of cyclists and then a single cyclist…..that was it. Just us and the deer, rabbits, squirrels and birds.
Today I rode South from Holiday Inn Express corner of I35 and Main St Ottawa, MM61 to MM87 and back¿ for a total of 52 miles. Trail is in Great Shape and the agricultural views are amazing. This is rural riding at its best. I could no believe I did not see another biker during my entire ride ¿. The riders around here must have a rule regarding if wind is X-mph, they don’t ride ¿. I was severely beaten by the Great Plains Wind all day long¿.
We parked at the trail head on St. Louis street which is a gravel lot with portapotty and rode south which was packed gravel with some up hill and down hill area near the creek. This area makes you feel like you are way out in the country with woods on both sides. We did see a rider on horseback and pedestrians. The trail head at the south end had a larger paved parking lot but from a quick look I am not sure how safe that neighborhood’s is. Riding north towards web city the terrain was flat and the gravel was smoother but there was a lot of housing development on both sides so not much of a country feel at most intersections cars stopped to let us cross which was nice.
Another lovely trail in Kansas. We were pleasantly surprised. We started our section in Garnett in mid-late Sept 2022. We drove south from Ottawa due to rain there and when we got to Garnett, the rain and moved on, so we rode south (40 miles return). The parking lot at the old train depot has water and toilets and is a good place to park. There is a delicious Amish run restaurant in town--a must stop for breakfast or lunch. The cycling was great--just watch for some dry cracks in the trail base and some limbs or trees can be down. This section was partly shaded, but more out in the open. Some of the trail was parallel to the north/south highway connecting Ottawa to Iola. Every small town had a nice rest stop complete with toilet and water. Only Garnett had anything worth stopping in, the others were small settlements with residents only (or that's what we saw anyway). The entire trail looks great, and we hope someday to return to do the entire trail from Humboldt to Ottawa.
All in all I think the trail is good. I enjoyed my day and had a good ride. I use a road bike with hybrid tires. Initially I tried to start in Carl Junction at the far west end of the trail which was actually Smithfield on the map. The only way you can ride on that section of it is if you have a mountain bike and there’s nowhere to park however if you go into Carl Junction right by the high school that is a good place to start. County Road 200 has a trail head and a place that you can park and you can go either direction on the trail. From Carl Junction East the trail is P gravel that is packed good with the exception of just a few spots. I saw a total of probably 10 people while I was on the trail mostly just north of Oronogo and Webb City when I was riding otherwise the trail is quite secluded. There is a lot of shade and the trail is fairly wide most of the way it narrows occasionally but you can easily pass people¿ everyone
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