Explore the best rated trails in Louisiana, whether you're looking an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Tammany Trace and Mississippi River Trail (Louisiana). With more than 16 trails covering 212 miles you’re bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
I rode the east section on north side of river. Trail is smooth with a few low volume driveway crossings. Trail has nice views due to elevation, but is exposed to wind and sun. The section I rode had no shade, water or restrooms. I wish there were mile markers. Parking available at Jefferson Park and across the river road near the flea market.
The surface is smooth and straight except for crossings of pumping station outlets. Long straight sections allow for plenty of speed if desired. The ride and view is kind of boring as there is just the shore on one side and a levy on the land side. There are portable toilets at the various parking areas. The downside of this trail is no shade or water.
This is a great trail that passes through nice towns along the way. Definitely pay attention to closures along the route and plan accordingly. While we have ridden portions of the trail several times, we have never been able to complete the ride end to end due to closures.
Perhaps it has been reported before and we missed it, but we discovered access to the Abita Brewer yesterday that is definitely worth a stop if you like beer. After leaving Abita Springs headed towards Covington, watch for a white decorative bike at the intersection of Josephine St and the Trace and turn right; the Brewery parking lot is a few hundred yards on the right.
Supposedly there is also Trace access to the Chafunkta Brewery at the tunnel under Hwy 59, but it wasn't obvious with the tunnel construction still in progress. Happy trails.
Started at the eastern edge, smooth sailing all the way to Fountainbleu State Park then returned. Trees hug the path providing lots of shade, looks like recent asphalt. Mostly flat with slight incline. I liked the lily pond and the drawbridge was the smallest I've seen. Any construction that may exist must be on the western side because my ride was fully open.
Nice shaded trail. Some of it is paved and some is crushed stone. Seems to be very well maintained. It’s not a long trail but it is conveniently located near I-20 and Ruston has a cute little downtown area with several restaurants. Lots of people were walking the paved section of the trail near the Cook Park area, once I crossed the road and was on the crushed stone section I had the trail to myself. My iPhone died before I could get pics of the downtown area and the rest of the trail. Lots of free parking at the northern end of the trail @ Cook Park.
I had been looking forward to riding this trail for months after reading all the positive reviews. This was our first bike trip toting our dog in her "carriage" and the Trace would be a great test of my strength and stamina! We started in Covington and made it to the I-12 construction point. My thought going in was we could just cross over the highway and pick up the trail on the other side...nope; especially not towing a dog behind! Will definitely have to put this on our list to do again when construction is complete! I saw comments about no pets on the trail...we didn't experience any issues. I did see signs saying no pets but I assumed it meant in the grassy area where the signs were, to keep it clean.
Nice trail on the south side of Lake Pontchartrain. Very smooth, flat, and scenic trail overlooking lake. Parked at Bonnabel Boat launch/park. (Close to causeway bridge) Safe and plenty of parking spots. Also has port-a-potties at this location and at Laketown fishing pier next to Treasure Chest Casino. Observed police patrols in all the parks, plus locals walking and running alone. No shade on this trail, but nice breeze off the lake the day we rode. (If you want shade, ride on the north side of the lake-Tammany Trace)
Tried to ride a wide tired (45mm) gravel bike. Both directions from Jamestown.The trail was unrideable. The holes created by ATVs were virtually continuos and full of water. If I tried to walk around I was in thorns and poison ivy. Maybe in July when the water is lower it could be ridden but in April it is not rideable. I tried to ride through the mud holes got through a few then sunk up to my axels. For context, I rode the entire Great Divide Route and never encountered anything this bad. Rider be warned. I’ve never left a negative review for a trail but this one deserves it.
On a wet, March morning we braved the sprinkles and enjoyed as much of the Tammany Trace as we could before the full brunt of the storm hit later in the day. We got wet and had to modify our bike ride, but it did not dampen our admiration and enthusiasm for this awesome trail we traveled across the country from California to ride. This 5 star Rail Trail Hall of Fame trail absolutely lived up to its reputation!
The trail was smooth, flat, safe, quiet, and picturesque. If you enjoy long, straight, peaceful rides along tree covered trails accompanied by the sounds of birds, then this is the trail for you to ride, walk, or jog.
We loved our visit to Slidell and would highly recommend this trail as a road trip destination experience!
From the FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH DEPARTMENT: I noticed a couple of previous reviews mentioning the e-bikes being banned. One rider so ticked off he gave the trail just one star. We had several interactions with the trail ranger, and she had no problem with us (a couple of senior citizens) utilizing our quiet Swytch pedal assist systems. No throttle, no roar, no excessive speed. Too many e-bikes aren't bikes, they're motorcycles. I'm just sayin' . . .
We rode the trail yesterday and found that the trail closure now extends from the Dove trailhead (south of I-12) all the way north to Robert Road (north of the Rt. 59 tunnel). This is due to I-12 widening construction as well as construction at the tunnel. The signs indicated closure as "indefinite" so watch for updates. We road Abita Springs to Covington trailhead and Dove Rd to Mandeville trailhead. Last week we road from Mandeville trailhead to the Bayou Lacomb draw bridge. Very nice rides. Also note that the rules of the trail do indicate "no electric or motorized vehicles" with no exception for e-bikes. We suspect this may be due to horses that share portions of the trail. This may also be the reason for another rule stating "No pets allowed". This is the first trail that we have encountered that does not allow pets.
Wow...All I can say is stay away from this trail if you have an ebike. Sadly, I encountered a ranger who insisted my ebike was a "motorized vehicle" and thus not allowed on the Tammany Trace. I was on a road trip and was looking forward to this trail, but left without even pedaling a single foot on the trail. So disappointed that some people are so misinformed about the laws regarding ebikes. Fortunately, I found less than an hour away some GREAT trails in Alabama. I highly recommend heading East and skipping this place.
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TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!