Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Iowa, whether you're looking for an easy short cross country skiing trail or a long cross country skiing trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a cross country skiing trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Rode the Raccoon River Valley trail round trip between Perry and Herndon on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. That turned out to be 27.2 miles. We parked at the Caboose Park in Perry. Interestingly, covered parking was available there. We could not find the bathrooms there, so not sure why Trail Link indicates bathrooms are available. The trail surface was fantastic; wide, smooth concrete with mowed grass on both sides. The grass had been recently mowed and the trail had been blown or swept clean. Wow! Nice! The bathrooms in the old depot in Dawson were available and in perfect condition. The trailhead in Herndon offers parking only; no water, no bathrooms. Overall, this was a great ride, one we will do again in the future.
Rode the High Trestle trail round trip between Slater and Woodbridge on Tuesday, 4-21-26. Rode a total of 26.9 miles starting at the west Slater trailhead. Nice bathrooms and lots of parking there, with easy access to both the High Trestle trail (going south or west) and the Heart of Iowa trail (going east). The trail surface is fantastic; wide trail with new concrete, and mowed grass on both sides much of the way. Of course the highlight of this ride was the High Trestle bridge. We spent time at each of the six viewing platforms on the bridge as well as the scenic overlook on the west side. Overall, a great ride. We will do this one again sometime.
Walked part of the trail starting in Gladbtook yesterday 4/10/2026. Very nice trail enjoyed the walk. Very well maintained!
Have not walked but biked and very fun also little off road side trails very fun
Well maintained trail. Busy with very curved paths, must pay attention. Beautiful scenery
Idk why this trail doesn’t have more reviews. What a nice ride. Great mix of woodland and a little bit of urban. We rode from Black Hawk Park (BHP) to Waterloo with an excursion around Big Woods Lake for a total almost 30 miles round trip. In Waterloo went to Single Speed for lunch(don’t get Pizza), easy to get to. Trail is well maintained. Had no problems with bugs until the end about 2:30 p.m. when we got back to BHP and got nto grass and the No-seeums were bad! Pretty good directional signs along the way!
We really enjoyed riding from Panora almost to Adel and back. Really shady areas to ride and several bridges. The trail was really nice. Another day we road from Perry to Waukee and back and that is pretty much a straight ride. That’s good for little ones to learn. We felt that we like the west ride better. All in all was a good experience for the parts we road on.
Great trail , well maintained, not a lot of ruts. Beer and food stops on both ends. Mainly flat and shaded.
11 ladies/friends make up most of the Rainbow Riders from St Louis Mo. We raved about this trail. It's interesting and takes the rider through prairies, forests, and offers beautiful Visa points of Saylorville Lake. It's well maintained and has multiple entry points. We rode from the Saylorville Visitor Center and road out and back to the recreation area and beach which might be the end of the northern part of the trail. The twists and turns, hills and curves were exhilarating too. We'll talk about this trail and it'll remain in our memory books.
I live in Jefferson and ride this trail pretty much every day. It's a big part of the reason I moved to this corner of Iowa. I've ridden every inch of it multiple times. Here are some general observations:
1. If you want smooth concrete, the north leg from Waukee to Herndon is for you. It's the newest leg of the trail and it's in really good condition. The southern leg from Waukee to Herndon and the leg from Herdon to Jefferson are a mixed bag in terms of pavement condition. There are some bumps and divots, but none of it is terrible and anyone who says it is hasn't ridden a lot of rail trails in other parts of the world.
2. Amenities are a mixed bag. You'll often find restrooms closed and many of the towns have no services at all. Your best bets if you need to make a stop are the trailheads in Waukee and Jefferson along with Adel and Perry.
3. Cell coverage is adequate over the entire trail length. This is not quite the back of beyond, but it's getting close in some parts. I typically carry a spare tube and bike tool, just in case.
4. Trail required a permit when I first moved out here. It no longer does, at least in Greene County. Not 100% sure regarding Dallas and Guthrie. Back in the day, rangers would routinely stop me in both Dallas and Guthrie, especially on weekends.
5. A round trip on the entire trail, including the leg to and from Jefferson, comes in at just under 100 miles in length.
6. If it's solitude you crave, the southern loop from just west of Adel all the way up to Jefferson is usually pretty much empty.
7. Any type of bike will work. I typically ride a singlespeed gravel bike with 40 mm tires, but road bikes and trikes are just fine too. There are times I combine parts of the trail with gravel and minimum maintenance roads and on those occasions I'll ride my Surly Karate Monkey with 3" 650b wheels. Anything goes.
8. Speaking of which, there are some interesting side trips on gravel worth taking including the hop to Brenton Aboretum near Dallas Center, the Bonnie and Clyde monument at Dexfield Park near Redfield and Bays Branch Wildlife Area and Springbok State Park between Panora and Yale. Camping at Sportsman Park near Dawson or Springbok State Park.
In summary, the RRVT is an iconic rail trail...one that every cyclist should ride at least once.
Great trail. Varied terrain, pastoral, oak savannah, creekside, agri fields, it's all here. Love love this one!! Some rough spots, so pay attention!
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