Find the top rated birding trails in Kentucky, whether you're looking for an easy short birding trail or a long birding trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a birding trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Paved multiuser trail is short & flat. While not a destination trail, it is nicely shaded and worth a look if you are in the area.
My wife and I rode the trail out and back. Beautiful surface and scenery. The coordinator at Archer Park was very helpful - put my wife’s mind at ease after reading the “Bear” warning sign. However we nearly had to walk bikes through several vehicle barriers. There’s enough room to go through but the effects of misjudgment by only several inches would cause severe injuries. That took some of the enjoyment away.
Our first trail riding bikes and it was perfect. Trial was smooth and had beautiful scenery.
It will be nicer when paved as it is pretty bumpy at times. I was worried about dogs as I saw in the previous reviews however all the dogs we saw were tied up or in kennels, however it was a little scary at times not knowing if they were loose as you came across them when riding by.
I agree with the previous review about starting at the south end on Zion Cemetery Rd; however, be aware that there is only room for about 1 or 2 cars there (see photo). You can park just north of there on Mammoth Cave Pkwy, but only have about 5 spots there (see photo).
Nice wooded ride. Rode it on our hybrids with no problems. Several signs about the history of the railroad and the area. 2 or 3 steep hills….I got off and pushed. Bone shaking ride if you go down them fast. Trail definitely diverged from the old railroad grade 😀
Our original plan was to bike up the Visitor Center and take a cave tour, but read about boot wash when exiting the cave and didn’t want to bike in boots. Turns out the wash barely got the soles wet. Could have done the tour in sneakers. Saw folks doing it in flip-flops.
Grab your coat, hop on your bike, ride to a great cave tour. A unique Kentucky experience. Enjoy….bikin-mike…Aug 2022
Rode about 20 miles round trip from Griffith Family Farms to the east side of Royalton. We almost skipped this ride after reading the reviews about dog problems. Then when we started one of the first signs we saw was about how to report problems….oh boy. Happy to report no dog problems.
Huge parking area behind the farm at the Swamp Creek Trailhead MM8.3. Flat for the first few miles then felt like an uphill grade to the Gun Creek tunnel at MM15. Downhill from the tunnel to Royalton at MM18.2. We were headed to the restroom at Jane Beshear trailhead. Never saw it. We turned around at the Dollar General on the east side of Royalton. Trailhead is on west side at MM18.9. Should have checked map more closely before we started 😕
Met some local folks who truck their bikes up to Royalton then ride downhill to the east end. So my legs were telling the truth about it being uphill 😀 Met a fellow mowing the grass along the side of the trail with his walk behind Gravely mower. Asked him if he gets paid. He said “nope just do it because I get sick of looking at the weeds”. Thank you sir, much appreciated!!!
Had only two small spots with some loose gravel. Be especially careful at the end of the long bridge over Mountain Parkway at about MM13.
Glad we didn’t skip this one. Much nicer than we expected. We liked the part from Swamp Creek to Gun Creek Tunnel the best. West of the tunnel to Royalton was more open and more houses. East of tunnel was more wooded…..bikin-mike….Aug 2022
We are locals and ride this trail almost daily. It’s well maintained, easy 18 mile round trip . Flat , smooth asphalt. With picnic tables and port-a potties . We feel very fortunate to live close and use it daily . It’s a must if you in our area .
Tale of 2 trails….maybe 3
All the glowing reviews are for the Parklands of Floyds Fork. Look out when you go downtown!!!
5 stars for Floyds but 2 stars for downtown.
We parked at Turkey Run Park on Seatonville Rd. Turned out to be almost perfect midpoint. Rode 10 miles North to end at Miles Garden. All concrete except for the section North of Taylorsville Rd. Relatively flat except for the tough long climb North of Taylorsville and then at the very end approaching Miles Garden.
In the afternoon we parked at the South end at Broad Run Park. Rode about 10 miles North to Turkey Run. Much different experience. Same great trail surface, but many more hills. I think we had 3 steep climbs. I got off and pushed on a couple. Windy downhills were fun though. Amazing that this beautiful park is not tax supported. A real gem indeed!
Downtown is a different story. Parked at Big Four and headed West. Pretty nice for first couple miles. Started seeing some homeless tents under I-64 past the Science Center parking around 9th Street. Had some folks riding go carts and scooters on the trail and wouldn’t move over for bicycles. The real “fun” started after the railroad underpass where trail turns right. Down a sidewalk with some flood level markers in the pavement, then a couple sharp turns into a wooded park. Pavement ends. All dirt and mud. Abandoned cars. We finally turned around when we got to a bridge with mud halfway up to the railings. (see pic) Do yourself a favor. Turnaround when you see the sign at Portland Wharf Park that says Loop Alt Route. (see pic) Was about 4.2 miles from Big Four to Portland Wharf.
Enjoyed the wide diversity of the 3 rides. Definitely a big change from a typical flat and straight Rail-Trail…..bikin-Mike….Aug 2022
This short trail is all paved, but has lots of root bumps! Has a long down hill stretch, but it is full of bumps, so you can’t really enjoy it . It’s also easy to confuse the golf cart paths with the trail at times.
Road from YMCA to the end of the trail by The horse Park was a great Trail to ride needed a few more markers and some places but overall great ride
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