Fort Dodge Nature Trail

The Fort Dodge Nature Trail begins at the city's Snell-Crawford Park and runs northeast for nearly 3 miles. The trail travels adjacent to overhead power lines and crosses a couple of bridges over Soldier Creek. Passing just out of sight of the residential part of the bustling manufacturing city of Fort Dodge, the trail offers a treasured sense of seclusion. As the trail winds farther north, it cuts through heavily-wooded forest before entering open farmland and ending not far from Fort Dodge Regional Airport on rural County Highway D14.

Directly at the southern end of the trail in Snell-Crawford Park, the Soldier Creek Nature Trail begins. While that trail is paved, the Fort Dodge Nature Trail has a more natural surface, and is thus better suited for fat tire bikes. Motorized vehicles are prohibited on both trails.

Combined, the two trails are 5 miles long. Both occupy an abandoned Chicago and North Western railroad corridor.

Parking and Trail Access

The sole parking lot for the Fort Dodge Nature Trail is located at Snell-Crawford Park at its southern end on Williams Drive.

Soldier Creek Nature Trail

Iowa - 1.2 miles

The Soldier Creek Nature Trail runs south from Snell-Crawford Park alongside residential neighborhoods in Fort Dodge. For most of its route, the trail...

Three Rivers Trail

Iowa - 39.9 miles

The Three Rivers Trail runs for nearly 40 miles from the small community of Rolfe—named after the early English settler who married Pocahontas—to just...

Brewer Creek Trail

Iowa - 2.2 miles

Brewer Creek Trail is a 2.2 mile multiuse pathway in Webster City, Iowa. As the name suggests, the trail traces the course of Brewers Creek. To the...

Accordion

Boone River Recreational Trail

Iowa - 5.7 miles

There are few better ways to experience Boone River without actually getting your feet wet than the Boone River Recreational Trail. The trail weaves...

Twin Lakes Trail

Iowa - 7 miles

The Twin Lakes Trail forms a loop around North Twin Lake, one of a pair of gorgeous glacial lakes in rural northwestern Iowa. The concrete trail takes...

Russell White Nature Trail

Iowa - 3.8 miles

The Russell White Nature Trail runs for nearly 4 miles through a landscape of forest, pasture and prairie and links the tiny community of Lanesboro...

Raccoon River Valley Trail

Iowa - 89 miles

On the western outskirts of Des Moines, the Raccoon River Valley Trail offers a quintessential central Iowa experience. Over its 89-mile span, you’ll...

Franklin Grove Heritage Trail

Iowa - 1.8 miles

The Franklin Grove Heritage Trail rests on top of an abandoned Rock Island railroad corridor that runs through the heart of the small Iowan city of...

Laurens Walking Trail

Iowa - 1.5 miles

The Laurens Walking Trail runs for just about 1 mile along an old railroad line on the south side of town. The trail passes through an open corridor...

Galloping Goose Trail (IA)

Iowa - 0.5 miles

The Galloping Goose Trail is so called for the nickname of the old railroad that once ran through the area and upon which the trail sits. As of 2012,...

Reumpers Nature Trail

Iowa - 0.3 miles

Although short, the Reumpers Nature Trail runs under a beautiful canopy of trees along the former Chicago Northwestern Railroad in Radcliffe, a small...

Praeri Rail Trail

Iowa - 10.5 miles

The Praeri Rail Trail runs on an old section of railroad right-of-way between Zearing and Roland in central Iowa. Sections of the trail near Roland...