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Print Friendly MapCrossing from one end of Shelbyville to the other, the Blue River Trail provides a safe way for residents to walk or bike to a number of parks whilst enjoying the proximity to the city's beloved rivers. The trail exists consists of both off- and on-street sections, including sidewalks.
The trail is divided into three contiguous segments or "reaches". The east reach sits in the riparian forest buffer of the Little Blue River, starting at the east corner of Blue River Memorial Park on Lee Boulevard. The blacktop trail heads west along the perimeter of that park as well as Kennedy Park on Alice Street. Highlights of the east reach include the Historic Shelby County Bridge 13, a steel truss bridge that was relocated to the Memorial Park and reassembled as part of the trail; a 300 ft Sycamore Tree Boardwalk/ Deck area; and the Shelby County Fairgrounds which frequently has horses running during the day.
From there the trail heads north and then pivots west on Monroe Avenue to Walker Street. That is the starting point of the trail's central reach, which consists of a concrete sidepath along Walker Street passing neighborhoods and businesses.
At Harrison Street, a combination of sidewalk and paved trail leads to a crosswalk which serves as the transition point to the final stretch of trail, the west reach. (If you continue north on Harrison and cross the Big Blue River, you will come to the Big Blue River trailhead). The trail crosses Harrison Street into a short off-street section along the river. However, the rest of the trail from this point is actually on-street: it continues on River Road, a low-stress, lightly traveled street paralleling the river, through Sunset Park, where trail users can enjoy an additional half-mile loop within the park, and then finally onto Habig Street.
There are several parking options for trail users. Moving from east to west:
It a good trail. Few spots to get into a good speed but relaxing with plenty to do around.
Very well maintained trail with great scenery of parks, soccer and baseball fields. The short ride on the city streets takes you by the Cow Palace. A great little place to stop and have lunch or ice cream. Great afternoon ride!
The start in the park is great. You can do a complete lap around the park and check out all the things there. Then you can branch off and head to the other end of this trail. When you are on a surface street, it is a one-way for cars with a 10mph speed limit and half of the roadway is marked for bike and hike traffic. The parts that follow along the Blue River are especially pretty. There are one or two spots where you need to stay attentive to cross traffic in the town section. The entire length of the trail is well marked as well.
This is a really nice trail that has bridges and is a fun ride through Shelbyville
We pedaled from Indy to Shelbyville to get some ice cream at the local Cow Palace. As the Palace is essentially at the center of this cute little trail we decided to check it out. The 'eastern reach' is very nice and much more what we expect for a paved bike trail with smooth pavement and some wooded areas. Great idea to connect city parks and the trail even goes through a portion of the county fair grounds. There are an impressive number of restrooms, air pumps and bicycle maintenance stations - a nice touch! A very attractive new "trail head" parking area with clean restrooms, etc. but it was not connected to the trail? Not a destination trail but if you find yourself in the area...
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