Explore the best rated trails in Normal, IL. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Greenbelt Bikeway and East Prairie Bicycle & Walking Path. With more than 21 trails covering 139 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.
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North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
One cannot travel this trail today without remembering the iconic highway on which it is built. The city of Lexington saw two alignments of Route 66. The earliest, which served from 1921-1944, went...
The sprawling Constitution Trail covers nearly 42 miles throughout the Bloomington-Normal area. The trail was officially named and dedicated in 1987 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
Time spent on the Chenoa Route 66 Prairie Trail is time shared with history. As rail-trails are ones built over the railbeds of earlier train lines, this “road-trail” is one built directly over...
The Harold E. Ruppel sits in a perfect location to provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and non-motorized transportation for residents of Savoy Village, in the Champaign-Urbana metro area. It...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
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Caution:Beginning November 15, culvert replacement on the Rock Island Trail at Chanute Road will begin. This will involve removing the temporary bridge. This closure will last between 4 and 6...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail is a safe, paved route that connects all the major parts of the village. On the north, there are the various and popular facilities of the Lake of the Woods Forest...
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The El Paso Walking Trail runs along part of an old railroad right-of-way through the town of El Paso, beginning at the city park on the south side of town and ending at a creek north of town among...
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Running from East Peoria to Morton, The River Trail of Illinois was resurfaced in summer 2011. From East Peoria, the hiking and biking trail travels southeast along the old Illinois Terminal Railway...
Except for short-distance walkers, the principal attraction of the Kiwanis Park/West Side Trail is its connection to the other parts of Decatur's trail system. From its western terminus, one can...
The Pekin Park Bike Trail traverses more than 4 miles between Allentown Road and the Illinois River at Pekin bridge. The trail does a loop in Coal Miners' Park and passes through Mineral Springs Park,...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
This is a story of four trails in one. The newest and northwestern section of the trail runs by the old downtown area of the village and its local Amtrak station. Then across the northern section...
The Towanda Route 66 Parkway is the longest and most developed of the Route 66 trails in northeast McLean County. Its centerpiece is the well-appointed, community-sponsored linear parkway within the...
The El Paso Walking Trail runs along part of an old railroad right-of-way through the town of El Paso, beginning at the city park on the south side of town and ending at a creek north of town among...
Except for short-distance walkers, the principal attraction of the Kiwanis Park/West Side Trail is its connection to the other parts of Decatur's trail system. From its western terminus, one can...
The Towanda Route 66 Parkway is the longest and most developed of the Route 66 trails in northeast McLean County. Its centerpiece is the well-appointed, community-sponsored linear parkway within the...
One cannot travel this trail today without remembering the iconic highway on which it is built. The city of Lexington saw two alignments of Route 66. The earliest, which served from 1921-1944, went...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
The Harold E. Ruppel sits in a perfect location to provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and non-motorized transportation for residents of Savoy Village, in the Champaign-Urbana metro area. It...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
The sprawling Constitution Trail covers nearly 42 miles throughout the Bloomington-Normal area. The trail was officially named and dedicated in 1987 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the...
Caution:Beginning November 15, culvert replacement on the Rock Island Trail at Chanute Road will begin. This will involve removing the temporary bridge. This closure will last between 4 and 6...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historical downtown train depot. And...
Time spent on the Chenoa Route 66 Prairie Trail is time shared with history. As rail-trails are ones built over the railbeds of earlier train lines, this “road-trail” is one built directly over...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail is a safe, paved route that connects all the major parts of the village. On the north, there are the various and popular facilities of the Lake of the Woods Forest...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
The Pekin Park Bike Trail traverses more than 4 miles between Allentown Road and the Illinois River at Pekin bridge. The trail does a loop in Coal Miners' Park and passes through Mineral Springs Park,...
This is a story of four trails in one. The newest and northwestern section of the trail runs by the old downtown area of the village and its local Amtrak station. Then across the northern section...
The Lincoln Park Trail runs along the wooded north banks of the Sangamon River. It's mostly flat with a few low hills. Visible from the trail are Decatur's Lincoln Park, some classic old neighborhoods...
The Harold E. Ruppel sits in a perfect location to provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and non-motorized transportation for residents of Savoy Village, in the Champaign-Urbana metro area. It...
North of the Sangamon River crossing, the Conservation District Trail closely follows Stevens Creek through a flat and dense wetlands forest on the west end of Decatur. South of the river, the trail...
The Mahomet Village Bike Trail is a safe, paved route that connects all the major parts of the village. On the north, there are the various and popular facilities of the Lake of the Woods Forest...
O'Malley's Alley is a paved, half-mile trail through a residential area south of Kaufman Lake on the western end of Champaign. On Kenwood Road (at the eastern end of the trail), you can head south on...
Time spent on the Chenoa Route 66 Prairie Trail is time shared with history. As rail-trails are ones built over the railbeds of earlier train lines, this “road-trail” is one built directly over...
The Towanda Route 66 Parkway is the longest and most developed of the Route 66 trails in northeast McLean County. Its centerpiece is the well-appointed, community-sponsored linear parkway within the...
The Pekin Park Bike Trail traverses more than 4 miles between Allentown Road and the Illinois River at Pekin bridge. The trail does a loop in Coal Miners' Park and passes through Mineral Springs Park,...
Running from East Peoria to Morton, The River Trail of Illinois was resurfaced in summer 2011. From East Peoria, the hiking and biking trail travels southeast along the old Illinois Terminal Railway...
The sprawling Constitution Trail covers nearly 42 miles throughout the Bloomington-Normal area. The trail was officially named and dedicated in 1987 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the...
This trail through the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve shows off Central Illinois' great natural beauty. Starting from the west, the trail meanders through a wonderfully restored prairie. It passes...
Caution:Beginning November 15, culvert replacement on the Rock Island Trail at Chanute Road will begin. This will involve removing the temporary bridge. This closure will last between 4 and 6...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historical downtown train depot. And...
The Stevens Creek Bikeway follows a scenic stream for 4 miles through neighborhoods and woodlands, connecting two parks (one at each end of the trail) on the western side of Decatur in central...
The El Paso Walking Trail runs along part of an old railroad right-of-way through the town of El Paso, beginning at the city park on the south side of town and ending at a creek north of town among...
One cannot travel this trail today without remembering the iconic highway on which it is built. The city of Lexington saw two alignments of Route 66. The earliest, which served from 1921-1944, went...
The Fairview Park Trail, in western Decatur, traverses the large and beautiful Fairview Park and connects (via roadway) to the park's various attractions: an aquatic center, lake, gardens, pavilions,...
The backbone of the Greenbelt Bikeway runs north–south along Copper Slough, passing through two large city parks divided by W. Bradley Avenue. In Dodds Park to the north, there is a spur west through...
This is a story of four trails in one. The newest and northwestern section of the trail runs by the old downtown area of the village and its local Amtrak station. Then across the northern section...
Monticello is a small, central Illinois town steeped in a railroad history it still celebrates. Its Chamber of Commerce has offices and special activities in the historic downtown Train Depot. And it...
Went in early March and there wasn’t much color in the landscape, but it was a nice, easy stroll. Saw a road runner and maybe a quail, so a nice place for birding. We parked in the Buffalo Trace lot.
We ride a gravel tandem and the surface of this trail was easy to ride on. Mostly packed dirt that road bikes can handle (we saw a few). Yes, we did see a few "critter holes" in the trail, so there needs to be some attention paid there; however, there weren't so many as to be a pain - you do need to watch the trail surface, though. Our ride started at the Alta Trailhead and we turned around at the Princeville Trailhead, near the RR crossing. In the town of Dunlap, the trail transitions to local streets, but they weren't busy (we rode on a Thursday). The signage in town could be a little more clear at the transition points.
Enjoyable trail, paved, bumpy in some spots and crosses quite a few streets. Have to closely watch the trail signs because of some road construction. Flat, not too steep hills and curvy, just what you like in a trail. Riding through Coal Miners park was quite a treat with open spaces and tree canopy covering other areas. Kudos to this small community trail!
We rode from the Wyoming access to Alta & back, 40ish miles. Pretty much had the trail to ourselves. One needs to watch for huge burrows (ground hog? burrowing squirrels?) and those cute chipmunks dashing across the trail. Well maintained hard dirt trail with crushed gravel, some muddy areas. Since this was a Sunday, there were no coffee shops open in the little towns.
To clarify: The Rock Island Trail is an Illinois state park and goes from Alta to Toulon. It does not include the trail owned by the Peoria Park District known as the Keller Branch although one starts where the other stops - at Alta. The Rock Island Trail is approx 26 miles long therefore not 38. This may be a difference without a distinction for most users but for those looking to set an FKT on the Rock Island Trail the world should understand exactly what the Rock Island Trail is and is not.
But be warned at the entrance of the trail on Prairie view Road it has quite a bit of heaved asphalt and you don’t see it until it’s too late, other than that issue at the beginning most of it is smooth going, there are plenty of hills, twists and turns and beautiful scenery.
Chenoa, Lexington, Towanda...why has Pontiac not done this to it's retired section of 66? From the old Kmart to the old State Police HQ then cross over at E. 1600 North Road and connect to the path at the Rec Plex that runs alongside the prison.
My wife and I road from Toulon to a little past Princeville and back to Toulon (30 miles) in the snow on our fat bikes. There was about three inches of snow. The tree lined trail was beautiful. Highly recommended for winter riding. We were the only set of bike tracks and saw three people in 6 hours.
Nice paved trail. 1st time riding this. Rode from East Peoria to Morton. It's uphill most of the way but no real taxing hills. Long inclines. It looks like trail maintenance is complete. The ride back from Morton was the reward! Downhill 75% of the way. Will be riding this trail again.
The only bad thing was the small bugs which kept hitting me. Make sure you have eye protection and keep your mouth closed so you don't suck a bug down your throat!
My daughter uses a wheelchair and we all really felt like we could enjoy the park on this path. The whole area is extremely accessible!
I in-line skated on this trail July 1,2020 and it was in great condition. Mostly uphill from East Peoria to Morton, and well worth it for the enjoyable downhill skate back toward Peoria.
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