An Exciting Bike Trail for Every State in America
The beauty of the US lies in its diversity. Diversity can be anything from a cultural difference to a dish you’ve never had or, in this case, a bike trail.
If you are a biker, that last one is important to you. When it comes to the diversity of terrain in each state, it can only mean one thing – more exciting bike trails.
And to anyone who may travel to visit any of these, we recommend this article of road trip games to make the trip go by faster.
Here’s a look at top bike trails in America, state by state.
Top 50 Biking Trails in Every State in America
Alabama: Sylaward
Located near Sylacauga, at the southwestern edge of the Talladega National Forest, is Sylaward. It is well known to be one of the most amazing biking trails to visit for new and intermediate bikers. This bike trail offers 14 miles of gradual climbs that are especially good for beginners. It also includes beautiful lakeside scenery along the way.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Length: 14.9 miles / 7.9 kilometers
Activities: biking / hiking / camping
Alaska: The Tony Knowles Coastal Trail
This 11-mile long bike trail meanders along the Cook Inlet shoreline and an aromatic forest. Those who choose to ride here can expect gorgeous views of Mt Denali, beluga whales, and moose. It’s also wheelchair accessible for most of the trail.
Arizona: Sweetwater Preserve
For bike trails, arid Arizona offers the Sweetwater Preserve. It’s a cluster of interconnected trails with beautiful cacti and rock gardens. Its longest is almost 8 miles. But you might want to walk in some places though. Or ride fairly slowly unless you want to find yourself hugging a cactus!
Arkansas: The Arkansas River Trail
This bike trail is a 16 mile paved trail loop with multiple entry points. It follows along a beautiful shoreline and gives you an amazing view while you ride.
Colorado: Monarch Crest
The Monarch Crest trail is a whopping 36 miles full of intense downhill riding. Regarded by some as one of Colorado’s to 10 trails for experienced bikers, this bike trail has earned its reputation.
Connecticut: Shenipsit Trail
When it comes to biking trails, Colorado has thousands to choose from. But the Shenipsit trail (Blue Blazes) is one of the most difficult trails around and is considered expert level. It’s boasting a double black diamond rating and it’s easy to see why. While only being a little under 5 miles, it has steep climbs and drops that will get your blood pumping.
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Delaware: Ramsey’s Revenge
Ramsey’s Revenge, located in northern Delaware, is a 7 mile racing loop of green trees, streams, and bumpy rock. Tricky turns and drops is the name of the game with this bike trail. Be careful not to lose your footing!
Florida: Jacksonville-Baldwin Rail Trail
If 14.5-miles of paved asphalt sound good to you, you’ll love this paved trail. It’s the perfect trail for family time as the 20mph speed limit keeps the pace slow.
Difficulty: Easy
Length: 14.5 miles / 23.3 kilometers
Activities: biking / running
Georgia: Paynes Creek
This biking trail set in a beautiful wooded area is basically a flat trail. With next to no hazards on the way, its awesome for beginners. It can also act as a relaxing ride for any more experienced riders.
Hawaii: Peacock Flats
Located in the Kuaokala-Mokuleia area, the Peacock Flats are home to bike trail that feels made for thrill seekers. The trail begins with a arduous climb spotted by breathtaking views. Consequently it ends with an heart-stopping downhill descent full of difficult turns.
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Idaho: Bald Mountain, Sun Valley/Ketchum
400-miles of singletrack, 30-miles of paved track, and 13-miles of downhill track. Sun Valley will thoroughly spoil you for choice.
Illinois: Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
With 8 trails and 8 miles of single-track, there’s plenty of room for everyone to stretch their legs here. These bike trails generally range from easy to a mild challenge for the most part.
Indiana: Prairie Creek Trail
Being just under 1 and a half miles, the Prairie Creek trail is a multi-use strip of beautiful greenery that altogether encompasses what most look for in a bike trail. A forest canopy above, soil beneath your wheels, and enough declines to keep you on your toes.
Iowa: Sugar Bottom
Sugar bottom is a collection of a smaller, connected bike trails that range from high skill challenges, and casual riding. Since these trails vary in skill level, they make for a thrilling ride for beginners and pros alike.
Kansas: Lawrence Loop
The main loop of the Lawrence River bike trails is great practice area for those new to biking. Correspondingly, the loop is dotted by enticing challenges for beginners to test their skill and perfect their techniques. Although most of the obstacles are completely optional and are easily rode past, those who do might miss out on some of the fun!
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Kentucky: Land Between the Lakes Canal Loop
This 11 mile, flowing bike trail has all of the most amazing views of the Kentucky and Barkley Lakes anyone could ever ask for. Because this loop is made up of rapid climbs and declines, its just begging for speed!
Louisiana: Monkey Trail
While the name is hilarious, the ride is a thrilling 10 mile loop of twists, turns, drops, and climbs. This single-track bike trail is really fun for anyone with a bit experience.
Maine: Carriage Trails
These 47 miles of hard-packed gravel roads that run through Acadia National Park have a lot of eye candy. It comes in the form of waterfalls, stone bridges, coastal views, and most surprisingly, North America’s only fjord. There are also horse drawn carriage rides available for anyone looking for a more relaxing tour of this picturesque location.
Maryland: Bacon Ridge Trail System
Bacon Ridge is a relatively new trail that’s already fast becoming popular with families and new riders looking to test their skills. It consists of three individual bike trails that are full of exciting declines and equally exciting sharp turns between trees.
Massachusetts: Blue Heron Loop
Though this trail system may at times be confusing, it’s a great ride around beautiful marshlands.
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Michigan: Sleeping Bear
This 20 bike trail is the best way of sampling Michigan’s finest views, especially the lake.
Minnesota: Lebanon Hills
The trails at Lebanon Hills provide a fairly unique opportunity for beginners and pros to enjoy the same set of trails. The outer loop is a great place for beginners to experience a variety of challenges (ranging from simple rough terrain to jumps across mid sized gaps). The inner loops further expand on these ideas and push them to the extreme.
Missouri: Katy Trail, Clinton to St. Charles
This gargantuan 250-mile bike trail runs across the entire state and is one of the longest in the country. Explore it on your own in small parts or enter the 5-day Katy Trail Ride held every summer. Additionally, there are a number of stopping points that provide any need amenities.
Montana: Homestake To Pipestone Pass
This is a great trail for beginners and families who don’t mind working a little hard. If you can get up the scenic pass, you get to enjoy a “flowing” ride on this bike trail.
Nebraska: Tranquility
The name says it all. This is a serene trail featuring smooth rolling trails coupled with beautiful scenery is an amazing place to go to clear your head and get a breath of fresh air.
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Nevada: Tahoe Rim Trail
Although this trail may be a bit more challenging, its amazing scenery make up for that. And if your looking for a longer ride, there are a few connected bike trails that total up to 100 miles of rocky rides and stunning views.
New Hampshire: Gyroscope Trails
Gyro is a very short bike trail, being just two miles long, but it acts as a great entry into mountain biking. It is a brilliant trail if you have small children because offers smooth tread and minimal elevation change. And the view of the mountains is just a bonus.
New Jersey: Allaire State Park
A perfect family outing, and afterward, a great day sampling the parks wares. These weaving bike trails also make for an easy ride for those new to off-road biking.
New Mexico: Albuquerque Bosque
Easily accessible, hard-pack tread, minimal elevation changes, and occasional sand bogs make this a great experience for new riders. With around 26 bike trails, totaling almost 109 miles, there’s enough more than enough space to stretch your legs and explore.
New York: Triple Divide Trail, Rochester to Williamsport
This long route offers a glimpse of the New York wildlife and has amazing views of many national landmarks along the way. A example of this is undeniably the Hudson River. This ginormous 245 mile bike trail obviously dwarfs most others in shear scale alone. And this is thanks to the teamwork of what is likely hundreds of people.
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North Carolina: Lake James State Park
Located in the Pisgah National Forest this 15-mile trail system is made up of fast, flowy, roller-coaster like, single-track trails that would hasten the heartbeat of any thrill seeker.
North Dakota: Maah Daah Hey Trail
This bike trail is one of the designated International Mountain Bicycling Association Epic rides and it shows. Evidently, this 97-mile trail is the best way to enjoy North Dakota’s natural beauty and breathtaking atmosphere.
Ohio: Royalview (Mill Stream Run)
Though the bike trails here are rated beginner level, they can still offer excitement for the more advanced rider if they look for it. There’s definitely little something for everyone here.
Oklahoma: Oklahoma River Trail
This collection of bike trails delivers a great deal of variety with surprisingly little size. Everything from easy, beginner friendly trails to some of the most difficult in the area. And with 13 bike trails to choose from, you have plenty of circuits ride and master.
Oregon: Willamette River Loop, Portland
If you’re looking for an urban trail with lots of character, then this 14-mile bike trail loop is one of the best in the country. Whenever you ride this little slice of heaven, you can look forward to riverside views and beautiful forests.
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Pennsylvania: Great Allegheny Passage
Because the Great Allegheny Passage is a rail-to-trail, it’s massive and it covers more than 340 miles from Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C. The 150-mile Pennsylvania stretch is an idyllic, car-free trail suitable for all experience levels and bike types.
Rhode Island: East Bay Bike Path, Providence to Bristol
12.5 miles of stunning views, carefree riding, and low difficultly would make this an unquestionably great family outing. Compared to other trails, it may be a tad short but makes up for that with the picnic spots you’ll find along the way.
South Carolina: Forks Area Trail System
Commonly called FATS this bike trail system offers smooth, hazard-free riding. What’s more, it’s located in a nicely wooded forest nestled between the Savannah River and the Smoky Mountain Range.
South Dakota: George S. Mickelson Trail, Deadwood to Edgemont
This scenic 113-mile rail-trail offers a surprising amount of eye candy in the form of prairies, ponderosa pine forests, creeks, and even Mt Rushmore. Because of these features, it was a must pick for this list.
Tennessee: White Oak Mountain Biology Trails
Located on the Southern Adventist University campus, this 18-mile bike trail system is well maintained by the school’s biology department and offers amazing views of the Oolteway Valley.
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Texas: Harry Moss Park
The 5 mile-long Harry S Moss Park bike trail is located along the bank of the White Rock Creek. Given that it features brick reinforcements, wooden beams, and bridges, it clear that safety was something that was taken into account. That coupled with the fact there are 6 loops in total landed this trail squarely on our list.
Utah: Dead Horse Point
Dead Horse Point offers flat, smooth singletrack trails, with amazing views of the Utah desert. Although there are a few sections that may prove to be too difficult for beginners, most of the hard parts can be avoided by using alternate pathes.
Vermont: Kingdom Trails
Ranked as one of the best trails for mountain bikers, this 35-mile long cluster of bike trails is versatile in its offerings as it has everything for both beginners and expert riders alike. Additionally everything from flowing downhill paths to narrow wooden bridges that twist and turn can be found on the trails.
Difficulty: Easy – Intermediate – Difficult
Length: 34.8 miles / 56.0 kilometers
Activities: biking / hiking / camping
Virginia: Meadowood
This fairly new trail system was designed and constructed to be an accessible, challenging, and above all, fun trail for riders of all levels. That is to say it’s perfect for your next family adventure or solo thrill seeking.
Washington: Olympic Discovery Trail
This monster of rail-trail covers 135 miles and pass by (and subsequently through) a number interesting places. It includes tunnels, trestles, and bridges that ride along a so many great views that you might spend more time taking pictures than riding!
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West Virginia: Greenbrier River Trail
The beauty of the Appalachian Mountains, an awesome 82-mile bike trail, and the beautiful views of the Greenbrier River altogether make this trail a bikers paradise.
Wisconsin: Rock Lake Epic
27 miles of twists and turns in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest make this trail an adventurous ride, while the five wilderness lakes, primitive campsites, and 90-foot wood plank bridge offer great views to make it a memorable ride.
Wyoming: Tyler Draw
This 5.5-mile trail is smooth, flowy and has little change in elevation. Be sure to ride this trail in the early morning or in the evening as at the present time it has no tree cover to protect you from the glaring summer sun.
There you have it, an epic bike trail for you to explore – as an individual or as a family. Not only will you have great fun on these trails, but you’ll improve your physical and mental health at the same time.
Featured Image via Pixabay
Difficulty: Intermediate
Length: 5.5 miles / 8.9 kilometers
Activities: biking / hiking
Conclusion
To summarize, bike trails can be an important part of a regions identity and culture. They can range from extreme challenges that people will travel cross country to try to common paths used by the community. And often times it can take large amounts of teamwork in order to build and preserve them.
There are thousands of bike trails across the US. Because of that this list is but a fraction of what is out there. Not to mention the hundreds or possible thousands that aren’t marked. And each one is a new challenge to conquer. So get out there and ride.
But don’t forget your helmet!