Lehigh Portland Trails
Website: www.lehightrails.com
Facebook: @LehighTrails
Instagram: @lehightrails
The Lehigh Portland Trails feature over 13 miles of gravel-surfaced paths and natural-surface single track trails. People can ride bikes, run and hike along the winding trails while taking in the beauty of over one hundred acres of rugged woodlands, rolling prairies and scenic views overlooking Elm Creek and the spring-fed quarry lake. Benches and picnic tables tuck alongside the gravel paths in some of the most scenic spots for those who want to sit and relax with a picnic lunch.
The trails sit along the south side of Elm Creek in Iola, Kansas, in the Lehigh Portland State Park.
For trailhead locations and more information about the Lehigh Portland Trails, visit www.lehightrails.com.
Prairie Spirit Trail
Website: www.bikeprairiespirit.com
Facebook: @PrairieSpirit100
The 52-mile Prairie Spirit Trail cuts through small Kansas towns, shaded woodland canopies and stretching prairies and fields. Trail travelers pass alongside family farms, streams and rivers while enjoying the beautiful Kansas landscape alive with various wildlife and colorful flora. Built on the old rail bed of the historic Leavenworth, Lawrence and Fort Gibson Railroad, the trail offers flat, gradual grades for hikers, bikers and runners. The trail runs north/south between Ottawa, Kansas, and Iola, Kansas, and connects to the Flint Hills Nature Trail in the north and the Southwind Rail Trail in the south. Within the city limits of Ottawa, Garnett and Iola, trail travelers enjoy a paved surface, while the trail transitions to a hard-packed limestone surface in the rural stretches.
The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism manages the Prairie Spirit Trail State Park.
For more information about the Prairie Spirit Trail, visit www.bikeprairiespirit.com.
Southwind Rail Trail
Website: www.bikeallencounty.org
Facebook: @southwindrailtrail
The 6.5-mile Southwind Rail Trail follows the former Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway line that connected the Iola and Humboldt communities. Runners, bikers and hikers enjoy the trail’s historic railroad bridge, woodland canopy, wildlife and other fellow travelers. People can stop by Iola’s Riverside and Cofachique Parks, which lay adjacent to the trail, to utilize the picnic shelters, playgrounds and recreational areas.
The Southwind Rail Trail remains open every day from dawn to dusk, is free to the public, and is also wheelchair accessible. Parking is located at both the northern and southern ends of the trail. For those looking for a longer adventure, Southwind Rail Trail connects to the Prairie Spirit Trail in Iola for an uninterrupted 58-mile route through Southeast Kansas.
For more information about the Southwind Rail Trail, visit www.bikeallencounty.org.
Mo-Pac Trail
Website: www.bikeallencounty.org
The Missouri Pacific Recreational Trail (also known as the Mo-Pac Trail) runs on the former Missouri Pacific Railway corridor in Iola. Approximately .5 mile in length, it serves as a multi-use pathway that connects the Prairie Spirit Trail to the Iola Middle School, Iola High School and the Iola downtown square. To accommodate higher traffic, the trail is paved with concrete and lays ten feet wide for the majority of its length.
For more information about the Mo-Pac Trail, visit www.bikeallencounty.org.
