Beautiful trail. I walk it every Sunday! Perfect for running, walking and biking! Quite a…read morebeautiful place

This is a beautiful walking and biking route. I thoroughly enjoyed my walk. The scenery makes it a…read morepeaceful and delightful walking experience. Looking forward to exploring it further.

Excited to update my prior review now that this trail has been rolling for a few years. This is a…read morestretch of thirteen car-free miles of trails to bike, walk, run and explore. Some portions are wooded and some open, there are bridges throughout, and then the highlight of the trail, the 100+ year old Vale Tunnel. Techinically, you can park in the Truman Sports Complex, Lot L, if you want to start on the western end. My advice if you're coming from downtown/midtown/Plaza area is to simply plug Crane Brewing into your GPS and make that your start and end. It's a wonderful local brewery, there's parking everywhere, and it's literally right on the trail. More reasons to skip the Truman Sports Complex: busy on game days, tough to navigate, and the stretch of trail between there and Crane is very forgettable. Now the trail itself is really nice. It's often wooded and bucolic, and the crushed limestone trails are similar to the Katy Trail, Trolley Track Trail, rails-to-trails etc. (You probably can ride a road bike on this, but you'll be more comfortable with a hybrid, cross, or gravel bike that has at least 32mm tires). At some points, there are boulders lining the outer edge of the trail that cut the wind very nicely. More trees, bridges, creeks and scenery keep unfolding in the mid-points of the trail. The bulk of this was an old railroad line so much of it is nice and flat, and scenic, especially in the fall. Speaking of the railroad line, about 6 miles from Crane, you'll come across the Vale Tunnel. This train tunnel was forged from dynamite around 1903, and nicely restored and bolstered over the past decade for this recreational trail. If I could change one thing, I'd love for them to build out a little trail spur so you could ride into downtown Lee's Summit. My friend and I did this but had to ride some busy sidewalks to get there which worked but was just OK. Job well done by all involved to help KC along for nature lovers, outdoor enthusiasts, cyclists, runners, walkers, kids (what kid doesn't love a gigantic tunnel to explore) and more. Stray notes to add: - I found water fountains (warm months only) at the Hartman trailhead near Lee's Summit, and there are also Port-a-Potty's throughout the trail. - This trail has always felt very safe to me, with lots of people out on a beautiful day. Vibes are good! - There's good signage to know you're on the trail, as well as etiquette (call out when passing via bike on the left, etc.) - This could *potentially* connect to the larger, more rural Rock Island Spur (Pleasant Hill, MO to Windsor, MO) which already connects directly to the Katy Trail. So you could conceivably ride all the way to the outskirts of St. Louis via trails. There's currently a gap in Greenwood of 8 miles that might be trails in the future. - Here is the best trail map I've found, and they have this marked along some trailheads as well: https://www.makeyourdayhere.com/files/assets/parksrec/trails/documents/ri-trail-map-1-and-2.pdf

This is a great trail. There are several entry points to this trail and the views are nice. I like…read morewalking near riding star ranch because you may get to see a horse.

An urban/suburban crushed limestone trail that hits some of the most scenic, beautiful…read moreneighborhoods in KC. I don't know what to call the Trolley Trail other than a freaking gem. If you like walking and jogging, this is the spot at any time of the year with the obvious peaks being late spring and fall. If you like cycling on trails, read on. Cyclists: This ain't always the best trail for you, and I say that as someone who likes biking trails like this. It's often so full of pedestrians that wall up the path that it makes it difficult to ride through. Throw a bike bell on there if you're going to be riding this on a weekend to give folks a heads up, and I wouldn't expect to fly on this one like you can on other trails outside the city. I'd recommend riding occasionally or off-peak hours. The reason I stripped a star off this trail is simple: The city of KCMO crapped the bed by breaking up the Trolley Trail at 63rd and Meyer. At least 63rd attempts to have a crosswalk (though no cars pay attention to it) but the Meyer crossing is a serious accident waiting to happen. Cars turning every which way, going fast, and really no real crossing for trail users. I'd say it's easier to cross a random back highway than this. But at the end of the day, one quarter-mile stretch that's tough to navigate out of the handful of other miles isn't what you'll remember. You'll notice the beautiful homes, the big trees, UMKC and the Plaza on the north end, Waldo and KC Bier right off the path near the south.. It's really a pretty special trail and one that I'd love to see more neighborhoods copy as we aim to shed our car-centric KC nature.

Hello, Pleasantville! I now know you…read more At the idyllic Trolley Track Trail, bikers, walkers and dogs share a path without any conflict. Yesterday I almost had to pinch myself because that whole "why can't we all just get along" nonsense that I always thought was just a myth really came into play. I was with some dogs and some friends and for a split second, or a half hour, everything was practically zen. No kidding. It's a comfortable path and full of grass for the pups to roll around in and do their business in (baggies are conveniently available). And the bikers coming up behind you are prone to being kind enough to announce, "on your left." I love such etiquette! And dog owners all talk to each other. That always cracks me up, because I'm a cat person and cat people have to "relate" on cat forums and through dorky photos on our Iphones. For a serene and enjoyable late summer/early fall day, I can't think of a better place to stroll. Yes, I can appreciate zen with the best of them.

Great "hidden" little trail. There's a super nice park across the street with lots of parking…read more The trail is a little over three miles. It's unpaved, dog and bike friendly. I would say it's intermediate, there's some elevation gain, the path is uneven with rocks and roots, and lots of people were using walking sticks. But a beginner could walk this, it just might take a minute. I feel like this would be super pretty in the fall and I definitely want to return to do the loop again!

Great wooded trail, paths are routed fantastic, great views, and lots of options for split offs…read more Definitely a good trail for mountain biking, pet on leash friendly, and hiking. Very easy terrain in most areas of yellow path. Some elevating spots make it a boring free course

More people need to know about this place! The Rock Island Spur is a rails-to-trails conversion…read morethat starts in Pleasant Hill and goes 45+ miles to Windsor, connecting to the Katy Trail. Free of cars, largely enshrouded in trees and views of rolling farmland, this is a gem that doesn't get enough pub in the KC area. For starters, it's not necessarily close to things in the metro, but for me on the Plaza, the Pleasant Hill trailhead is about 45 minutes away. Not convenient, but also not a day's trek to get out there either. The best part of this is that you can ride your bike across a crushed limestone (technically could do on a road bike but would opt for a hybrid/cross/mountain for optimal comfort) through nature while not having to worry about cars all around you. Sure you'll have to cross some small roads here and there and be on the lookout, but it's so much more relaxing to ride on this wide trail than on the back highways. This trail is slightly more gravelly than some other limestone trails, likely because it's so new. It'll pack down more in time, but I found my average was 1 mph slower than at some other comparable spots. You'll put in work out here, but it's flat as a pancake so it balances out. Plans are in the works to connect this even closer to the metro, inching towards Lee's Summit (in progress 2018) and then connecting to the Truman Sports Complex, finished by 2020. Hope bike enthusiasts and outdoor lovers take advantage of this trail!

Love it. I ride the trail 2 or 3 times per week, weather permitting. Great little stop in…read moreChilhowee if you need a bite to eat. Hopefully they get the trail connected to Lee's Summit...I really think ridership would increase. If you use the fairgrounds trailhead in Pleasant Hill, you will have to detour on paved road for a short distance. This is a non issue, as it isn't very far, and the road is fairly lightly traveled by cars. The alternative trail head off Purvis Road involves driving a mile or so down a really dusty gravel road to avoid a half mile of pavement on your bike at the other location. Not worth it. I greatly prefer the downtown P Hill trailhead and just deal with riding on the street for two minutes.

This is a fun trail to hike on. Most of it is paved, although there are some off paths that are all…read moreterrain and wooded. I was not familiar with this trail so it was a little confusing to get to. Tip: you can access the trail by the tennis courts on Blue river rd. Tip 2: the bathrooms by the tennis courts were not open yet (March) and no bathrooms along the trail. Along the trail you pass lots of the park's amenities: shelter house, tennis courts, benches, playground, golf course, water, love lock bridge and more. If you do the entire hike it's about 5 miles. Parts of the path are secluded but I was with a friend and felt safe. I would recommend doing the hike with at least another person, although there were lots of people walking, running, and cycling on the trail. Good trail for all levels.

It was great hike, very long but seemed to be forever. I ended up turning around. The bridges were…read moreawesome and the lock bridge was really cool, but you just get to the red bridge and only go on it and turn around. The tennis courts seemed nice and they had basketball hoops, a park and bathrooms . You can go to the bridge and then go on the other paths. I will say there was about seven cars with older men in the parking lot in the last parking lot just sitting in there cars which was kind of interesting . Honestly for being a younger woman with her kid I probably wouldn't go back by myself again, everyone was friendly though. Also a semi parked just off the dirt/ gravel way with a car and I didn't feel comfortable going that way so I had to just turn around completely. The people do come and clean the bathrooms which is good, I didn't go in there but I saw the guy going in at one point before my walk. By the bridge there was literally trash next to the trash can so like come on my fellow walkers do better.

I love this trail! Great way to get out and soak in some natural vitamin D. Blacktopped and seems…read moreto be well maintained.

Fantastic walking trail! So glad I discovered it. We parked just past the train tracks on Johnson…read moreDrive and then walked the section of the trail that runs along the creek north/south- it's so serene and pretty. Nice trees and benches here and there. It's 2.2 miles round trip- a perfect quick jaunt before we went and ate a ton of sushi!!

This is a nice little bike/running trail in Mission that starts right by the Mission Target and…read moreends at Martway and Lamar. Right now, it's just about a mile long, but if you don't mind running/riding on gravel it extends up to Johnson and Nall. Eventually that stretch will be asphalted. The end goal is to extend the trail to connect to other trails around town. That will be a welcome addition since this is the closest little trail to my house and I ride it when I just want to get a quick little ride in. Even though the trail is short, it is a little hilly and will give you a pretty good ride. The trail also has good signage which always gives me a little chuckle (the signs are small versions of street signs telling you the trail is going to curve). It's not a real scenic trail, there's a little creek running adjacent to it, but you really have to strain your eyes to see it. You're mostly riding beside and behind the Target and Hy-Vee. I wouldn't go out of my way to ride the Rock Creek Trail if I were you, but if you're in the neighborhood it's a nice little place to ride without being bothered by traffic. I've never seen anybody else on the trail, so you can definitely go as fast as you want without worrying about running any joggers or walkers over, which is nice. When they get it extended to a more sizable length I'll bump it up a star, but for now, it's the worst of my bike riding choices.