Trails in Texas
13 mapped routes in Texas: 9 cycling routes, 2 hiking trails and 2 scenic drives. Together they cover 521 km with 2,957 m of climbing, and the highest point reaches 438 m. Every route has a GPX download, elevation profile, gradient and surface analysis.
- Mapped routes
- 13
- Total distance
- 521km
- Total climbing
- 2,957m
- Highest point
- 438m
- Water crossings
- 27
Destination guide
About trails in Texas
Most routes in Texas are bike rides around the big cities, but the landscape changes a lot across the state. Around Austin, the Austin Shoal Creek Ride and the harder Austin West Lake Hills Ride climb onto the Balcones Escarpment, where limestone hills replace the flat coastal plain. North of Dallas, the Denton A-Train Rail Trail Ride follows a rail corridor for about 45 km past Lewisville Lake. Down on the Gulf Coast, the Houston Greenbelt Ride stays close to sea level along the bayous.
The standout for hikers is Colorado Bend State Park Trails in San Saba County, a long, demanding network above the Colorado River, with limestone bluffs, springs and Gorman Falls. BLORA Mountain Bike Trails near Belton Lake offer rocky, technical singletrack in Central Texas. Drivers can take long interstate runs such as I-45 south from Dallas.
- Best time to go
- October through April is the comfortable window; from June to September, daytime heat regularly passes 35 °C, so ride at dawn and carry extra water. Spring storms can flood low-water crossings in the Hill Country.
- Terrain
- The terrain is mostly gentle, from sea-level bayous to Hill Country ridges topping out near 440 m, but limestone ledges, loose rock and cedar brush make trails like Colorado Bend and BLORA rougher than their elevation suggests.
- Permits & access
- Texas state parks charge a daily entrance fee per person, and popular parks can fill on weekends and holidays, so reserve a day pass online in advance. Most city greenways and rail trails are free and open from dawn to dusk.
Difficulty spectrum
How hard are trails in Texas?
- Easy
- 54%7 trails
- Moderate
- 31%4 trails
- Hard
- 8%1 trail
- Extreme
- 8%1 trail
Signature routes
Limitless routes in Texas
Interactive map
Map of trails in Texas
Cycling routes in Texas
View all 9 →Hiking trails in Texas
2Scenic drives in Texas
2Keep exploring
More regions in the United States
California
34 trails
Washington
14 trails
Arizona
12 trails
Colorado
12 trails
Pennsylvania
11 trails
Massachusetts
10 trails
Florida
9 trails
Oregon
9 trails
Take it offline
Navigate Texas with TrailX
Download any route as GPX, or open it in the TrailX app to follow it on the trail and record your own.