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Running trails in North Little Rock, AR
North Little Rock has 6 trails in the directory — 3 paved and 1 open 24 hours. 4 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 1,707 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Cook's Landing Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 818 reviews
Park offering trails for walking, biking, and running, plus fishing and a boat ramp.
Emerald Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 679 reviews
Park with a paved trail along a river, popular for walking, hiking, and biking.
North Shore Riverwalk Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 153 reviews
City park featuring a riverwalk, trails, and a bridge, plus space for kids.
Big Rock Quarry Bike Park Pump Track
4.7 ★★★★★ 47 reviews
Public park featuring a bike pump track with jumps and gorgeous river views.
Arkansas River Trail lookout spot
4.9 ★★★★★ 10 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in North Little Rock
- Match the surface to your legs. Most of what's here is paved (3 of 6). Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More paved trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? A loop finishes back at the car with no backtracking; on an out-and-back you simply turn round at half your distance.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 1 trail in North Little Rock is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 4 of the 6 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 1 is lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 1 has trailhead parking, 3 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in North Little Rock. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 1 that runners describe as quiet and 1 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse North Little Rock trails by type
Running trails near North Little Rock
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.