Running trails in Idaho Falls, ID
Idaho Falls has 11 trails in the directory — 3 paved and 4 on crushed gravel or dirt, 1 with a stated distance, 2 shaded, and 3 open 24 hours. 8 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 11,717 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.
Snake River Greenbelt
4.8 ★★★★★ 12 reviews
End of Paved Trail
5 ★★★★★ 1 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Idaho Falls
- Match the surface to your legs. Idaho Falls gives you a choice: 3 paved, 3 natural surface, and 1 crushed gravel. 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. The longest stated distance in Idaho Falls is Idaho Falls River Walk - Greenbelt Trail at 5 mi. 1 trail is long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Idaho Falls are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 8 of the 11 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 3 are lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 1 has trailhead parking, 6 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Idaho Falls. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 2 shaded, 3 that runners describe as quiet, 2 dog-friendly, and 2 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 Idaho Falls trails by type
Running trails near Idaho Falls
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.