Running trails in Carbondale, IL
Carbondale has 5 trails in the directory — 2 on crushed gravel or dirt, 2 loops that return to the trailhead, 1 with a stated distance, and 1 open 24 hours. 3 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 250 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.
Green Earth Oakland Nature Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 67 reviews
Pet-friendly spot with a few short trails winding through the woods, plus an annual pumpkin glow event.
Chautauqua Bottoms (Freeman Street Trailhead)
4.7 ★★★★★ 60 reviews
Nature preserve with trails for walking, jogging, and biking, plus seasonal wildflowers.
Green Earth's - Brush Hill Preserve
4.8 ★★★★★ 57 reviews
Natural preserve on the edge of town offering a short, well-maintained trail through a forest.
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Carbondale
- Match the surface to your legs. Carbondale gives you a choice: 1 crushed gravel and 1 natural surface. 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 crushed gravel trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 2 trails here are loops, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run. The longest stated distance in Carbondale is Green Earth's - Brush Hill Preserve at 5 mi. 1 trail is long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 1 trail in Carbondale is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 3 of the 5 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- The small things that decide it. 1 with mile markers, 2 that runners describe as quiet, and 1 dog-friendly. 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 Carbondale trails by type
Running trails near Carbondale
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.