Running trails in Burlington, IA
Burlington has 10 trails in the directory — 1 loop that returns to the trailhead, 1 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 2,247 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.
Crapo Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 876 reviews
85-acre park with a lake, arboretum & botanical garden, plus a bandshell with summer concerts.
Starr's Cave Nature Center
4.7 ★★★★★ 404 reviews
Park, featuring a cave and trails, along with creek access for wading.
Perkins Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 374 reviews
Shaded and clean green space with a playground and a picnic area, as well as walks, for all ages.
Mosquito Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 348 reviews
Long established riverside park great for Mississippi panoramas & eagle watching.
North Hill Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 83 reviews
Riverside open space featuring playground equipment and swing sets plus picnic tables, benches and shade.
Riverside Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 66 reviews
Scenic park that borders the Mississippi River and offers picnic areas, walkways and fishing.
North Gorge
4.4 ★★★★☆ 47 reviews
Trail system in a park and in the woods for casual and challenging hikes as well as mountain biking.
Hunt Woods
4.2 ★★★★☆ 30 reviews
Flint River Trail
3.8 ★★★★☆ 13 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Burlington
- Match the surface to your legs. 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.
- Loop or out-and-back? 1 trail here is a loop, 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.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Burlington 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 10 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 2 are lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 2 have trailhead parking, 2 have restrooms, and 2 have a water fountain in Burlington. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 1 shaded, 2 that runners describe as quiet, 1 dog-friendly, 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 Burlington trails by type
Running trails near Burlington
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.