Running trails in Lebanon, MO
Lebanon has 7 trails in the directory — 3 paved and 1 on crushed gravel or dirt, 1 with a stated distance, and 1 shaded. 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 5,413 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.
Bennett Spring State Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 4,143 reviews
Serious trout fishing in a stocked stream, plus camping, hiking, canoeing & a rustic dining lodge.
Atchley Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 652 reviews
Park with a walking path, playground & 18-hole disc-golf course, plus picnic shelters & ball fields.
Harke Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 264 reviews
Suburban park with a large pavilion, 0.5-mile trail, soccer field, playground & BBQ & picnic area.
Nelson Lake
4.1 ★★★★☆ 287 reviews
Park with a calm vibe featuring walking trails along a pond and a playground.
Mercy Hospital Walking Trail
4 ★★★★☆ 4 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Lebanon
- Match the surface to your legs. Lebanon gives you a choice: 3 paved, 1 natural surface, and 1 mixed. 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 Lebanon is Harke Park at 2 mi.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. Plenty of trails sit inside parks that gate at dusk and don't unlock until well after sunrise, so a trail that's perfect at lunchtime can be locked at 6am. 4 of the 7 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. 3 have trailhead parking and 4 have restrooms in Lebanon. 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, 1 with mile markers, 1 that runners describe as quiet, 3 dog-friendly, and 4 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 Lebanon trails by type
Running trails near Lebanon
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.