Running trails in Rolla, MO
Rolla has 12 trails in the directory — 6 paved and 1 on crushed gravel or dirt, 2 loops that return to the trailhead, 1 with a stated distance, 1 shaded, and 3 open 24 hours. 11 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 13,745 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.
Mark Twain National Forest
4.7 ★★★★★ 10,414 reviews
Forested mountains with scenic rivers, lakes & streams for hiking, biking, camping, fishing & more.
Rolla Lions Club Den and Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,335 reviews
Park with picnic pavilions & playgrounds, plus athletic fields/courts & a lake with accessible dock.
Ber Juan Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 632 reviews
Recreation venue with an outdoor pool, sports fields, tranquil walking/biking trails & a playground.
Schuman Park
4.3 ★★★★☆ 462 reviews
This 15-acre park offers sports fields, playgrounds, picnic shelters & a restored steam engine.
Little Prairie Conservation Area
4.5 ★★★★★ 340 reviews
Relaxed, 3-mile-plus area with a trail-laced park, offering lake fishing & picnicking.
Ozark Rivers Audubon - Nature Center
4.7 ★★★★★ 201 reviews
Naturalistic preserve dedicated to community education & native habitat preservation.
Green Acres Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 166 reviews
Quiet place with basketball courts and multiple playgrounds, as well as a picnic pavilion.
Bray Conservation Area
4.7 ★★★★★ 132 reviews
Area with serene grounds, trails, a creek and a pond.
Wedgewood Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 35 reviews
Belotta Trails
4.6 ★★★★★ 8 reviews
Twitty Arboretum
4 ★★★★☆ 3 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Rolla
- Match the surface to your legs. Rolla gives you a choice: 6 paved 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 paved 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 Rolla is Little Prairie Conservation Area at 3.6 mi.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Rolla are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 11 of the 12 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. 5 have trailhead parking and 6 have restrooms in Rolla. 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, 4 that runners describe as quiet, and 5 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 Rolla trails by type
Running trails near Rolla
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.