Running trails in St. Louis, MO
St. Louis has 47 trails in the directory — 16 paved and 2 on crushed gravel or dirt, 1 boardwalk, 5 loops that return to the trailhead, 9 with a stated distance, 10 shaded, and 11 open 24 hours. 35 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 72,580 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.
Forest Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 34,419 reviews
Opened in 1876, this 1,300-acre park includes 3 museums, a zoo, athletic fields & golf courses.
Gateway Arch National Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 15,644 reviews
Park honoring Jefferson's role in western expansion, featuring the Gateway Arch & visitors' center.
Tower Grove Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 7,976 reviews
1868 park that shows its history with carriage rides, grass tennis courts, a wading pool & a gazebo.
Carondelet Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 3,360 reviews
City green space with 2 small stocked fishing ponds, one with pergolas shading the docks.
Cliff Cave County Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 2,189 reviews
Long limestone formation gated to protect bats, with natural grounds & river for picnics & hiking.
Lafayette Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 1,586 reviews
30-acre city park, circa 1851, with a lake & historic elements like cannons & an 1867 house.
Bee Tree County Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,218 reviews
Kid-friendly park featuring trails for hiking, picnic areas, playgrounds and a lake.
Laumeier Sculpture Park Trail Head
4.7 ★★★★★ 993 reviews
Hiking area with paved trails, picnic tables, and numerous abstract sculptures.
Emmenegger Nature Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 456 reviews
A river meanders through woodlands on this placid, 93-acre retreat featuring hiking & picnicking.
North Riverfront Park
4.2 ★★★★☆ 422 reviews
Family-friendly destination, featuring a playground, a fishing spot and paved bike trails.
Fort Belle Fontaine
4.6 ★★★★★ 365 reviews
Site of a former military installation on 300+ riverfront acres with trails, wetlands & wildlife.
Millar Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 355 reviews
Spacious neighborhood park featuring a playground and baseball field, plus a shaded walking trail.
Bella Fontaine Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 330 reviews
Grassy, kid-friendly park with hiking trails, plus a playground and a tennis court.
St. Vincent Greenway Trailhead: Trojan Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 309 reviews
Park with a playground, picnic tables, a splash pad, and basketball courts, plus a centralized location.
Claire Gempp Davidson Memorial Conservation Area
4.7 ★★★★★ 170 reviews
Former dairy farm converted into a wildlife park with walking trails, a pond, and a playground.
Possum Woods Conservation Area
4.6 ★★★★★ 167 reviews
Nature preserve featuring well-maintained trails for hiking with river views, picnic areas, and parking.
Tanglewood Park
4.2 ★★★★☆ 182 reviews
Clean park featuring playgrounds, a grassy field and a pavilion, plus restrooms.
Meramec Greenway Trailhead: Lower Meramec Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 155 reviews
Paved, dog-friendly hiking trail with scenic river views and benches.
Rootwad Park
4.1 ★★★★☆ 147 reviews
Lower Meramec Park,Trails, & Lake
4.5 ★★★★★ 120 reviews
Paved trail (about 2 miles each way) for hiking and biking alongside the Meramec River.
Mississippi Greenway Trailhead: North Riverfront Park-South Entrance
4.2 ★★★★☆ 124 reviews
Family-friendly park at the banks of the Mississippi River featuring trails for walking and biking.
Riverfront Trail
4.1 ★★★★☆ 118 reviews
Peaceful nature trail, featuring a bridge, that cuts through an industrial area and a park.
Jeske Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 94 reviews
This 7-acre green space showcases sculptures by artists from across the country.
Castlepoint Park
3.7 ★★★★☆ 107 reviews
Family-friendly space with a playground, picnic tables and walking trails.
Meramec Greenway: Krumm Road Trailhead
4.9 ★★★★★ 35 reviews
Paved pathway for walking and biking, plus an earthen trail through the woods.
Grant's Trail Union Road Trailhead
4.5 ★★★★★ 32 reviews
Mississippi Greenway
3.9 ★★★★☆ 20 reviews
McKnight Trail Head
3.9 ★★★★☆ 12 reviews
Lower Meramec Park and Trails
4.3 ★★★★☆ 6 reviews
St. Vincent Greenway Trailhead: Forest Park
5 ★★★★★ 3 reviews
Riverfront Walking Trail
4.7 ★★★★★ 3 reviews
Mallard Lake Trail
5 ★★★★★ 2 reviews
Gravois Greenway Trailhead: Sappington House
5 ★★★★★ 2 reviews
Hickory Ridge Trail
5 ★★★★★ 2 reviews
Forest Park Access - Oakland
5 ★★★★★ 2 reviews
St. Pier Giorgio Frassati Nature Trail
3.5 ★★★★☆ 2 reviews
Shady Creek Nature Sanctuary
2 ★★☆☆☆ 1 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in St. Louis
- Match the surface to your legs. St. Louis gives you a choice: 16 paved, 3 mixed, 1 crushed gravel, 1 natural surface, and 1 boardwalk. 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? 5 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 St. Louis is Ruth Park Nature Trail at 24 mi. 4 trails are long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 11 trails in St. Louis are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 35 of the 47 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. 19 have trailhead parking, 18 have restrooms, and 7 have a water fountain in St. Louis. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 10 shaded, 14 that runners describe as quiet, 14 dog-friendly, and 8 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 St. Louis trails by type
- Paved trails
- Mixed trails
- Crushed gravel trails
- Natural surface trails
- Boardwalk trails
- Loop trails
- Long-run trails (5+ mi)
- Shaded trails
- Lit for early & night runs
- Flat & fast
- Hilly trails
- Scenic trails
- Trails with restrooms
- Trails with water fountains
- Trailhead parking
- Quiet, uncrowded trails
- Dog-friendly
- Stroller & wheelchair-accessible
Running trails near St. Louis
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.