Best Hiking Near Grand Rapids
Whether you’re just looking for a nice walking trail near Grand Rapids, Michigan, or a more challenging day hike, the city has plenty of nature trails and park trails. Some of these trails may offer the best hiking in Michigan, including a stretch of the longest trail in America. Plus, these Grand Rapids trails are accessible year-round, and each can be a whole new experience in each season.
So grab a water bottle and some comfortable shoes and let’s hit the best hiking trails around Grand Rapids!
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Cascade Peace Park
Cascade Peace Park is the best hiking trail to head to if you’re unsure just how much hiking you want to get in that day. The park has eight different intersecting loops, and you can decide how many loops hike as you go depending on how you’re feeling.
The loops are easy to moderate, with the main loop being just 1.6 miles. However, doing all of the offshooting loops can make for a 5-mile hike. The trail takes you through wooded hills, wetlands, and wildflower meadows. It’s a beautiful hike near Ada, Michigan, just across from the Grand River.
Features:
- Hiking
- Interconnected loops
- Leashed dogs allowed
Provin Trails
Provin Trails Park lets you get out of the city and right into nature with just a 15-minute drive from downtown Grand Rapids. Located next to Robinette’s Apple Haus & Winery, this natural undeveloped park is made up of interconnected hiking trail loops that meander through dense pine forest. There are public restrooms and in the winter the trails are open to cross country skiing.
Features:
- Hiking
- Interconnected loops
- Cross country skiing
- Public restrooms
- Leashed dogs allowed
North Country Trail – Lowell to Fallasburg
The 6-mile section of the North Country Trail between Lowell and Fallasburg Park is beautiful in any season, with some more difficult hill sections and wetter areas as you get closer to the park. It can be a great 6-mile hike if you leave a vehicle in Fallasburg or a longer 12-mile out-and-back hike if you’re looking to make a day of it.
About a mile of the hike is along a gravel road skirting around a lake. Fallasburg Park is the perfect place to stop for a rest and watch the ducks or geese on the river before heading back to Lowell.
The North Country Trail is the longest trail in America, and the headquarters can be found in Lowell! For details on that and places to eat in Lowell after your hike, read our Explore Lowell article.
Features:
- Hiking
- Out and back
- River
- Picnic tables at Fallasburg Park
- Leashed dogs allowed
Looking for more outdoor Grand Rapids adventures? Check out our Parks in Grand Rapids article.
Lepard Nature Preserve
Lepard Nature Preserve just off M-6 and M-37 in Caledonia packs a lot into a short 0.8-mile loop. The wooded trail is perfect for families or those looking for a quick walk.
The trailhead is located at the end of the Spirit of Life Church parking lot, on the south side of 76th Street. It begins with a wooden bridge with views of the small valley, then connects to the loop. Along the trail are signs explaining different elements of the nature preserve, including the wildlife and different kinds of vegetation you’ll find.
A portion of the trail runs along a creek and can get muddy depending on the time of year.
Features:
- Loop
- Creek
- Benches
- Leashed dogs allowed
Seidman Park
This Ada hiking trail is a network of three interconnected trail loops that wind through wooded hills, around ponds, and through wetlands. The trail is well-worn and easy to navigate in all seasons. Each loop is about a mile long, and the different routes let you adjust how long of a hike to take. There are two different parking lots, with the south lot connecting to the Paved Ada Township Trail.
Features:
- Interconnected loops
- Creek
- Lakes
- Bridges
- Benches
- Restrooms
- Leashed dogs allowed
Millennium Park
The large and popular Millennium Park in Walker boasts the Fred Meijer Millennium Trail Network, a hiking holy grail with over 18 miles of trails. The trails are mostly paved, but there are plenty that has natural-surfaced trails for a more traditional hike. This is one of the best hiking areas in Grand Rapids
The trails run along the Grand River and around the many lakes and recreational areas of Millennium Park. A trailhead on the northeast of the park is a great place to start, but most of the trails are accessible from one of Millennium Park’s many parking areas.
If you’re looking for some easier trails to explore, Millennium Park has you covered! Don’t let its popularity scare you away – with so many miles of trails, you can still enjoy the great outdoors without rubbing elbows with other hikers.
Features:
- Interconnected Loops
- Restrooms
- Paved trails
- Leashed dogs allowed
- Benches
- Bridges
- Lakes
- River
Prairie Wolf Park
Prairie Wolf Park is another great Grand Rapids hiking park with loops that are flat and paved and others that are hilly, wooded, and natural. Many of the trails overlook meadows and go through wooded areas. The popular route through the interconnected trails is about 1.5 miles long. Children will love the large wolf statue near the start of the trails as well as the boardwalk crossing a pond that is often full of turtles and frogs in the spring and summer.
Features:
- Paved trails
- Natural trails
- Picnic tables
- Benches
- Pond
- Creek
Aman Park
This West Grand Rapids park is only seven miles from downtown, but once you hit the trails you’ll feel like you’ve completely left the city behind. It has six interconnected trail loops ranging from a mile to 1.5 miles that meander along Sand Creek and through wooded bluffs. Aman Park is a beautiful fall Grand Rapids hike, with the trees dropping their leaves in the creek and carrying them downstream at peak color.
Being so close to the creek Aman Park can be buggy in the summer, so don’t forget the bug spray.
Features:
- Interconnected loops
- Natural trails
- Picnic tables
- Bathrooms
- Creek
Grand Ravines
One of the best fall hikes around Grand Rapids, Grand Ravines lives up to its name. Paved trails wind around glacier-formed ravines, and natural trails cut through them. There are plenty of Insta-worthy overlooks with views of the Grand River and a unique pedestrian suspension bridge.
Grand Ravines is also a terrific trail to bring your leashed dog on. Near the south parking lot is an enclosed dog park, and a dog wash station to use after a nice hike with your pup.
Features:
- Paved trails
- Natural trails
- Enclosed dog park
- Dog washing station
- Restrooms
- River
- Suspension bridge
Looking for more outdoor Grand Rapids adventures? Check out our Parks in Grand Rapids article.
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Skyler Latshaw
Skyler has called West Michigan home for over a decade. He loves to spend his mornings hiking local trails, afternoons taking his son to a playground, and evenings around a campfire or playing games with friends.
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Skyler Latshaw#molongui-disabled-link
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Skyler Latshaw#molongui-disabled-link
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Skyler Latshaw#molongui-disabled-link
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Skyler Latshaw#molongui-disabled-link
