Map: 16 Backyard Epics That Prove Everywhere is Hiking Country
You don't always need to go far to go big. Case in point: these stunning hikes, all within a day trip of a major metropolitan area.
St. Louis Trails
St. Louis, MO: Hidden Wonders (Taum Sauk Mountain State Park)
See Missouri's tallest waterfall and stand on its tallest peak on this overnight on the Taum Sauk section of the Ozark Trail. BY MARK HINCH
St. Louis, MO: A River Runs Through It (Eleven Point Section of the Ozark Trail)
Notch the prettiest section of the Ozark Trail on this overnight along the Eleven Point River. BY SAVANNAH WASZCZUK
Weekends: Bell Mountain Loop, Bell Mountain Wilderness, Missouri
Wander through three-season wildflowers on this overnight.
St. Louis: Dark Hollow
This remote valley in Mark Twain National Forest is often overlooked, but it's a great escape for hikers willing to bushwhack along and through its streams to huge granite walls.
St. Louis, MO: Taum Sauk Mountain
This rugged 11.2-mile out-and-back on the Ozark Trail winds through the volcanic uplift of the St. Francois range to Missouri's highest peak and tallest waterfall.
St. Louis: Wilderness Trail
This 9-mile lollipop loop is an adventurer's delight: scenic bluffs, spring-fed streams, quiet campsites, and--for those who dare--an elusive limestone cavern.
St. Louis: Lewis and Clark Trail
This 8.5-mile loop climbs to rugged bluffs and views of the Missouri River and its bluffs, then rolls through cool hollows in Weldon Spring Conservation Area.
St. Louis: Millstream Gardens Conservation Area
This 6-mile out-and-back offers commanding views from bluffs overlooking the St. Francis River and passes remnants of an old mining operation.
St. Louis: Ozark Trail-Marble Creek
This 8.8-miler takes you deep into Ozark backcountry, where deer and turkey outnumber hikers.
St. Louis: Siloam Springs State Park
This 7.3-mile ramble along a serene stream, by old settler ruins, and thorough big woods illustrates why this pocket park is considered one of the most beautiful in Illinois.
St. Louis: Frenchmans Bluff Loop
This easy 5-mile adventure takes you above rugged, staircase-like bluffs, then down into the hushed hollows of Cuivre River State Park.
St. Louis: Fern Hollow Goat Cliff Loop
On this 6.8-mile loop, you'll find reclaimed prairies, sacred Indian grounds, and scenic overlooks of the lakes and rivers surrounding St. Louis.
St. Louis: Grant's Trail
Introduce the kids to mass transit, then hike to President Grant's Farm (zebras, horses) on this gentle 6.4-miler.
St. Louis: Panther Den Loop
Explore ridges, evergreen forests, and odd rock formations on this 4.3-mile dayhike through the smallest wilderness in Shawnee National Forest.
St. Louis, MO: Shoreline Trail
This 3.4-mile out-and-back in the heart of Missouri's Little Dixie region travels the wavy, wooded banks of a 205-acre lake.
St. Louis, MO: McCully Wetland Trail
Scope for wildlife on bluffs high above the Illinois River on this easy 3-mile loop hike.
St. Louis, MO: Bell Smith Springs Loop
Whet your feet--and your appetite for nature--on this moderate 3.6-mile loop in Illinois' Shawnee National Forest with two creek fords, year-round wildflowers and soaring fern-covered cliffs.
St. Louis, MO: Kinkaid Lake
Traversing trickling falls, spongy boulders, and finger coves along Kinkaid Lake's western shore, this 9.2-mile out-and-back ends high above the lake—and leaves you dry.
St. Louis, MO: Sam Dale Conservation Area
An easy, family-friendly dayhike, this 2.8-mile loop tours the mature forests and wildlife-festooned shores of the Sam Dale Lake Conservation Area.
St. Louis, MO: Pere Marquette
An exposed fault above the Illinois River and 30-mile views of St. Louis make this 3.5-mile loop in Illinois' largest state park a worthwhile escape from the Gateway City.
St. Louis, MO: Walkers Island
Birders take note: The shallow depths of Horseshoe Lake and the grain-rich fields of Walkers Island attract an unusually wide range of feathered fliers to this 3.8-mile loop just outside St. Louis.
Springfield, IL: Beaver Dam Lake
Explore a 59-acre lake and get a bird's-eye view of a buzzing wetland on this 2.9-mile hike through an historic state park in central Illinois.
St. Louis, MO: Emmenegger Nature Park
Escape the hustle of city life on this quiet, 1.4-mile loop in Emmenegger Nature Park that climbs a riverside bluff overlooking the Meramec River.