Hiking trails near Morehead, Kentucky

53 official trails lie within 25 miles of Morehead — 398 miles in total, 34 rated easy and 5 hard or expert. Every distance and elevation figure below is computed from the agency centerline and a 10 m elevation model, not crowd-sourced.

The biggest climb nearby gains 839 ft; the median trail gains 295 ft.

Open the map on Morehead

24 trails worth the drive

Trail	Miles	Climb	Difficulty	Drive from town
Sheltowee Trace	214.5	839 ft	Expert	35 min · 19 mi
Buckskin	9.7	403 ft	Hard	58 min · 27 mi
Kiser Hollow	7.7	300 ft	Hard	51 min · 31 mi
Tygarts Creek	20.9	138 ft	Hard	33 min · 20 mi
4C'S	4.1	320 ft	Moderate	50 min · 26 mi
Three Bridges	3.7	153 ft	Moderate	51 min · 34 mi
Cave Run	3.8	502 ft	Moderate	49 min · 23 mi
White Sulphur	4.1	373 ft	Moderate	36 min · 19 mi
Slate Creek	28.8	147 ft	Moderate	45 min · 32 mi
Caney	5.7	143 ft	Moderate	24 min · 12 mi
Sheltowee Trace Trail #100	3.7	382 ft	Moderate	31 min · 15 mi
Leatherwood Loop	5.0	315 ft	Moderate	42 min · 22 mi
Hog Pen	3.0	486 ft	Moderate	9 mi (straight-line)
Lakeview Ridge	2.4	469 ft	Moderate	25 min · 14 mi
Cross Over	3.2	398 ft	Moderate	9 mi (straight-line)
Lick Falls Loop	2.9	177 ft	Moderate	57 min · 34 mi
Api-Su-Ahts Hiking Trail Loop 1	2.0	479 ft	Easy	49 min · 31 mi
Horse Trail 48	2.7	242 ft	Moderate	52 min · 27 mi
Big Limestone	1.7	575 ft	Easy	10 min · 5 mi
Grayson Horseback Trail	2.5	335 ft	Easy	1 h 10 min · 36 mi
Martins Branch	1.5	495 ft	Easy	3 mi (straight-line)
Lost Branch Trail	1.6	480 ft	Easy	1 h 11 min · 36 mi
Buck Creek	3.1	328 ft	Easy	35 min · 19 mi
Horse Trail 49	2.2	321 ft	Easy	54 min · 28 mi

Quick picks near Morehead

Easy and short: Api-Su-Ahts Hiking Trail Loop 1 — 2.0 mi, rated easy, 23 mi from town
Biggest climb: Sheltowee Trace — 839 ft over 214.5 mi, 14 mi from town
Longest: Sheltowee Trace — 214.5 mi, 14 mi from town

What the trails reach

Waterfalls: Lick Falls Loop to Lick Falls

Summits: Sheltowee Trace to Limestone Knob; Buckskin to Alum Knob; Tygarts Creek to Hocks Nest; Tater Knob Connector to Tater Knob

Lakes: 4C'S to Smoky Valley Lake; Three Bridges to Smoky Valley Lake; Lakeview Ridge to Giant Canada Goose Pond

Viewpoints: Sheltowee Trace to Indian Staircase; Lakeview Ridge to Shallow Flats Wildlife Viewing Area

Mountain passes: Sheltowee Trace to The Narrows

Rock formations: Sheltowee Trace to Balanced Rock

Trail guides near Morehead

Osborne Bend Loop — 6.7 mi, 503 ft climb · 26 mi away
Red River — 21.1 mi, 201 ft climb · 26 mi away
Swift Camp Creek — 6.7 mi, 398 ft climb · 28 mi away
Court House Rock — 2.0 mi, 321 ft climb · 28 mi away
Rough — 4.2 mi, 490 ft climb · 28 mi away
Auxier Ridge — 2.1 mi, 240 ft climb · 28 mi away
Double Arch — 2.2 mi, 263 ft climb · 28 mi away
Rock Garden No. 4 — 1.5 mi, 271 ft climb · 31 mi away
Carpenter's Run — 12.8 mi, 346 ft climb · 36 mi away
Pdht 10 21 08 — 6.4 mi, 369 ft climb · 37 mi away
Michael Tygart Loop — 8.0 mi, 371 ft climb · 37 mi away

Nearby towns: Mount Sterling (28 mi) · Portsmouth (47 mi) · Ironton (48 mi) · Lexington (56 mi)

All Kentucky trail guides · Hiking by city · Dispersed camping rules