Hiking trails near Mount Sterling, Kentucky

46 official trails lie within 25 miles of Mount Sterling — 197 miles in total, 30 rated easy and 4 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 641 ft; the median trail gains 295 ft.

Open the map on Mount Sterling

24 trails worth the drive

Trail	Miles	Climb	Difficulty	Drive from town
Buckskin	9.7	403 ft	Hard	1 h 03 min · 35 mi
Sand Gap No. 5	5.6	447 ft	Hard	45 min · 32 mi
Rough	4.2	490 ft	Hard	49 min · 34 mi
Cave Run	3.8	502 ft	Moderate	54 min · 32 mi
White Sulphur	4.1	373 ft	Moderate	41 min · 27 mi
Hood's Branch No. 6	3.0	487 ft	Moderate	45 min · 32 mi
Slate Creek	28.8	147 ft	Moderate	15 min · 8 mi
Caney	5.7	143 ft	Moderate	41 min · 28 mi
Leatherwood Loop	5.0	315 ft	Moderate	47 min · 30 mi
Hog Pen	3.0	486 ft	Moderate	23 mi (straight-line)
Powdermill Branch	2.3	556 ft	Moderate	19 mi (straight-line)
Lakeview Ridge	2.4	469 ft	Moderate	42 min · 30 mi
Cross Over	3.2	398 ft	Moderate	22 mi (straight-line)
Raven Rock Trail	1.8	574 ft	Easy	51 min · 35 mi
Sage Point Trail	1.9	485 ft	Easy	31 min · 16 mi
Horse Trail 10	2.3	315 ft	Easy	40 min · 22 mi
Rock Garden No. 4	1.5	271 ft	Easy	45 min · 32 mi
Buck Creek	3.1	328 ft	Easy	40 min · 27 mi
Oscar Geralds Jr. Trail	1.2	641 ft	Moderate	31 min · 16 mi
Auxier Ridge	2.1	240 ft	Easy	1 h 01 min · 36 mi
Court House Rock	2.0	321 ft	Easy	1 h 01 min · 36 mi
Double Arch	2.2	263 ft	Easy	1 h 01 min · 36 mi
Cave Run Lake	2.5	295 ft	Easy	48 min · 31 mi
Horse Trail 7	2.2	290 ft	Easy	45 min · 24 mi

Quick picks near Mount Sterling

Easy and short: Raven Rock Trail — 1.8 mi, rated easy, 22 mi from town
Biggest climb: Oscar Geralds Jr. Trail — 641 ft over 1.2 mi, 11 mi from town
Longest: Slate Creek — 28.8 mi, 5 mi from town

What the trails reach

Summits: Buckskin to Alum Knob; Sage Point Trail to Sage Point; Oscar Geralds Jr. Trail to Pilot Knob; Auxier Ridge to Courthouse Rock

Lakes: Lakeview Ridge to Giant Canada Goose Pond

Viewpoints: Rough to Gray's Arch; Lakeview Ridge to Shallow Flats Wildlife Viewing Area; Rock Garden No. 4 to Battleship Rock; Auxier Ridge to Courthouse Rock

Rock formations: Rough to Grays Arch; Hood's Branch No. 6 to Natural Bridge; Raven Rock Trail to Ravens Rock; Rock Garden No. 4 to Owls Window

Trail guides near Mount Sterling

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 · 27 mi away
Red Loop Trail (Raven Run Nature Sanctuary) — 3.8 mi, 277 ft climb · 27 mi away
Sheltowee Trace — 214.5 mi, 839 ft climb · 36 mi away

Nearby towns: Lexington (28 mi) · Morehead (29 mi) · Richmond (30 mi) · Frankfort (51 mi)

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