Hiking trails near Jefferson City, Missouri

40 official trails lie within 25 miles of Jefferson City — 122 miles in total, 31 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 283 ft; the median trail gains 88 ft.

Open the map on Jefferson City

24 trails worth the drive

Trail	Miles	Climb	Difficulty	Drive from town
Cedar Creek - South	18.9	283 ft	Hard	38 min · 23 mi
Gans Creek Wild Area Trail	8.8	193 ft	Hard	37 min · 29 mi
Moreau Creek Trail	8.6	160 ft	Hard	31 min · 18 mi
Greenway Bike Trail	8.7	228 ft	Hard	7 min · 3 mi
Cedar Creek Trail - Smith Cree	6.0	208 ft	Moderate	37 min · 23 mi
Spring Brook Trail	3.4	144 ft	Moderate	39 min · 30 mi
Cedar Creek Trail - The Moon	4.5	135 ft	Moderate	37 min · 28 mi
Deer Run Trail	4.0	131 ft	Moderate	40 min · 31 mi
Turkey Creek Interpretive Nature Trail	3.0	146 ft	Moderate	39 min · 27 mi
High Ridge Trail	2.0	142 ft	Easy	37 min · 29 mi
Twisted Sister	3.7	97 ft	Easy	15 min · 9 mi
Sinkhole Trail	2.1	136 ft	Easy	37 min · 29 mi
Discovery Ridge Trail	4.1	68 ft	Easy	34 min · 28 mi
Cedar Creek Trail - South	1.6	140 ft	Easy	31 min · 20 mi
Mind the Gap	2.1	62 ft	Easy	18 min · 9 mi
Burkside Trail	1.8	95 ft	Easy	32 min · 25 mi
Stinson Creek Trail	3.0	78 ft	Easy	33 min · 25 mi
Grassland Trail	2.2	61 ft	Easy	39 min · 29 mi
Problem Child	1.5	88 ft	Easy	15 min · 9 mi
Rock Garden	1.4	81 ft	Easy	18 min · 9 mi
Gans Creek Cross Country Course	2.1	38 ft	Easy	34 min · 28 mi
Thread the Needle	1.5	73 ft	Easy	17 min · 9 mi
Cedar Creek Trail - South Moon Loop	1.6	78 ft	Easy	42 min · 27 mi
St. Aubert's Island Trail	1.0	115 ft	Easy	59 min · 29 mi

Quick picks near Jefferson City

Easy and short: High Ridge Trail — 2.0 mi, rated easy, 23 mi from town
Longest: Cedar Creek - South — 18.9 mi, 16 mi from town

What the trails reach

Lakes: Moreau Creek Trail to Winegar Lake; Twisted Sister to Binder Lake; South Providence Trail to Smith Lake

Viewpoints: St. Aubert's Island Trail to Bluff Overlook

Rock formations: Spring Brook Trail to Rock Bridge; Sinkhole Trail to Rock Bridge

Trail guides near Jefferson City

Spring Creek Gap Conservation Area Trail — 7.5 mi, 300 ft climb · 35 mi away
Bittersweet Trail — 9.5 mi, 173 ft climb · 39 mi away

Nearby towns: Fulton (23 mi) · Columbia (27 mi) · Boonville (41 mi) · Sullivan (60 mi)

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