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Raccoon River Valley Trail

2021 Rail-Trail Hall of Fame Inductee

The Raccoon River Valley Trail is an 89-mile multi-use recreational trail that extends from Clive, in the Des Moines metropolitan area, to Jefferson. In 2013, the 33-mile-long “North Loop,” was completed, adding the communities of Dallas Center, Minburn, Perry, Dawson, and Jamaica and creating a 77-mile complete loop that some riders can do in one day.

 

In 2015, the trail was named one of 5 new "Iowa Great Places" by the Department of Cultural Affairs and in 2021, the trail was inducted into the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC), the nation’s largest trails organization, after the trail secured a record-breaking number of public votes during the annual contest.

The trail winds its way through the Middle and North Raccoon River corridors with area of prairie and canopies of timber that remind us of what Iowa was like in the 1870s. From the trailhead in Waukee going west, you will experience the communities of Dallas, Guthrie, and Greene counties. Going east, the RRVT connects with the extensive trail system in Iowa’s capital city of Des Moines.

 

Annual activities on the trail include the "Market to Market Relay/Iowa" in May and the "BACooN Ride" in June.  Each of these events bring anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 riders to the RRVT.   

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Established

1989

 

Web

raccoonrivervalleytrail.org

 

Distance

89 miles of paved trail

 

Surface

Concrete or asphalt

 

Grade

1 to 2%

 

Fees

$2 daily pass

$10 season pass

17 & Under is free

 

Counties

Guthrie, Greene, and Dallas

 

Events

"Market to Market Relay/Iowa"

BACooN Ride

 

Towns

Jefferson

Cooper

Herndon

Panora

Linden

Redfield

Adel

Waukee

Dallas Center

Minburn

Perry

Dawson

Jamaica

 

Points of Interest

Mahanay Carillon Tower

600-foot High Trestle Trail Bridge

Guthrie County Historical Village

Hanging Rock Park

Dallas County Courthouse

Waukee Trailhead

The Nineteen 14

Hotel Pattee

Caboose Park

Dawson Depot

 

 

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