Established in 1956, National Bike Month is a chance to showcase the many benefits of bicycling — and encourage more folks to giving biking a try. Bike to Work Week 2021 will take place May 17-23, 2021 and Bike to Work Day is on Friday, May 21!
If you are into biking, here are some bike trails in Houston that you might want to get familiarized with if you are looking to buy a home and be conveniently located by the trail.
Here are some of the most popular bike trails in Houston and the distance to complete it.
Memorial Park Trails
[Course distance: 10+ miles]
The park’s crushed-granite Seymour Lieberman jogging trail, now an honest three miles, is a runner’s low-impact dream, complete with workout track, brand-new bathrooms, and watering stations. Hardcore trail runners and mountain bikers love the seven-mile “Ho Chi Minh Trail,” which winds along Buffalo Bayou in all its overgrown glory—and yes, there are snakes. Elsewhere hardcore cyclists use the paved picnic area as a practice loop, and hikers flock to the peaceful Arboretum for three miles of shady, indigenous plants, bats, birds, and even a gator.
Brays Bayou Hike & Bike Trail
[Course distance: 18+ miles]
This is the longest of all greenways in Houston—soon clocking in at 35 miles—making it perfect for long-distance runners and cyclists. There’s much to see along the way. In the east you’ll pass gems including the historic Gus Wortham Golf Course, The Orange Show, and Gragg Park. In the Third Ward, connect to the Columbia Tap hike-and-bike trail and ride through the TSU campus. And come 2020, you’ll be able to do a dim sum bike tour of Asiatown, thanks to the trail’s westward expansion.
Terry Hershey Park Hike & Bike Trail
[Course distance: 10+ miles]
Located along Buffalo Bayou between the Beltway and Highway 6, this incredible gateway to Houston nature boasts some of our greatest hike-and-bike trails. The Quail Trail—a shady, lightly hilly paved path stretching from Eldridge Parkway to Wilcrest—is perfect for both walkers and cyclists, and eventually connects to George Bush Park. Mountain bikers prefer the dirt-path “anthills” through the woods along the bayou.
George Bush Park Hike & Bike Trail
[Course distance: 11+ miles]
Don’t get scared if you hear heavy artillery—that would be the shooting range at the Energy Corridor–area park, located inside the Barker Reservoir. It just makes the place all the more Texan, right? Runners can get away from the park’s bike-centric paved path by opting for a loop around the lush grass near the epic Millie Bush Dog Park—named, of course, for Barbara and George H.W. Bush’s deceased springer spaniel—or the soccer complex (hello, bathrooms).
Buffalo Bayou Park
[Course distance: 5 miles]
What’s not to love about our hike-and-bike trail nestled up against downtown, home to the Waugh Bat Colony, the Cistern, the Johnny Steele Dog Park, a skate park, and one of the best restaurants in town, The Kitchen at the Dunlavy? This destination is as popular among bikers, runners, and walkers as among lovebirds on dates and families exploring the great outdoors. All will want to stop for selfies with the skyline and the park’s amazing public art.
White Oak Bayou Hike & Bike at TC Jester Park
[Course distance: 15 miles]
TC Jester Park in Oak Forest is a great launching point for running along White Oak Bayou. There’s a dog park, the EZ-7 skatepark, baseball fields, a frisbee golf course, and loads of locals getting their steps in on the park’s mile-long granite trail. Take that north, then hop onto the paved trail—watch out for cyclists—and you’ll hit the Watonga Bridge Bat Colony (1.5 miles away). Head south to connect to the Heights Hike and Bike Trail (8 miles away).
Heights Hike-and-Bike Trail
[Course distance: 5 miles]
Built on top of a former Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line, this path, also called the MKT Trail, connects the Heights to UH Downtown. Daily, hundreds of walkers, joggers, cyclists, and bike commuters take advantage of the vital shortcut the path offers between the East and West ends of the White Oak Bayou Greenway. But there are other reasons to appreciate it—fireflies near Lawrence Park, a safe walk home from Postino or Target, and an easy hop onto the Paul Carr Jogging Trail on Heights Boulevard among them.
Lake Houston Wilderness Park Trails
[Course distance: 30 miles]
It’s not actually located on Lake Houston, but the 5,000-acre, city-owned park—30 minutes north of downtown, off US 59—does have its own lovely waterway, Peach Creek, and offers an abundance of natural, leafy, out-and-back trails. Start with the Ameri-Trail, a nearly eight-mile roundtrip run that delivers all the wilderness you can handle, plus beachy pit stops along the creek. If you’d like, turn around at the halfway point—which, fair warning, is easy to miss. Watch out for rogue mountain bikers muddier than Rambo in First Blood. $3 entry fee.
Hermann Park Trail
[Course distance: 2 miles]
The park’s two-mile, crushed-granite Marvin Taylor Exercise Trail will take you past the Houston Zoo, the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and Miller Outdoor Theatre (hello, short hill repeats), under the shade of beautiful, moss-adorned oaks for much of the way. Want more distance? Hop across Main Street to run the adjacent three-mile Rice University Loop—if you like dream homes, it’s one of the most magical trails in all of Houston.
White Oak Bayou Greenway trail
[Course distance: 16.0 miles]
White Oak Bayou Greenway is also the first paved bayou greenway to boast a complete mile marker system, and travels from NW Houston to downtown Houston. It starts at the bayou’s confluence with Buffalo Bayou at Allen’s Landing and ends at to the Hollister Detention Basin at the city limits with little to no elevation. Some of the sights that you will encounter include Watonga Parkway Park (home to one of Houston’s largest bat roosts), T.C. Jester Park, Stude Park, White Oak Park, and Hogg Park. The White Oak Bayou Greenway trail also intersects with the Houston Heights Hike and Bike Trail three times, passing through the historic Heights and Woodland Heights communities.
About ApexPro Real Estate
ApexPro Real Estate Group is a full-service real estate brokerage specializing in single family and attached Houston residential properties throughout Houston and the surrounding areas. We are a privately-held small business that brings together top agents, cutting-edge technology, and unparalleled service to help clients throughout Houston to buy and sell real estate — and enjoy themselves every step along the way. Our client reviews are exhibits our dedication to help our clients extends beyond the closing table and we would love to earn your business.