Explore the best rated trails in Utica, NY, whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Verona Beach State Park Rail Trail and Oswego County Trail . With more than 13 trails covering 404 miles you're bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Rode through the state park with a rigid 29” mountain bike for a slow day ride. The brush-hogged trails I found to be exceptional. They are fairly wide and have some low spots with water. It is just rugged enough to give you good woodland immersion, but smooth enough where you don’t have to hike-a-bike a lot because of water or trail construction. Signs/arrows are posted at most intersections along with a few trail head maps at the start. Would highly recommend if you are looking for a “hiking trail” you can ride on.
About a 45 minute ride on the Erie Canal path ,starting at the Medina lift bridge, through farmland and villages (Middleport, Gasport) herons that are absolutely not afraid of you! Beautiful in the fall!
Starting in Colonie in the parking lot on rt9 it was a great ride headed towards Schenectady. Smooth paved surface. A little on a local road but minimal car traffic and clearly marked. Plenty of bench’s and stopping areas along the way.
We started from the Fulton end. We only did 5 miles and then turned around. A few times it was necessary to walk our bikes through sections.
Did a small section from Jordan to Solvay. Nice Ride about 14.5 miles on a cooler sunny day. Muddy in a couple spots. Hope to complete more sections soon ¿¿¿
Rode this trail on 10/11. Beautiful day. I wish I could say that for the trail. Who ever maintains the trail, doesn't. I started at the Boonville end and the trail kept getting rougher and rougher, more like a truck trail with rocks sticking up. Plenty of puddles toward the Forestport end. The trail shook my bike so hard I had to stop on the way back to tighten my mirror and cyclometer. I have ridden this bike over 1400 miles on trails and never had this problem. Perhaps on a full suspension mountain bike it would be better. I normally ride a towpath at 13 - 17 MPH. I was below 10 most of the time and my hands were still numb. The two stars is because of the scenery.
Oswego County Trail starting in Central Square and heading East toward Sylvan Beach. If you enjoy riding a combination gravel pit/mud bog through swamps and what smells like a sewage treatment plant this trail is for you! We rode 20 miles dodging mud pits and ATVs but that was easy because there was really no interesting scenery to distract us from the trail. The abandoned playground was mildly creepy and the outhouse was too sketchy for me (and I grew up with outdoor facilities) so we kept going. The trail was so rough parts of my bike rattled loose but I wanted to decrease the bike weight anyway (silver lining am I right?). We actually left the trail in Constanta so we could look at the lake. The 10 miles of trail crossed 10 roads so if you enjoyed playing Frogger in the 80s you will LOVE this ride. All in all I give this trail one star because it is actually a trail and it is well marked. There is no parking at the trail head so you have to ask a nearby business if you can leave the car in their lot while you ride.
Parked at west Monroe park off rt 49, road to where the entrance to Sand Bar is. 11.27 miles out and back. It was flat but did have a lot of soft gravel areas. I would recommend it.
On August 12, 2022 I rode my bicycle on the Erie Canalway trail from Port Byron to the Erie Canal Park and Museum in Camillus (which is on the trail) and back, approximately 19 miles each way. It was a dry, sunny day in the 80’s. The surface was mostly crushed gravel and packed earth with a few stretches on asphalt in the breakdown lane of some local roads where the trail diverged from the canal. The condition was good to excellent except for the final short stretch near Camillus which was unacceptable because erosion in two areas created the dangerous possibility of falling into the canal and because the trail was too narrow for two bikes in opposite directions to safely pass each other. For this small section, I recommend riding on the local road on the other side of the concrete barrier dividing this path from the local road. The surface on this local road was only fair secondary to potholes and cracks in the asphalt.
The museum in the Camillus Erie Canal Park is open 12-4 PM on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday and is open from 1-5 PM on Sunday. Most sections of the Erie Canalway Trail from Port Byron to Camillus run along a non-navigable branch of the Erie Canal which is very shallow and is overgrown with algae or cattail plants or is filled in with dirt. Other sections go through wooded areas, rural areas, farmland and the small town of Weedsport.
Road stretch of trail from Canastota to Route 290 trail head and return. Total 28.6 miles. Trail in great condition but stretches of Erie Canal are still standing/ stagnant algae. It was 90+ degrees. Lovely gift of a case of cold water at 290 trail head. The surprise gift was much needed by riders/runners. Posting this to keep track of completed sections as I don’t see that feature on trail link. Perhaps it will be added.
Tuesday June 28, 2022. Clear skies, temps in the mid-80's.
I knew nothing about this area before driving an hour and 50 minutes to the large nice parking lot across from a factory in the middle section of the trail. It surprised me. The other commenters are correct, but I will NEVER complain about any paved, off-road trail. FJ&G is decently paved, has varied scenery and is mostly flat. It even passes several stores where you can buy food and drink if needed, something not easily found on more than 100 other other rail trails I have ridden.
You will see old large, abandoned factory buildings, also not often seen on most rail trails. These were/are working class areas that have changed in the digital age. I found it very interesting and because it is close to the Mohawk River and the Hudson in Albany, I think it might be a nice place to live. Anyway, it was a good ride and worth a drive to get there, thought I did bundle it with another shorter nearby trail in Ballston Lake.
Happy Trails!
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!
Scan the QR code to get TrailLink on your phone
