We have always enjoyed biking as a family! St. Louis is a good spot to do just that. From the greenway system to many trails, there is a lot to explore and enjoy.
Best Family Bike Trails in St. Louis
Great River Greenways
Have you heard of the Great River Greenway system here in St. Louis? It is an incredible system of trails that connects St. Louis City, St. Louis County and St. Charles County. There are 135 miles of trails built so far, with another 200 miles in planning. The greenways are a wonderful way to get outside in nature, without being on a busy street with traffic. I’ve always felt safer riding on a greenway because I don’t have to worry about my kids biking along cars. They are mostly flat trails too, which makes it very kid-friendly.
Here are three greenway trails that I recommend biking as a family:
Meramec River Greenway
We love parking at Simpson Lake (1234 Marshall Rd, Valley Park, MO 63088). Simpson Lake Park is a 72-acre lake in St. Louis County. There is a trail that goes halfway around the lake. We love the playground along the trail too! After exploring this part, we bike across the street to ride along the Meramec River Greenway.
The Meramec River Greenway is 5.1 miles long, paved and flat. It connects two parks: Unger Park and George Winter Park. The trail is shaded and offers great views of the Meramec River!
Fee Fee Greenway
This nearly 3 mile greenway connects to Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park in Maryland Heights. You can park at the Aquaport at Maryland Heights Community Center and ride to the most Northern part of the lake (off of Marine Avenue)! Creve Coeur Lake is 320 acres and is one of the largest natural lakes in Missouri. There is an almost 4 mile flat & paved loop around the lake, which is just gorgeous. This area is great to walk or bike around. If you can time to bike around just before sunset, it is so peaceful with the colors reflecting on the lake.
We also love renting the Quadicycle or kayaks at the Creve Coeur Canoe Rental shop. There are three playgrounds, a ropes course and the unpaved Bootlegger’s trail in the upper part of the park. In addition, Dripping Springs waterfall is a sight to see after a good rain or in the winter with lots of icicles (see picture below of the frozen waterfall)! Basically, I’m obsessed with this area and it is a huge bonus to be a good spot for family-friendly biking too!
Marshall Pump Track (Deer Creek Greenway)
The Deer Creek Greenway in Webster Groves begins at Deer Creek “Rocketship” park and goes for about 2 miles. My favorite feature along this route is the Marshall Pump Track! It is a small pump track that is paved and perfect for kids. It is not too overwhelming, as it is a small track with not too much of an incline. My 2yo, 4yo and 6yo all loved this and were able to ride their balance bikes. This is a 2 acre park with a parking lot, pavilion, water fountain and bike fix-it station. A lot of times, we will just park at the pump track to bike and then pack up for home. But, it is fun having the option to continue on the greenway if we would like to!
In addition to the greenway system, some of our parks have great paved trails that make it family-friendly for biking.
370 Lakeside Park
One of my favorites is 370 Lakeside Park! This is St. Peter’s largest park (at 300 acres). It has a 4.4 mile paved trail around the park. It is such a good biking trail and not too hilly. The trail is wide and has great views of the lake and wildlife. There is a marsh area and lots of trees too, which just makes it so peaceful! In addition to the trail, there is a small playground and splash area, RV park, dog park and pavilions. You can also fish and rent kayaks & canoes! So much to explore here!
Kinetic Park
This is a new-to-us park that we discovered a couple of months ago!! Located in Dardenne Prairie, this area has a 33,000-square foot skate course (largest in Missouri!!), an asphalt pump track, a rock climbing wall and a bike skills course. Admission to the park is free and it is open year round. They have different sections depending on your ability level and it seems to be targeted to older kids. My kids prefer to bring their scooters here on the skate course (skateboards, bikes and scooters are allowed here) because the bike seems to be a little more tricky with the steep inclines (in comparison to the Marshall pump track which is more gradual and targeted for younger kids).
Overall, our family has really enjoyed all of these free areas around St. Louis to explore and bike together. There are many more that come to my mind as I’m typing this too!! How cool is it that we live in a city that values a great greenway and trail system?! Thank you, St. Louis! Happy exploring, everyone! Do you enjoy hiking? Here is another blog post about Hiking in St. Louis
