Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… We are lucky to live in a city with such a great parks system! I love the Grand Rounds Trail System and really appreciate the different benefits it offers. Whether you’re using the byway for commuting or recreational activity it really is one of the best networks of trails in the Country! With all of the scenery available like city attractions, lakes, rivers and wooded areas there really is no shortage of things to see. There are plenty of parks to stop at along the way and wonderful restaurants through out no matter which direction you are going. The whole system basically circles around the entire city with a total of 50.1 miles. If you don’t have a bike, don’t worry about it there are plenty of rentals available through Wheel 2 Fun or the Nice Ride kiosks which are just about everywhere in the city now days. No matter what part of town you live in the trail is probably close by, check out the map below and go for a ride!

The Grand Rounds trails perfectly compliment other multi-​use paths and are particularly useful for getting around the city by bike. The Minnehaha Byway runs parallel to the Midtown Greenway 20 blocks south, so if there’s someplace that’s a bit too far from there you can probably use this for easier access (the 48^th & Chicago business district comes to mind). You do have to stop at some intersections since it runs at street level at times, but it’s very woodsy along Minnehaha Creek and I used it for the first time to go from Lake Nokomis to the Chain of Lakes stretch which is scenic, to say the least and riding along the Mississippi is too and takes you to West Bank, Downtown, and St Anthony Main if you cross the bridge, and it evens connects you to the trails over in St Paul. Cities much larger than Mpls can’t come close to boasting the ratio of bike trails available city-​wide which are within a stone’s throw of tons of destinations and it’s all but impossible not to find yourself using a stretch of these trails if you bike around the city regularly. Truly a world-​class trail system.