Top Kid-Friendly Trailside Places to Pedal With Your Preschooler
If you’ve ever taken a bike ride with a young child, this will sound familiar: You arrive at the trailhead and unload the car, get everyone strapped into helmets and bike seats, and set off down your favorite rail-trail—but before you’ve made it a few miles, your small passenger is squirming and inquiring incessantly about snacks.
Frequent pit stops are a fact of life when raising young riders, but not all stops are created equal. These family-friendly children’s museums, nature centers and parks offer a chance for kids to stretch their legs and burn off some energy while having fun and—in most cases—learning something, too.
For some, a great day on a bike is all about the trail. For others, it’s about where the trail leads. At these trailside destinations, it can be both, and you can plan a trail trip the whole family will enjoy.
ECHO (Burlington, Vermont)
The Island Line Rail Trail of Burlington, Vermont, offers a spectacular experience. The railbed it follows was constructed at the turn of the 20th century, and the ambitious project traversed Lake Champlain via a stone causeway. Today, the causeway is the centerpiece of the 13.4-mile rail-trail that hugs the lakeside before jutting out into the center of the lake, offering stunning views of the Adirondacks and Green Mountains.
While the causeway is a can’t-miss destination, so is ECHO, a huge science and nature museum on the Burlington waterfront, directly alongside the trail. There are hands-on and interactive exhibits, and an aquarium area where kids can get up close and personal with the inhabitants of Lake Champlain (including, of course, its famed cryptid, Champ).
Bike racks are located along the side of the building, and along the waterfront across from the main entrance.
Savannah Children’s Museum (Savannah, Georgia)
Savannah is working to expand its network of bike paths, and the Tide to Town project, when completed, will connect close to 30 miles of multiuse path and rail-trail. The port city was a major 19th-century transportation hub, and it has a long and storied railroad history. Adjacent to the Georgia State Railroad Museum, in a railyard once owned by Central of Georgia Railway, is the Savannah Children’s Museum.
The mostly outdoor museum features a large exploration maze, maker spaces, a garden and nature kitchen, and a puppet theatre. Inside, get lost (in a good way) in an 1,800-square foot mirror maze. The museum hosts daily programs including STEAM workshops and storytime.
Southeast of the museum, you can enjoy a 7-mile connected stretch of the Tide to Town network near Daffin Park (1301 E. Victory Dr.). Pick up the Police Memorial Trail heading south through the trees paralleling Truman Parkway; this trail seamlessly connects to the Truman Linear Park Trail that ends at Lake Mayer Park.
Cape May County Park & Zoo (Cape May, New Jersey)
Ride the Middle Township Bike Path—a stretch of nearly 13 miles along the bed of the former Cape May Seashore Line—to its northern terminus, and you’ll arrive at the Cape May County Park & Zoo. Home to about 550 animals and more than 250 different species, the zoo is open year-round (except on Christmas) and is free to the public. It hosts regular special events, and visitors can ride a train and carousel.
The 200-plus-acre park also has a massive playground and a large picnic area. For a dose of adrenaline and a bird’s eye view, strap on a harness at Tree to Tree Adventure Park, an aerial and zipline course alongside the zoo, with apparatuses for climbers as young as four.
Note that bikes are not allowed inside the zoo, but there are bike racks just outside the main gate.
The Wild Center (Tupper Lake, New York)
Just a few miles from the western terminus of the 34-mile Adirondack Rail Trail in Tupper Lake, New York, The Wild Center offers kids exciting ways to explore the forest. The Wild Walk is a journey into the canopy, winding up a trail of walkways and swinging bridges to a four-story tree house, a kid-sized spider’s web, and an eagle’s nest with a sweeping view. The Pines Wild Play Area encourages them to build, climb and experiment with natural materials. Miles of trails crisscross the center’s 115 acres, so toddlers who’ve been strapped in a bike seat will have ample space to stretch their legs before you head back to the trail, which continues all the way to Lake Placid.
The Raquette River Roll, a European-style kugelbahn, or a track for marbles, will have you trying to keep up with your kid along those trails, rather than coaxing them along. And while there’s plenty to see outside, don’t forget to duck inside the center, where there’s 54,000 square feet of exhibits and water-level windows that’ll give you a new perspective on pond life.
Mount Gretna, Pennsylvania
Nestled along the 20.3-mile Lebanon Valley Rail Trail in eastern Pennsylvania is the funky, historic hamlet of Mount Gretna. Tucked into the forest, the quaint community has a coffee shop and a handful of restaurants, a fairy garden and a cozy library, plus The Jigger Shop, a seasonal soda fountain and ice cream parlor that serves sundaes the size of your head.
In the warmer months, Mount Gretna bustles with festivals, and visitors flock to the lake and beach. Hit the rail-trail with your little ones early on a summer Saturday morning, and cruise into town in time to catch a show; the town’s open-air theatre hosts a family series aimed at preschoolers and their parents.
Note that many of the streets in town are pedestrian-only, but there are bike racks in common areas and near the theatre.
Mobius Discovery Center (Spokane, Washington)
The popular Spokane River Centennial Trail begins in Nine Mile Falls, Washington, and winds 40 miles to the Idaho border along the former route of the Great Northern Railway and the Spokane & Inland Empire Railroad Company. One of the best trailside stops is in the heart of downtown Spokane at the Mobius Discovery Center.
The center’s hands-on and play-based exhibits help children understand science and engineering concept—and have a blast while learning. Older kids will be instantly engaged by the makerspace and STEAM lab, while toddlers will love the soft-surfaced enchanted forest play area and giant water table. Some exhibits, like the bubble-blowing bar and dig pit—complete with kid-sized excavator—are crowd pleasers for all ages. In Cooper’s Corner (named for a local boy who was tragically struck during a 1997 bike race), young riders can learn bike safety and traffic fundamentals.
There is a bike rack just outside the center, and two public bike repair stations in nearby Riverfront Park.
The Powerhouse (Durango, Colorado)
Interaction is the point at The Powerhouse, a hands-on kids science museum directly alongside the Animus River Trail, a 10-mile paved multiuse path that runs parallel to the still-operational historical Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.
The science center, which calls itself a “STEAM engine,” gets its name from its location: an 1893 coal-fired power plant that was shuttered in the 1970s. The building was in danger of demolition until it was renovated in the early 2000s to house the children’s museum.
Bike racks are located just outside the trailside entrance.
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