The Cedar Valley Nature Trail is a 52 mile long trail leading from Evansdale to Hiawatha. The Evansdale location is found off of I-380, exit 70. The nature trail runs through Black Hawk, Buchanan, Benton and Linn counties. Along the 52 mile stretch you will find everything from restaurants to several bed and breakfast. The scenic trail offers views of river bottomlands to open grassland. Along the way you can expect to encounter deer, wild turkey, songbirds and many other types of wildlife found throughout the state.
The trail winds through lowland forest, upland forest, and prairie. The stretches of prairie will often provide trail users sights of native prairie flowers in bloom. Along with the flowers of the prairie those who use the trail may see native grasses and forbes. Quite often the trail will also provide views of the Cedar River and other wetland formations. The trail utilizes an old railroad bed and consequently those who bike, hike, skate or ski the trail will encounter a relatively flat slope with very little incline.
In addition to hiking and biking the trail you can utilize the trail for cross country skiing in the winter. The northern section of the trial has been designated an area important to songbirds as well as other non-game species. Portions of the trial are asphalt while other parts are crushed limestone. Due to the floods of 2008, some lengths of the trail are not accessible at this time due to damage done to bridges along the trail. In the future, those bridges are scheduled for repair and the trail will once again be open from Evansdale to Hiawatha.
Location
Near Evansdale off of I-380 exit 70.
Features
Biking
Skating
Hiking
Cross country skiing
Bird watching
Restaurants
Bed and breakfast
Scenic views
Operating Hours & Seasons
Contact Us:
Black Hawk County Conservation Board
1346 West Airline Hwy
Waterloo, IA 50703
Phone: (319) 433-PARK (7275) Fax: (319) 433-7276
conservation@co.black-hawk.ia.us
Closures
Before visiting the nature trail, please check the map of closures along the trail. These areas are closed due to flood damage done to various bridges along the trail.