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Hiking Trails Under 5 km near Bloomington

The directory currently contains 49 quality-checked routes matching this guide near Bloomington. Their average mapped distance is 2.2 km and average recorded ascent is 59 m (194 ft); the longest route in the set is 4.9 km.

This subset represents 79% of the 62 quality-checked routes near Bloomington. Its average distance is 2.2 km, compared with 9.2 km across the full local set. Average recorded ascent is 59 m (194 ft), versus 123 m (404 ft) for all quality-checked routes in the same area.

Every route in this set has a mapped distance of 5 km or less. Time and suitability still depend on ascent, surface and conditions. Within this set, 29 routes (59%) are rated easy, 0 (0%) are rated hard or expert, and 20 (41%) are recorded as loops. Ratings are computed from available distance and elevation data and do not establish current terrain or access.

Data refreshed September 2026

Choose by the details

How do these routes differ?

A closer look at the first 6 routes in this page’s default ordering. These comparisons describe this sample, not the entire destination or a field-tested recommendation.

Shortest mapped distance in this sample

1.9 km

Ogle Lake Trail

Compare the climbing too; shortest does not necessarily mean easiest.

Lowest recorded ascent in this sample

19 m

Terrill Ridge Trail

6 of 6 have ascent data. Missing measurements are excluded.

Return logistics

3 recorded loops

Check start and finish for every option. An unknown shape does not mean a loop, and a loop does not establish access to its start.

Plan the return journey →

Distances follow stored route lines; ascent and time are estimates. Current access, surface and technical difficulty need separate checks. How to turn a comparison into a shortlist.

Trails

w:Hickory Ridge Fire Tower , looking up from the bottom, located in the w:Charles C. Deam Wilderness Area of w:Hoosier National Forest in Southern w:Indiana . The fire tower is the only remaining tower of eight that used to exist within the
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.9 km
/ 1.8 mi
Elevation gain
19 m
Typical duration
38 min
  • Mountain
  • Forest
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.9 km
/ 1.2 mi
Elevation gain
29 m
Typical duration
27 min
  • Lake
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
4.0 km
/ 2.5 mi
Elevation gain
108 m
Typical duration
59 min
  • Forest
Platanus occidentalis , Griffy site of the Indiana University Research and Teaching Preserve, south side of Griffy Lake east of the causeway, Monroe County, Indiana, 8 Jul 2012.
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.8 km
/ 1.7 mi
Elevation gain
33 m
Typical duration
38 min
  • River
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.8 km
/ 1.7 mi
Elevation gain
72 m
Typical duration
41 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.0 km
/ 1.9 mi
Elevation gain
123 m
Typical duration
49 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.7 km
/ 1.1 mi
Elevation gain
53 m
Typical duration
26 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.4 km
/ 1.5 mi
Elevation gain
50 m
Typical duration
35 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.0 km
/ 0.6 mi
Typical duration
13 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.4 km
/ 0.9 mi
Typical duration
18 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.7 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
40 m
Typical duration
12 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.8 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
16 m
Typical duration
11 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.8 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
14 m
Typical duration
11 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.9 km
/ 0.6 mi
Elevation gain
22 m
Typical duration
13 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.1 km
/ 2.0 mi
Elevation gain
34 m
Typical duration
42 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.2 km
/ 0.7 mi
Elevation gain
13 m
Typical duration
16 min
  • Mountain
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.9 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
15 m
Typical duration
12 min
  • Panoramic viewpoint
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.3 km
/ 1.5 mi
Elevation gain
123 m
Typical duration
40 min
  • Lake
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.1 km
/ 2.0 mi
Elevation gain
121 m
Typical duration
50 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.0 km
/ 0.6 mi
Elevation gain
17 m
Typical duration
14 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.2 km
/ 0.8 mi
Elevation gain
28 m
Typical duration
18 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.6 km
/ 0.4 mi
Typical duration
7 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.1 km
/ 1.3 mi
Elevation gain
74 m
Typical duration
33 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.1 km
/ 0.7 mi
Elevation gain
16 m
Typical duration
16 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.8 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
17 m
Typical duration
11 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.8 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
31 m
Typical duration
13 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.4 km
/ 0.9 mi
Elevation gain
28 m
Typical duration
21 min
  • Coastal
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.2 km
/ 2.0 mi
Elevation gain
103 m
Typical duration
49 min
  • Waymarked route
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
4.7 km
/ 2.9 mi
Elevation gain
150 m
Typical duration
1 hr 12 min
  • Waymarked route
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.3 km
/ 2.0 mi
Elevation gain
45 m
Typical duration
45 min
  • Mountain
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.9 km
/ 2.4 mi
Elevation gain
211 m
Typical duration
1 hr 7 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.0 km
/ 0.6 mi
Elevation gain
33 m
Typical duration
16 min
  • River
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
4.1 km
/ 2.6 mi
Elevation gain
86 m
Typical duration
59 min
  • Forest
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.8 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
29 m
Typical duration
13 min
  • Long-distance path
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
4.2 km
/ 2.6 mi
Elevation gain
152 m
Typical duration
1 hr 7 min
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.7 km
/ 1.7 mi
Elevation gain
88 m
Typical duration
41 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.4 km
/ 0.8 mi
Elevation gain
6 m
Typical duration
18 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
0.9 km
/ 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
8 m
Typical duration
12 min
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.5 km
/ 1.0 mi
Elevation gain
70 m
Typical duration
25 min
  • Mountain
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.9 km
/ 1.8 mi
Elevation gain
76 m
Typical duration
42 min
  • Mountain
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
2.8 km
/ 1.8 mi
Elevation gain
9 m
Typical duration
36 min
  • Mountain
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.1 km
/ 1.9 mi
Elevation gain
57 m
Typical duration
44 min
  • Mountain
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.9 km
/ 2.4 mi
Elevation gain
199 m
Typical duration
1 hr 7 min
  • Mountain
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
1.7 km
/ 1.0 mi
Elevation gain
20 m
Typical duration
23 min
  • Mountain
Easy

Indiana · United States

Distance
4.4 km
/ 2.7 mi
Elevation gain
64 m
Typical duration
1 hr 1 min
  • Mountain
Moderate

Indiana · United States

Distance
3.3 km
/ 2.1 mi
Elevation gain
202 m
Typical duration
1 hr

The shortlist, side by side

The ten highest scoring routes on this page, so you can compare effort before opening any of them.

Distance, ascent, walking time and difficulty for the top routes
RouteDistanceAscentTimeDifficultyBest season
Terrill Ridge TrailIndiana2.9 km19 m38 minEasyApril to October
Ogle Lake TrailIndiana1.9 km29 m27 minEasyApril to October
Axsom Branch TrailIndiana4.0 km108 m59 minModerateApril to October
Griffy Creek TrailIndiana2.8 km33 m38 minEasyApril to October
Hiking TrailIndiana2.8 km72 m41 minEasyApril to October
Rally Campground TrailIndiana3.0 km123 m49 minModerateApril to October
Trail #2Indiana1.7 km53 m26 minModerateApril to October
Trail #7Indiana2.4 km50 m35 minEasyApril to October
Lanam TrailIndiana1.0 km0 m13 minEasyApril to October
MYPathIndiana1.4 km0 m18 minEasyApril to October

Terrill Ridge Trail, Ogle Lake Trail, Axsom Branch Trail currently rank highest in this filtered set according to the directory score. Open an individual route to inspect its mapped line, elevation profile, data source and planning caveats. Check live access, conditions and local rules with an official source before travelling.

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