Finger Lakes State Park: Red Trail (Blog Hike #1128)

Trail: Red Trail
Hike Location: Finger Lakes State Park
Geographic Location: north of Columbia, MO (39.08633, -92.32083)
Length: 2 miles
Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)
Date Hiked: September 2026
Overview: A gently rolling loop through an old strip coal mine.
Park Information: https://mostateparks.com/park/finger-lakes
Hike Route Map:

On The Go Map

Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming May 21, 2027)

Directions to the trailhead: From the intersection of I-70 and US 63 in Columbia, take US 63 north 9 miles to Peabody Road and turn right on Peabody Rd.  Drive Peabody Rd. east 0.8 mile to the signed park entrance on the left.  Turn left to enter the park.  Drive the main park road north 0.9 miles to the stop sign at the picnic area access road.  Turn left on the picnic area access road, which dead-ends at the picnic area parking lot in 0.3 miles.  Park here.

The hike: When most people think of the Finger Lakes, they think of the grand north-south glacier-created lakes in central New York.  Yet central Missouri has its own Finger Lakes, and while they are not as grand or natural as New York's version, they make for an interesting recreation destination near Columbia.  Missouri's Finger Lakes have a very different origin than New York's.  In the 1960s, over 1 million short tons of coal were strip mined from this site; the gouges from that mining form the lakes we see today.  Peabody Road, which you drove in on, is named for Peabody Energy, the company that mined that coal.

            In 1974, Peabody Energy donated the site's 1139 acres to the State of Missouri, and the park was developed using a federal grant designed to show the potential reclaimed strip mines have for recreational use.  Today the park's lakes are a major paddling destination, and the park offers 4.5 miles of water trails.  Also, Finger Lakes State Park is one of only 2 Missouri state parks that offer ORV trails: over 70 miles of vehicle trails lace the park.

            Sometimes lost among the paddling and ORV trails are the park's 3.8 miles of trails open to hikers and mountain bikers.  The park's hiking trail system consists of two main loops: a 2 mile Red/West loop and a 2 mile Yellow/East loop.  Both loops start at the park's main hiking trailhead, which is near the picnic area and pump track (a constructed obstacle track mountain bikers use to test and hone their biking skills).  This hike features the Red Trail.  The Red Trail offers an interesting loop that explores the park's ridges and creekside areas, and I had a pleasant hike here on a sweltering late-summer morning.

Trailhead for Red Trail

            The Red Trail starts at the far/north end of the parking lot; look for the information kiosk, the stile in the wooden fence, and the park sign with a red square and the words "West Loop Entrance."  The trail curves left to cross Kelley Branch, the main stream in this ravine, without the aid of a bridge.  When I came here, this stream was dry and I walked directly across the rocky streambed, but this crossing could be a problem if it has rained recently.  If the water is too high and/or fast for safe crossing, turn around and save this hike for another day.

Crossing Kelley Branch

Turtle in the trail

            Now on the west side of Kelley Branch, the trail begins a short climb on a moderate grade toward its highest point.  I passed a box turtle on the trail in this area, and the trailhead for the park's ORV children's riding area comes into view on the right.  At 0.3 miles, you pass a bench near this trail's highest point.  The park map calls this point an overlook, but the vegetation is sufficiently dense to provide no view whatsoever.

Bench at "overlook"

            A moderate descent comes next, and just past 0.4 miles you reach a trail intersection.  A white-blazed connector trail exits left and provides a route directly back to the parking area.  I turned right to continue my counterclockwise journey around the Red Trail.  The Red Trail is marked with plenty of red plastic diamond trail markers in addition to carsonite post mile markers in 0.25-mile increments.

Hiking the Red Trail

            The trail undulates gradually as it heads south, and soon one of the park's ORV trails starts paralleling our trail closely on the right.  The ORV trail's metal guardrail makes for an unusual sight in the woods, and I did not pass any traffic on either my trail or the ORV trail.  In fact, my hike broke a large number of spider webs that had been weaved across the trail.  Some hikers call breaking spider webs "silk blazing," and it indicates that this trail is seldom-used even though it was wide and well-maintained on my visit.

Lake across the ORV trail

            Just shy of 1 mile, you pass over a small hill as you round the southern end of the loop.  If you look to the right across the ORV trail, you can see one of the lakes for which this park is named.  This lake is small by this park's standards: the largest lakes are in the eastern part of the park, as are the park's paddling trails.  You can see the big lakes on the drive out, but they are not visible from either of this park's hiking trails.  I did see a woodpecker and some butterflies while hiking this trail.

Pump track near the trailhead

            The eastern half of the loop heads north through streamside forest.  The terrain is flat, and the going is easy.  Soon Kelley Branch comes in view on the right, and at 1.9 miles the white-blazed connector trail enters from the left.  Turn right to re-cross Kelley Branch, again without the aid of a bridge, and quickly arrive back at the parking lot to complete the hike.

Lake Lurleen State Park: Lakeside Trail to Dam (Blog Hike #1127)

Trails: Lakeside Trail, aka Tashka Trail
Hike Location: Lake Lurleen State Park
Geographic Location: northwest of Tuscaloosa, AL (33.29661, -87.67633)
Length: 3.5 miles
Difficulty: 4/10 (Moderate)
Date Hiked: May 2026
Overview: An out-and-back along Lake Lurleen to the lake's dam.
Park Information: https://www.alapark.com/parks/lake-lurleen-state-park
Hike Route Map:

On The Go Map

Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming January 8, 2027)

Directions to the trailhead: From the intersection of US 43 and US 82 on the north side of Tuscaloosa, take US 82 west 5.1 miles to Upper Columbus Road (CR 21).  Turn right on Upper Columbus Rd.  Drive Upper Columbus Rd. 2.3 miles to Lake Lurleen Road and a sign for the state park.  Turn right on Lake Lurleen Rd.  Drive Lake Lurleen Rd. north 2.2 winding miles to the park entrance on the left.  Take a soft left to enter the park, pay the park entrance fee, and park near the far/south end of the large blacktop parking area beside the lake on the left immediately after passing the park entrance station.

The hike: For my general comments on Lake Lurleen State Park, see my hike on its Ridge Loop Trail from 2019.  While that hike explored this park's ridgetop areas, this hike explores the park's lakeside area.  This hike is an out-and-back on the most scenic part of the Tashka Trail, which forms an 11 mile loop around the lake.  The lake breezes keep this trail relatively cool, and I had a pleasant hike when I came here on a hot 90-degree afternoon in mid-May.

South Trailhead

            From the parking area, pick up the Tashka Trail as it heads south with the lake on your right.  An information kiosk marks this trailhead, and some park maps call this point the South Trailhead.  The Tashka Trail has mileage markers at 0.5 mile increments, but it is otherwise mostly unmarked.  Nevertheless, the single track dirt trail is wide and easy to follow.

Short boardwalk

            You pass a ranger residence uphill to the left as your meandering lakeside excursion begins.  Short boardwalks take you over wet areas, and the first 0.8 miles of the trail never stray more than a couple hundred feet from the lake.  The lake makes for good bird watching.  I saw a heron gliding over the water and heard an owl on my hike.  Ignore side trails that exit left; they lead to parking areas along the park road.

Hiking along the lake

            Just past 0.8 miles, the trail curves left to begin a gradual climb away from the lake.  As you start the climb, an arm of the lake can be seen downhill to the right.  When you pass the Tashka Trail's 1 mile marker, the lake is out of sight and only nice broadleaf forest dominated by oaks and sweetgum trees surrounds you.  I saw a raccoon, a scarlet tanager, and many other small songbirds in these woods.  I also found a timber rattlesnake laying across the trail; I waited patiently for it to clear before I carefully moved on.

Hiking the upland section

            The trail traces a winding course around the rim of a ravine before descending back to lake level.  The difference between maximum and minimum elevation on this hike is about 100 feet, so all of the grades are manageable.  Near 1.7 miles, you come out on an old dam construction road, where signs tell you to turn right.  A few hundred feet later, you reach the dam that forms Lake Lurleen.

Lake Lurleen, as seen from the dam

            Dams usually give the best lake views, and this one is no exception: you can peer down the length of Lake Lurleen's reflective waters.  The Tashka Trail keeps going and forms an 11 mile loop around the lake, but for a reasonable-length dayhike, the dam is a good point to turn around.  Retracing your steps 1.75 miles to the South Trailhead completes the hike.