Although I like to brag about the beautiful bike trails in my home state of Minnesota, I grew up in Wisconsin and am equally proud of the bike trails there. Like its neighbor to the west, America’s Dairyland knows a thing or two about biking. Most of the state’s 43 state trails are rail trails — trails that have been converted from railroad corridors into recreational trails. My husband Dean and I love to bike, and Wisconsin gives us beautiful variety and views within a day’s drive of the Twin Cities.

Pro Tip: A state trail pass is required on all Wisconsin State Trails for bikers 16 years of age and older.

Let’s look at a sampling of bike trails in Wisconsin, listed alphabetically by name. Yes, I covered 13 trails in Minnesota and this article covers only 10, but I promise I’m not playing favorites. There’s a whole lot more where this came from, and we plan to keep adding to our list!

1. Ahnapee State Trail

Sturgeon Bay To Algoma (Northeastern Wisconsin)

48 Miles Of Crushed Limestone

The Ahnapee State Trail starts in the north at Sturgeon Bay and takes you south along the Ahnapee and Kewanee Rivers. The landscape is a mix of forests, farm country, orchards, and prairies.

We had limited time when we rode this trail, so we started about 15 miles south of Sturgeon Bay, in Forestville, and rode to Algoma, a sleepy little town on a Sunday morning. Fishermen were preparing their boats for another day of catching chinooks, brown trout, and steelhead. We explored the breakwater area a bit and then biked back to Forestville.