Carmel, Indiana may just be the place to spend your Staycation, exploring the city’s trails from the seat of a bicycle. With nearly 220 miles of paths and trails, you can explore our thriving City Center and Arts & District or ride under a canopy of trees. Many of Carmel’s roadways are interconnected to make an accessible bicycle network including the popular Monon Greenway, the Hagan-Burke Trail, Greyhound Trail and White River Greenway.
You can get almost anywhere in Carmel by way of this extensive network of trails, side paths and low- traffic streets. That is one of the reasons why the League of American Bicyclists and Places for Bikes nationally recognized Carmel in 2019 as a bicycle-friendly community.
In addition to the on and off-road bicycle trails in Carmel, the City was designed with many low-traffic streets that are extremely bicycle friendly. With these roadways in mind, the Carmel Access Bikeway (CAB) Routes were designed to help bicycle riders explore the City and neighborhoods that make up Carmel. For example, if you are interested in exploring the dynamic central core of the city, use the City Center Loop. If you want to experience a more serene ride, surrounded by nature, try the White River Loop. All five routes are geared primarily to casual riders and vary in distance from about six miles to more than 13.
For more information and route maps, see Bike Carmel’s page on the City of Carmel’s website, carmel.in.gov.
Want to make a day of it? Try the 26- mile Monon Greenway, which connects Carmel to downtown Indianapolis or our neighbors to the north. The Monon Greenway in Carmel takes you through the rapidly growing City Center, Midtown Plaza and Arts & Design District, where the traditional bike path has been expanded to accommodate separated bike and pedestrian trails, added amenities, shops and restaurants.
Be sure not to miss the Midtown area, which features an outdoor bocce ball court, pool table, ping pong tables, a giant screen TV and climbing structures, water features and flexible seating and swings. There are plenty of restaurants to choose from in Carmel’s three main districts as well as galleries and retail shops to enjoy on your exploration.
If you need a bicycle but don’t have one, several bicycle shops in town offer rentals and watch for news of our bike share program coming this spring.
Whatever your plans for Spring Break, time spent pedaling around Carmel and getting to know this delightful, bicycle- friendly city, is time well spent.
