How familiar are you with Indianapolis’ trail network? Perhaps you’ve spent time on the Monon or heard of the Cultural Trail, but are you truly aware of the size and scope of Indy’s expansive web of trails? And, if so, how would you go about navigating their twists, turns, and various connections? Comprehending the scale and nature of Indianapolis’ trail network has been difficult, until now. The convoluted fog of trail information online has finally been dispelled with the launch of Greater Indy Trailways.
It being, at its core, a tourism initiative launched by Visit Indy, Greater Indy Trailways aims to be a resource showcasing Indy’s impressive trail network to visitors and locals alike. The crowning jewel of the initiative is their website, with the most comprehensive and regularly updated map of Indy’s trails available. Whether planning a walk, run, or bike ride, it is an excellent resource easily accessible at thetrailways.com.
The official launch of the initiative came on April 25th, “Celebrate Trails Day,” and to drum up support for their website, Greater Indy Trailways also hosted a nine-day TrailMixer with events across the Indianapolis area that ended on May 3rd. The initiative partnered with various community organizations across Marion and eight nearby counties to host over fifty events for people to interact with the trails and their communities. Everything from volunteer safety improvements for the Monon and 16th Street crossing to a pet walkathon in Franklin was organized and promoted on the Greater Indy Trailways website.
According to Greater Indy Trailways staffer Simmi Kaur, “we wanted this launch to be more than a marketing campaign, which is why you see a week-long festival happening.” The initiative, which handed out swag in several locations and promoted itself throughout the week, seeks to make itself well known to the trail users and citizens of Indy: “we’re hoping that when people see this on a website or on a map, or on a poster, they really…get that motivation [of]: ‘hey, let’s do something, let’s make it happen,’” says Kaur, who is also excited about the new project herself.
In addition, the fun does not end with the conclusion of the festival. To celebrate its start, Greater Indy Trailways has launched a Trailblazer Adventure Pass: this activity, which can be signed up for online with a phone, offers points for visiting trails in the next six months. Opening the website near a marked point with the pass installed yields one hundred points, which can be spent on nineteen different stickers, a shirt, tote bag, and poster: all completely free. For anyone looking to spend time on the region’s trails, this is a great opportunity for some rewards. Points can be gained from the Trailblazer Adventure Pass until October 30th, 2026, giving newcomers and experienced trailgoers alike plenty of time to explore.
Beyond this period of outreach, Greater Indy Trailways intends to maintain the course, focusing on “promoting the website, promoting our socials, telling people this resource…exists,” says Kaur. The initiative will also help provide information about and assist new expansions in a trail network that is ripe for improvements. As Kaur acknowledges, “there’s gaps in the system, like a certain trail that isn’t fully complete, and there’s the South Side that doesn’t have the same amount of trails.” Greater Indy Trailways has already released a style guide manual, providing instructions on uniform formatting for future trail signage across the nine counties.
The hope is that Greater Indy Trailways will build upon Indy’s already robust trail system, appealing to visitors and inviting them to experience the city in new ways. However, for all the excitement about tourism, Kaur also made it clear to the local residents that “we haven’t forgotten about you guys either.” These trails are in Indianapolis after all, and it is the people of Indianapolis who make these trails what they are with their support. For anyone looking to get outdoors and journey to a new part of the city, I highly recommend looking into Greater Indy Trailways and what their website has to offer. Who knows? Maybe you could be the next trailblazer of this vast system, and end up with fun rewards to boot.
