Swanson Park

Great trail and it is well mantained. Only issue is that there are no maps. I went in and got lost easily. Spent more time trying to get out than I did enjoying it

Used to be better. Lots of tree roots, re-routes done often. Not mowed often enough, grass can get pretty tall. Widely used by locals. Downed trees become a jump rather than removed. Could be confusing in parts as signage is lacking.

great trail, been a while since I've done any real biking. not too hard, but there are some parts along the way that lead to more advanced jumps or hills

Coming from a relative beginner, I love this trail. Not a lot of climbing, and the main trail is not super technical, though there are off-shoots with some jumps, table-tops, etc, if you are up for those! Maybe I will be someday! I will definitely be riding this one again. It appears well-maintained, and provides a nice forest atmosphere, while still being fairly easy to follow. (There were a few intersections in the trail where I got lost, but found myself again.)

Love the trail, just have a hard time knowing what way to go. There are tons of off shoots that loop you back around. Need to ride it with someone that knows the trails to make sure you don't end up going backwards on accident

Beginner to intermediate narrow ST trail. There are a few bigger advanced features thrown in there to keep things really interesting, if you want to give them a try, but you can avoid those if you want. it is moderately fast, flowy if you pedal it hard. Most of the curves do not kill all your speed unnecessarily, so that keeps the trail fun. Well maintained. Not as demanding as Jewel, and the two together make for a nice little outing. Or just do two or three laps on Swanson. Nice job THOR.

very fun trail to ride. it is very well taken care of, but I only wish it was marked a bit better. It's easy to get turned around at some points. I rode 2 laps and it seemed line I still missed some parts. 90 % of it is tree covered so it's good to ride at any time even when it's hot.

It's a fun challenging intermediate trails. It has many trees roots and steps but we MTB can handle it. The climbing uphill trails are nice steady, not steep which I like it. It's place I'd go back there again.

short ride not too technical and this trail is starting to become overgrown by nettles and poison ivy!

check out
https://youtu.be/l2lD7AqbUHo
Swanson Park added new tracks || most likely recommended for expert

Decent beginner trail.

DIRECTION TIPS: Google Maps has a difficult time routing this form the freeway. After getting off the freeway take a right on Cornhusker and it is almost exactly 1.0miles until you see a sign for the fire dept training facility, that is your right turn if coming from the freeway and you will see the swanson park sign about 100 feet up on the left.

TRAILHEAD: park in either parking lot, as you go back up the hill toward the entrance there is a path coming out of the woods right next to the playground, this is the exit, the trailhead is further up the hill on the left, its not hard to miss but it needed to be mentioned which is which.

TRAIL DESCRIPTION: This is one of the easier trails in the area, but definitely has the best layout and flow I have seen (havent been to tranquility or cunningham). The trail is well marked however there are a bunch of forks in the trail where one direction is easier and one direction is harder, they come back together after just a little ways. This looks to just give some added terrain for different riders. The trail does open up to a couple areas in the woods with a web of different small trails that all feed back to the main, take whatever looks good and dont worry about getting lost or off trail. After the first mile or so the trail will cross the road. There are two choices, left is easy and marked, right is difficult (blue) and marked also. I highly recommend taking the right trail. It will take you up some switchbacks and through the tall grass prairie with a really fun downhill section with curves. The easy trail bypasses probably a half mile or more of this fun stuff. After getting off the prairie and back into the trees it started to becomem leaf covered (its autumn) and this made taking some corners at speed sketchy, this is the part of the trail that has fantastic flow and is a joy to ride. There are some built up logs to go over and some other obstacles but nothing really adventurous. There is a point where you come to a fork in the road and a trail sign says easy to the left and nothing to the right, it has a sewer drainage manhole right behind it, going right will yield a bunch more trail that dumps you out to the downhill side of the park. It's worth riding, but I recommend doing it and going back in to follow the other trail. The trail winds in a long but not very steep climb and continues on. It comes back around to a web of trails and there is a trail sign clearly marked "EXIT" to finish the trail. It will spit you out just a little down the hill from the trailhead.

DISLIKES: The only thing reason this trail did not get a 5 rating is because of the condition of the trail. It is obviously well loved by many because there are numerous areas where the trail is worn down into the dirt and is almost a gutter about 2 feet wide. I hit dirt a lot with my pedals because of this. It almost felt like being in a bobsled track at times. The trail is also very root-y. Lots of roots to ride over.

NOTES: This trail is well ridden, always be on the lookout for other riders and trail runners. 3 days after a good rain and some parts are still a little soggy, don't ride it the day after a rain and rut out the trail. If it doesn't look like a well ridden path it probably isnt, stay on the trail, its probably much better than the short cuts/ off shoots anyway. Due to difficulty riding it twice is a definite possibility, I liked it so much I rode it twice on my first visit!

3.5 miles according to GPS. Took me 30 minutes and that was taking a wrong turn. Fun flowy trail though. Do it 2-3 times for a good workout. Very well marked except one place.

This is one of my favorite trails in the area because it's close to where I live and it's not overly technical. My first time riding it I was going kind of fast so I past the signs and ended up doing a loop around the same area twice. That being said, if you want a fun ride, then you should visit this trail..

I ride this trail the most, pretty frequently. It is great for beginners and intermediate alike. There is a little of everything here. Not too technical really. I really appreciate the layout and how well this trail is maintained. The organization THOR does a great job taking care of this trail as well. I recommend trying this place out. There is potential for air on this trail if you shoot for it. Also, some nice whoops with climbs at the end. You'll enjoy "gettin' after it on these". There are some areas where people have made trails that cut through or around. Don't worry because these are really slim and noticeable. You won't have a problem sticking to the trail. There is now an additional loop to the trail that cuts to the right and heads back to the homes next to the ball fields. It brings you by the exit. You'll see some friendly deer on the evenings. This is a nice family area with a playground park too. Enjoy and take care.* Review edited 10/25/2011* Review edited 6/9/2012

This is a fun ride. The terrain is far from flat but there were not any really steep elevation changes so I would say this is an easy ride for most. The trail has alot of very fun elements to it, including several little bridges crossing a small creek. Some of the long, fast downhills had a staircase effect to them. In some places, the trees get pretty close to the trail so I had several near misses and a couple of knuckle busting excursions, but I thought it was more fun than dangerous. The majority of this trail is in the woods, but a section does meander out into a meadow.

For a great afternoon ride for riders of all skill levels, there is no better trail in the Omaha area. Most of the trail is smooth and even with minimal rutting and tree roots (which plague other trails in the area). A few great downhill sections allow one to gain some good speed without feeling like you're going to hit a tree around the next corner.

This is a good trail to take a beginner or kids to. It is a fun trail to ride, and not too technical so as to discourage people.