Hike This Surprising 2-Mile Trail in an Iowa Wildlife Refuge for the Bison

Although it's only 2 miles, don’t be fooled by this trail's modest length: It's a short, paved prairie hike that can be brutally unforgiving in the wrong elements. But when you time it right, you’ll be rewarded with sweeping prairie views and a visual encounter with two of America’s most iconic megafauna. It’s an Iowa hiking trail unlike any other in the state.

Iowa’s Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge is one of the state's greatest natural treasures, a 6,000-acre tallgrass prairie habitat. I cherish this Midwest oasis so much that it’s hard not to call it my absolute favorite place in the state. When I stand here in the wide open grasslands, straining my eyes for bison and elk, I feel like I’m experiencing the most accurate representation of wild Iowa before it was settled.

The first time I took my kids hiking on the Tallgrass Prairie Loop at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge, I framed it as a “walk.” Sometimes the word "hike" is more daunting than the experience, and this is how I’ve tricked them into creating a few of their best memories on Iowa hiking trails. Fortunately, this hike is easy to convince almost anyone to do, as it begins from a sidewalk directly adjacent to the visitor center's parking lot (which is under construction until 2027).

After a slight ascent, the paved trail rises above the rolling plains, offering an immediate reward of scenic vistas. However, if you come here on either a blistering summer or a blustery winter day, you’ll likely turn around and head right back to the car. The prairie elements really are that unforgiving—and I’ve been caught in this scenario more than once. Instead, pick a day in early spring or late fall, when it’s either cool or the sky is overcast. These conditions mean the wind, heat, or cold won’t bother you—or the big, furry animals you’re looking for.

This Iowa hiking trail winds through numerous interpretive areas that document the importance of protecting tall prairies and oak savannas, highlighting the unique and often rare species that inhabit them. Among those are more than 70 bison and 20 elk roaming freely within an 800-acre enclosure adjacent to the trail. You can get your first glimpses of them from the viewfinders along the trail. Spotting them from above helps you to know where to look for them on the auto tour.

During the 2-mile educational walk, it’s impossible not to be enamored by the birds that are abundant in the prairie all year round. Depending on the timing, you may also witness the super blooms, when the hills are covered in vibrant flowers (typically in early May and early October). However, the Tallgrass Prairie Loop offers only a wide-angle perspective of the Neal Smith Wildlife Refuge, and since you've already driven all the way here, you shouldn't leave without taking the auto tour.

The auto tour offers a mini safari experience, but with a twist: it’s free and conveniently located in the heart of rural Iowa. It’s a scenic 5-mile drive inside the bison enclosure, below the hiking trail, and potentially within arm’s length of the bushy beasts of the prairie. On many occasions, we have encountered the bison right on the road, lazily napping or grazing on the shoulder. Getting out of the car is not permitted in this area, but parking to gaze in wonder is absolutely expected. 

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