Low Gap Trail is a 10.3 mile heavily trafficked loop trail located near Martinsville, Indiana that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. The trail offers a number of activity options and is accessible year-round. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
The Sweedy Hollow area on the southwest portion of loop is beautiful. There's even a stone cove in one of the hills. The northern part of trail isn't so thrilling because a lot of it is gravel road, which is tiresome to the feet. Also the part alongside Forest Rd is a bit underwhelming due to logging and erosion. Perfect length for a serious jaunt though.
April 11, 2021Was a muddy boy this evening! But dang verdant, overall delightful.
April 11, 2021Love this trail
April 6, 2021Low Gap trail consists of 2 rather different "halves" on each side of Low Gap Rd. The eastern part is considerably longer than the western part. The eastern portion is entirely in the "Backcountry Area" of Morgan-Monroe State Forest and is among my favorite trails in central Indiana. It offers lots of terrain, varied scenery, and is not nearly as well-traveled as others. I frequently park in the small area just off Low Gap Rd. where the south side of the trail crosses the road, hike the Backcountry (eastern) portion of the trail counter-clockwise and then come back down the road to the parking area for a 6.0 mile trip. The road is not very busy and offers its own scenery even if it is a "paved" hike. The only downside to the trail is the roughly 1 mile portion along the north side that is a gravel forestry road. This part of the trail would be an easy 4 or maybe 4.5 stars by itself. (5 without the gravel portion!) Recently, I hiked the entire trail for the first time (including the western portion) and was pretty disappointed in the western part. Roughly 1/2 of it is either on gravel roads (Orcutt Rd.), or paralleling the Main Forest Rd and the relatively new paved bike path so close you could spit on them. IMO, this detracts significantly from the hike, especially with the other portions being so much more remote. Once the trail turns SSE away from Main Forest Rd, it gets pretty good again. The first portion is made up of the Rock Shelter Trail (another favorite of mine, though it tends to be somewhat more populated - still NOTHING like a state park though, so no complaints!) After departing the Rock Shelter Trail, it follows the Tecumseh trail back to the parking area. This portion also had plenty of wonderful scenery, terrain, and was less populated again.
March 27, 2021March 27, 2021March 13, 2021March 13, 2021March 10, 2021March 7, 2021March 7, 2021Amazing trail! Decided I even like the gravel part. One unfamiliar conifer down in the backcountry, but it’s not hard to hop over.
March 6, 2021February 26, 2021Pretty snowy still on the slopes and bottoms. Muddy but not too bad to hike through. The hills can be tough with a 40lb pack. Trekking poles are helpful for both ascent and decent.
February 13, 2021Long, slick, snow covered. Beautiful, quiet, peaceful.
February 5, 2021January 29, 2021Good trail. Well marked.
January 24, 2021Love this trail! The gravel part is not amazing, but the rest is worth it.
January 24, 2021January 23, 2021This is one of the closest trails to my home. Pros: rock shelter is beautiful, not a lot of people around, good for a short backpacking trip. Cons: not the easiest trail to find, some areas not marked well, way too many logging routes used on trail.
January 16, 2021Very nice trail overall. The only complaint is the gravel section.
January 10, 2021January 9, 2021ok trail for getting outside on a low trafficked trail. A cool cave feature a few miles in, but not much else to see.
January 2, 2021December 25, 2020December 10, 2020Overall a great trail, gravel section was a little tough but not horrible.
December 6, 2020December 2, 2020We ended up doing 15 miles here and loved it! We parked at the Low Gap Trail entrance and hiked out 7+miles and then came back. it was amazing. lots of ups and downs and creek bed crossings! Looking forward to using one of the many campsites next time to spend the night. We did not find the gravel road to be irritating in the least bit. We will be going back again!
November 21, 20202 miles on gravel road
November 20, 2020Great day for low gap trail. Nice Fall weather.
November 14, 2020
