County House Trail

Trail: 2.0 miles, concrete with limestone side path, (limestone only around lake at Twin Lakes Recreation Area)

Accesses:

• Stadium Blvd./College Park Drive
• Ridgemont Road/College Park Drive
• Twin Lakes Recreation Area
  2500 Chapel Hill Road
• MKT Trail
  (Between mile markers 3.0 and 3.5

County House Trail is a two-mile long trail in the southwest quadrant of the city that extends from Stadium Blvd. at College Park Drive to the MKT Trail at Twin Lakes Recreation Area. It is an 8-foot-wide concrete trail with a gravel side path between Stadium and the Twin Lakes Recreation Area entrance. Once inside Twin Lakes Recreation Area the trail routes through the parking lot and around the lake where it connects to the the MKT Trail on the southeast corner of the park. The trail enables a large residential population north of Chapel HIll Road and north of Stadium Blvd. to enjoy a recreational commute to the MKT Trail as they travel alongside and cross over the County House Branch. The trail development was federally funded and administered through GetAbout Columbia. The trail development project cost $1,210,000 and was completed in 2011. The trail is part of Columbia's trail system and is managed by the Parks and Recreation Department.

Link to the citywide map on the Park Directory

Stadium Blvd./College Park Drive Access - 2.0 mile mark
The trail can be accessed on the northeast corner of the intersection of Stadium Blvd. and College Park Drive. The trail safely routes under Stadium Blvd., so trail users do not have to cross traffic on the street.
The trail tunnels under Stadium Blvd. and is lighted so that trail users can see their way safely through the box.
The trail then travels south from Stadium Blvd. toward Ridgemont Road.
The trail runs along College Park Drive south of Stadium Blvd. until it comes to Ridgemont Road.
Ridgemont Road/College Park Drive Access - 1.75 mile mark
On the south side of Ridgemont Road at College Park Drive you can access the trail portion that leads south to Twin Lakes Recreation Area.
The trail crosses County House Branch three times before arriving at Chapel Hill Road. The trail goes under Chapel Hill Road at the bridge. A heavy rain will cause the creek to rise and fill the underpass, at which time it will be unpassable. Since the route under the bridge is below creek level, a pump was installed to pump the water out of the box once the creek level drops.
Twin Lakes Recreation Area Entry, 2500 Chapel Hill Rd. - 1.1 mile mark
On the south side of Chapel Hill Road the concrete trail enters Twin Lakes Recreation Area and runs on the west side of the entry road until it connects with the entry road near the parking lot. The route uses the parking lot to get to the shelter, where it connects to the gravel trail around the lake. A .6 mile trek around the lake will take you from the shelter to the MKT Trail.
MKT Trail Access (Between MKT mile marker 3.0 and 3.5) - 0.0 mile mark
The lake trail will lead out to the MKT Trail from the southeast corner of Twin Lakes Recreation Area. From there you can travel east on the MKT Trail to downtown Columbia or west all the way to the KATY Trail. (Photo facing east on the MKT Trail.)

Trail Directory