Lost Valley Hiking Trail, Defiance MO

Gorgeous trail-a nice, challenging nearly-12 mile hike. But if you're hiking, bear in mind that this is also a biking trail, and you're going to be sharing with lots of mountain bikers. Not an issue if everyone shows each other a little courtesy.but not everyone always does.

I had a great day hiking this trail today. You can take a shorter 8 mile trail or do the full 11 miles. I opted for the "short" loop. The trail winds through the hills and has some great views along the way. I was able to find one of the old abandoned cemeteries along the trail by following a short branching trail marked with a blue flag.

A great spot for a hike or run back into the hills. But, there are no facilities, so use the restroom at the Weldon Spring trailhead on Katy Trail, across 94.

AWESOME biking/hiking trail.

I’ve had so much fun each time I come here.

It’s one of the more interesting trails, in that it is quite diverse. There is a section of trail that is 99% downhill, and takes me a good 3.5-4 minutes to get down, (and that is with me going as fast as I can).

There are a few creeks that run through the trail as well, which is very neat.

Other than biking, there are a lot of cool spots to explore by foot!

Get out there and have an adventure!

Great trail for hiking and biking through mostly wooded terrain. There is a large loop as well as multiple offshoots and connections to other area trails. Some sections along the Femme Osage River are wide and flat while other sections are not as heavily trafficked and are narrower. If you go after a heavy rain, be prepared for mud, large puddles and higher water levels when crossing streams. Early spring daffodils and snowdrops are starting to bloom!

Very scenic trail. I rode my mountain bike. At first the trail doesnt seem special. After about a mie, the gravel road turns into a single wide trail that twists and turns up the hills. About 5 miles in, on the northwest side there was an old cematary. Its about a hundred feer off the trail surrounded by yellow dalphadills. The trail was a bit rough for my hardttail bike. Best to use a full suspension bike due to the amount of rock and roots on the trail. I saw a few hikers so this is great for hiking too.

Love this place. Hiking, mountain biking, bird watching, creek exploration. Lost Valley has it all!

A place to get away from it all. I have had zero luck catching fish, but I’m working on it. The pool, movie theaters and other amenities are very kid friendly. Likely to come back here for years to come. RVing is our choice of room

One of my favorite trails. Spacious parking lot and lots of little paths to wander off into the woods on.

Great hiking and biking trail! Trails are well maintained and really enjoyable at any season. Spacious parking lot. Highly recommended! And it's FREE!

I really like this trail, nice ponds and a historic family cemetery are highlights. Daffodils are amazing at the cemetery in early spring!

Great trails for hiking and mountain biking! Some technical sections, but nice flowy areas as well.

Shady, well maintained trails for bikes & hikers w/attractive creekside views. Gunfire from police training range up the road was a little distracting.

This is another geourgous place I found for myself to go ride some trails on my mountain bike. It has great beginner and intermediate trails with great scenery. Its also great for hiking and jogging if thats what you prefer.

Fun and technical mountain bike trail. Nice and long loop. Rocky throughout but intermediate course.

Great trail! I think it's best ridden counterclockwise. Fire road/cut off in the middle, nice for making a shorter loop.

Nice area to hike or bike. Does not have restroom or water available. Trails do have hills and are natural surfaces.

I biked the short loop. The first couple miles are terrible – long, rocky uphill climb on an old road. Once you get to the actual biking trail through the woods, it’s a lot more fun. Roots weren’t a major issue, but rocks definitely were. I wiped out one time but wasn’t injured. There was one small stream crossing. My bike gears got slightly damaged on a rock toward the end but I was able to bend it back into place.

Overall, it was a little longer than I prefer and the beginning was annoying, but it had a few really fun parts.