Hoover Nature Trail
in Iowa
The Hoover Nature Trail follows the railroad that passed through the president's hometown. As a child, Herbert Hoover developed an early interest in geology while collecting interesting rocks along the railroad grade. Railroad & Prosperity Within ten years after the railroad arrived in 1870, West Branch grew from a tiny crossroads community to a bustling village, despite the generally hard economic times that followed the panic of 1873.
By 1910 fourteen passenger trains passed through town daily, as did numerous freight trains. Early Interest in Geology The railroad tracks east of Downey Street brought something else for a curious and enterprising Bertie Hoover: a fascination with geology. He scoured the gravel of the track bed for agates and fossil corals.
In his memoirs Hoover wrote, "Their fine points came out wonderfully when wet, and you had to lick them with your tongue before each exhibit." Train Depot The West Branch depot, built in 1871 and which once stood nearby, was the scene of orphaned eleven year old "Bert" Hoover's departure for a new and uncertain life in Oregon in 1885, and where Hoover made his triumphant return as the newly nominated Republican candidate for president in 1928. Rail to Trail The rail line was abandoned shortly after the Rock Island Railroad declared bankruptcy in 1980. Thanks to the efforts of local citizens, in 1990 the three miles of railroad right-of-way between West Branch and Oasis was reopened as a segment of the Herbert Hoover Nature Trail.
- States
- Iowa
- Trail type
- National Historic Site trail
- Centroid nearest city
- Des Moines, IA · 118 mi · ~3.4 hr drive
- Centroid coords
- 41.6738°, -91.3442°
About Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
This trail is inside Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, a national historic site managed by the U.S. National Park Service. Conditions, road status, trail closures, and reservation requirements are published on the park's NPS page — check it before driving in, especially in winter or during major weather events.
Official NPS trail page: https://www.nps.gov/places/hoover-nature-trail.htm
Park homepage: https://www.nps.gov/heho/index.htm
Plan your hike
Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.
Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.
When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.
If you've hiked Hoover Nature Trail and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.
Other trails within 50 miles
Sources
Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.