Orange Beach, Ala. — (OBA) —  The Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail did not win the national title again this year. The trail was aiming for a fourth straight win. Instead, it finished in second place. The result still put the local trail among the nation’s top recreational trails.

The ranking was announced as part of the 2026 USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards. Pumpkinvine Nature Trail in northern Indiana ranked first. The Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail, located in Orange Beach and Gulf Shores, Alabama, ranked second in the voting.

The City of Orange Beach Coastal Resources Trail crew was credited with helping keep the Backcountry Trail system clean and safe. The system sees more than 1.4 million trail users each year.

The trail is described as a collaboration between Gulf State Park-Alabama, the City of Orange Beach, and the City of Gulf Shores. The announcement called it a “wonderful and dynamic collaboration.” The group highlighted the shared effort involved in operating the trail system.

In the final top 10 list, Pumpkinvine Nature Trail in Indiana ranked first, followed by Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail in Orange Beach and Gulf Shores, Alabama, which ranked second, and Gitchi-Gami State Trail in Minnesota, which ranked third.

The Spokane River Centennial State Park Trail in Spokane Valley, Washington, ranked fourth. The Katy Trail in Missouri ranked fifth. The High Trestle Trail in Iowa ranked sixth. The Withlacoochee State Trail in Inverness, Florida, ranked seventh. The Tony Knowles Coastal Trail in Anchorage, Alaska, ranked eighth. Capital City State Trail in Madison, Wisconsin, ranked ninth. The Great Allegheny Passage, located in Maryland and Pennsylvania, ranked 10th. 

More information about the trail awards is available at USA Today 10Best Best Recreational Trail.