Zombie Road
A haunted road, a wooded hollow, and the ghosts of the railroad.
Wooded Rock Hollow Trail in Wildwood, Missouri, popularly known as Zombie Road
A spooky trail were multiple urban legends lurk
The Story
Outside St. Louis, a wooded descent toward the Meramec River has acquired one of the region's most enduring supernatural nicknames: Zombie Road. The name refers to the old road corridor now followed by Rock Hollow Trail in Wildwood, Missouri. According to the City of Wildwood, the road was being called 'Zombie Road' by the 1950s. Its reputation grew around tales of ghostly figures, unexplained sounds, and people said to have died near the railroad. Those stories are local folklore, not established evidence of hauntings or proof of specific deaths. Today, the old route has been transformed into a paved trail winding roughly 2.2 to 2.3 miles down the wooded bluff to the Meramec Greenway. The surroundings do much of the storytelling: steep forested slopes, deep shade, and the nearby historic rail corridor. Wildwood itself acknowledges the legend through its Shivering Shadows event and seasonal haunted outings. Zombie Road remains a striking example of how a real landscape can accumulate an imaginary history that becomes part of local identity.
What Remains Today
The old road survives as the paved Rock Hollow Trail, descending through a wooded valley from the Ridge Road area to the Al Foster Trail along the Meramec River. Natural-surface trails called Zombie East and Zombie West also run nearby. The valley, steep slopes, and forest remain; the paranormal accounts are folklore rather than verified historical events.
Visiting Information
Zombie Road is publicly accessible as Rock Hollow Trail during permitted park/trail hours. For an upper access point, park at Ridge Meadows Elementary School, 777 Ridge Road, Ballwin, MO 63021, where permitted, and follow the Rock Hollow Trail downhill. The paved trail is approximately 2.2–2.3 miles each way, with a substantial uphill return. Alternatively, park at the Al Foster Trailhead, 225 Grand Avenue, Wildwood, MO 63038, and follow the Al Foster Trail approximately one mile to its Rock Hollow Trail connection.
Do not plan a nighttime ghost hunt. The City of Wildwood lists Al Foster Trailhead park hours as one-half hour before dawn to one-half hour after dusk. Check current posted hours and any access restrictions for Rock Hollow Trail before visiting. Stay on designated trails, avoid railroad tracks and private property, and bring water and suitable shoes. The woods can be isolated, and mobile service may be unreliable.
Location
Rock Hollow Trail (Zombie Road), access via Al Foster Trailhead, 225 Grand Ave, Wildwood, MO 63038
Photo Gallery
Watch the Story
Sources
City of Wildwood, historical points-of-interest map (Lawler Ford Road, 2.3-mile Rock Hollow Trail, thirteen bridges): https://www.cityofwildwood.com/DocumentCenter/View/2977/Final-Points-of-Interest-Map?bidId=
City of Wildwood, historical map (Zombie Road nickname by the 1950s; Shivering Shadows): https://www.cityofwildwood.com/DocumentCenter/View/8411/FINAL-MAP
St. Louis Magazine, Is Zombie Road Really Haunted? (2016), including discussion with researcher Troy Taylor: https://www.stlmag.com/history/st-louis-sage/is-zombie-road-really-haunted/
St. Louis Magazine, Zombie Road: Ghosthunting in Wildwood (2013): https://www.stlmag.com/culture/travel/Zombie-Road-Ghosthunting-in-Wildwood/
Terrain Magazine, Profile: Zombie/Rock Hollow Trail in Wildwood, Missouri (2018): https://terrain-mag.com/profile-zombie-trail/
City of Wildwood, 2026 Shivering Shadows 7K and Zombie Express event notices: https://www.cityofwildwood.com/CivicSend/ViewMessage/message/300504 ; https://www.cityofwildwood.com/CivicSend/ViewMessage/message/299755
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