Great Western Trail - Illinois Prairie Path Loop - Illinois, United States

Story: I combined sections of the Great Western Trail and Illinois Prairie Path to come up with a nice 20-mile ride today.  Starting at the Kline Creek Horse Farm on County Farm Rd I rode north to the Great Western Trail, then rode east to its terminus in Villa Park.  Along the way were the same pleasant smells I had encountered the last time I rode the trail.  There's a spice processor in Carol Stream and various restaurant smells in Villa Park.  At the end of the GWT, I made the two block ride south to the Illinois Prairie Path and turned west to head back to Kline Creek.  There were a lot of road crossings through Lombard, so it was hard to build up momentum.  West of Hill Ave in Glen Ellyn, the trail goes through a sort of canyon, which killed my GPS reception until I got to the Taylor Ave bridge.  Riding through downtown Glen Ellyn and Wheaton is interesting.  Lots of shops to look at as you ride by, though you do have to slow down for the street crossings and pedestrians.  The Prairie Path bridge over the railroad tracks in Wheaton is closed.  I forgot the road bridge and trail bridge were being replaced.  The trail detour signage at West St had arrows pointing both north and west, so I wasn't sure if that meant I could continue west or if I had to go north.  Upon confirming the bridge was closed, I rode back to West St and followed the signage to head north on West St.  I wasn't comfortable with the street's narrowness and the speeding drivers, so I rode on the sidewalk up to Franklin Ave, where the detour goes west.  There are a couple of zig-zags on calm residential streets before you rejoin the Prairie Path at Lincoln Ave.  Once again, I was on a trail I had ridden before.  At County Farm Rd I left the Prairie Path and rode north back to the parking lot for Kline Creek Farm.

Tags: Illinois Prairie Path, great western trail, Wheaton, Carol Stream, lombard, Villa Park, Glen Ellyn, Geneva Road