GLAP: 100 Miles on the I&M Canal

Chainlink'ers 

I recently did a mountain bike ride from the Channahon Access to Starved Rock and back with a group of adventure racing friends.  I compiled a short post on Great Lakes Adventure Project about the ride.  Planning to do it again soon and again in the fall.  Hope to see you all out there. 

As always, if anybody has any interesting touring rides, adventures or races (gravel, road or mountain) coming up, feel free to submit a write-up with a few pictures that I can post.

T

www.greatlakesadventureproject.com.

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Permalink Reply by mark stetson on June 20, 2014 at 11:50am

Are the pictures you posted of the I&M trail typical of its condition generally?  I last rode the western end of it some years ago when it was overgrown, rutted and muddy - I've not been back.

Permalink Reply by Kevin Mulcky on June 20, 2014 at 1:45pm

Is a day ride on a rail trail really an "adventure?" Seems like the bar has been lowered...

Permalink Reply by Lanterne Rouge on June 20, 2014 at 4:59pm

Riding to somewhere you've never been is an adventure, is it not? ( said facetiously) 

KevinM said:

Is a day ride on a rail trail really an "adventure?" Seems like the bar has been lowered...

Permalink Reply by Ken Gray on June 22, 2014 at 12:34am

Riding anywhere (or doing most anything) can be an adventure; it starts with attitude. Life my friend is the adventure.

Permalink Reply by Tricolor on June 22, 2014 at 2:04am

I generally consider an adventure to be a trip where things don't go as planned.  It's a good excuse not to make detailed plans.

Permalink Reply by Chitown_Mike on June 22, 2014 at 4:05am
This might be something I'd like to do on my old TrekTB when I get it converted to 700 wheels this fall. Except I'd want to do the whole 122 mile round trip in one day. And have to contingency plan if I can't. THAT sounds like an adventure to me.
Permalink Reply by Chitown_Mike on June 22, 2014 at 2:47pm
That world be something I'd be down for, just want to get my winter commuter/gravel grinder built later this year. I was reading about camping along the trail and it seems like it would be easy.

kiltedcelt said:

Interesting. I've been planning on riding the entire length of the I&M sometime later this year. Ideally I'd camp somewhere overnight.

Permalink Reply by Dave Grossman on June 22, 2014 at 3:21pm

I was at Starved Rock this weekend and after now reading this I really want to ride there.  I think it could be a lot of fun riding in, camping, and riding out.  The hard part would be actually getting a campsite there.  That place is always packed.

Permalink Reply by Tommy H. on June 23, 2014 at 1:55am

Everybody,

Thanks for checking out the site and for your comments.  These replies confirm what the post concedes - adventure is defined by the individual.  It is, therefore, entirely relative.  For me, it was an adventure to find 100 miles of (almost) uninterrupted trail within a very short drive from Chicago.

Yes, the pictures reflect the trail in its current condition.  However, a heavy rainfall could flood certain portions.  I will look into some of the campsite in the area.  Riding the length of the trail and camping overnight sounds like a lot of fun. Personally, I would do that in September or October - once the bugs die down a bit.

For my ride in particular, I did not pack much.  I had two bottles on the bike, a hydration pack with some food and some bike tools (tube, patch kit, tire levers, bike tool and air cartridges). The small towns (i.e. Morris and Seneca) can provide any extra food and water you might need.  

As for KevinM and/or Lanterne Rouge, I am happy to post a write-up of any experience you feel defines adventure.  The only parameters are that the experience involve something outdoor-related and set in the Midwest.

T

Permalink Reply by Eli on June 25, 2014 at 4:33am

Interesting. I've been planning on riding the entire length of the I&M sometime later this year. Ideally I'd camp somewhere overnight.

I did this last fall (http://flyoverblues.com/i-and-m/) (well, I rode the entire length of the trail that is maintained by the state, from LaSalle to Joliet--I guess there is another part that is maintained by Will County north of Joliet? I am a little confused about this) and I highly recommend it. There are numerous places to camp--some are just little clearings next to the trail with a fire ring, some are proper campgrounds. If you call the I&M Canal Trail State Park they are very helpful about telling you which campsites have which facilities. I camped at Gebhard Woods, which was nice in that it is only a mile ride into downtown Morris for services, but you are also basically camping in the backyard of an apartment complex--not exactly the away-from-it-all feeling you might want.

It's also totally feasible to do this trip completely car-free. The eastern trailhead in Rockdale/Joliet is only a couple miles from the Joliet Metra (and I know there are also ways to reach it by bike from the city), and the western trailhead in LaSalle/Peru is about 16-17 miles from the Mendota Amtrak station on low-traffic roads.

As for "adventure," well, if the criterion is things not going as planned, I did manage to lose my eyeglasses on that trip, and it took me almost a month and hundreds of dollars to get a new pair, so I guess that qualifies, but I am hopeful that I will have a little less adventure next time.

Permalink Reply by Tim Heckman on June 25, 2014 at 5:05am

I've done an S24O from Oak Park to Channahon State Park, completely by bicycle, on a Schwinn Suburban with rear baskets.  I wouldn't do it the same way today, but it can certainly be completed with just about any setup you care to throw at it.  From all indications, Channahon State Park does not generally fill up, with the possible exception of holiday weekends with perfect weather.  I camped on a Friday evening in July, and it was not quite half full at the end of the night.

Permalink Reply by Lanterne Rouge on June 25, 2014 at 6:05am

Tommy,

Are you doing this ride?

http://rideaxletree.com/2014/03/ten-thousand/

This stokes the flames of adventure (to me at least) and I would love to hear about it.


Tommy H. said:

Everybody,

Thanks for checking out the site and for your comments.  These replies confirm what the post concedes - adventure is defined by the individual.  It is, therefore, entirely relative.  For me, it was an adventure to find 100 miles of (almost) uninterrupted trail within a very short drive from Chicago.

Yes, the pictures reflect the trail in its current condition.  However, a heavy rainfall could flood certain portions.  I will look into some of the campsite in the area.  Riding the length of the trail and camping overnight sounds like a lot of fun. Personally, I would do that in September or October - once the bugs die down a bit.

For my ride in particular, I did not pack much.  I had two bottles on the bike, a hydration pack with some food and some bike tools (tube, patch kit, tire levers, bike tool and air cartridges). The small towns (i.e. Morris and Seneca) can provide any extra food and water you might need.  

As for KevinM and/or Lanterne Rouge, I am happy to post a write-up of any experience you feel defines adventure.  The only parameters are that the experience involve something outdoor-related and set in the Midwest.

T

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