trail conditions - The Chainlink2024-03-28T20:08:33Zhttps://thechainlink.org/forum/topics/trail-conditions?groupUrl=fmtt&commentId=2211490%3AComment%3A176094&groupId=2211490%3AGroup%3A51903&feed=yes&xn_auth=noSummer 2012:
I have been on t…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-08-23:2211490:Comment:5869882012-08-23T18:46:35.843ZBrian Benderhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/BrianBender
<p>Summer 2012:</p>
<p>I have been on the trail 3 times a week all summer from 111th to 83rd. Real good conditions, especially the quick removal of fallen tree limbs on multiple occassions. Thank you to someone on this.</p>
<p>I ride the entire length roughly twice a month. Miscellaneous bottle breaks here and there, but generally good. The results of the work days are still evident. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Summer 2012:</p>
<p>I have been on the trail 3 times a week all summer from 111th to 83rd. Real good conditions, especially the quick removal of fallen tree limbs on multiple occassions. Thank you to someone on this.</p>
<p>I ride the entire length roughly twice a month. Miscellaneous bottle breaks here and there, but generally good. The results of the work days are still evident. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p> Thanks for letting us know. …tag:thechainlink.org,2012-06-11:2211490:Comment:5563772012-06-11T16:38:41.569ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>Thanks for letting us know. We'll follow up with the park district.</p>
<p>Thanks for letting us know. We'll follow up with the park district.</p> Sadly, my experience on the s…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-06-11:2211490:Comment:5560642012-06-11T14:34:34.074ZJane Healyhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Jane
<p>Sadly, my experience on the south end was a negative counterpoint to the above. We rode the entire MTT last Saturday morning and the trail was in pretty good condition. A bit of glass south of 119th-123rd. By this Friday, the conditions were SIGNIFICANTLY worse! At least 20 broken bottles from 127th St. north to roughly 115th. The conditions were startlingly bad compared to just 6 days previously. My bike club was appalled at how much worse it was (and these were 11-13 year…</p>
<p>Sadly, my experience on the south end was a negative counterpoint to the above. We rode the entire MTT last Saturday morning and the trail was in pretty good condition. A bit of glass south of 119th-123rd. By this Friday, the conditions were SIGNIFICANTLY worse! At least 20 broken bottles from 127th St. north to roughly 115th. The conditions were startlingly bad compared to just 6 days previously. My bike club was appalled at how much worse it was (and these were 11-13 year olds!).</p>
<p></p>
<p>I called 311 to report it, but was less than inspired by the response from the operator.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Jane Healy</p> Over the weekend, I got the f…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-06-11:2211490:Comment:5558642012-06-11T14:01:22.574ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>Over the weekend, I got the following trail condition report from <em>Peter Taylor</em>:</p>
<p>I rode the south end of the trail this morning.</p>
<p>105th - 107th good</p>
<p>107th - 111th trail-wide glass patch ~200 ft south of the intersection at 107th</p>
<p>111th - 115th good. The fence just north of 115th is still open and surrounded with trash but no glass on the trail there. Significant over growth on the east side of trail</p>
<p>115th - 117th disappointing. Multiple glass patches,…</p>
<p>Over the weekend, I got the following trail condition report from <em>Peter Taylor</em>:</p>
<p>I rode the south end of the trail this morning.</p>
<p>105th - 107th good</p>
<p>107th - 111th trail-wide glass patch ~200 ft south of the intersection at 107th</p>
<p>111th - 115th good. The fence just north of 115th is still open and surrounded with trash but no glass on the trail there. Significant over growth on the east side of trail</p>
<p>115th - 117th disappointing. Multiple glass patches, needs attention</p>
<p>117th - 119th disappointing. Slightly fewer glass patches, needs attention.</p>
<p>119th - 122nd good except for the low concrete posts on the east side of Emerald Ave that have not been reduced and had glass between them.</p>
<p>122nd - 127th OK but with one glass patch about 125th , needs attention</p>
<p>127th - bridge , clean but weeds really starting to encroach, needs attention.</p>
<p>bridge thru whistler good. looks like some one held a small bonfire on the trail 150 yds or so east from the parking lot. not much damage but a lot of cinders and ashes left. FPDCC should investigate.</p>
<p>What a beautiful day for a bike ride. When the trail is clean you can really enjoy it. On those long stretches you can really get your stroke going. I passed: two neighbors walking their dogs in different places, a mother and her sons one on bike and the other on scooter, a family walking with one boy on bike. A young boy said hello as he passed on his bike in recognition that we were both biking on the trail together. I spoke to an experienced rider going north as ! was going south, I invited him to find out more about FOMTT. Had another encounter with a lone woman rider in repose at the bridge to take in the river and MTC3 member Jewel and her goddaughter. I hope to have many more rides like these.</p> In the last week, I've ridden…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-05-10:2211490:Comment:5443402012-05-10T21:38:46.011ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>In the last week, I've ridden part of all of the trail north of 95th and found most of it pretty clean, with the exception of a bit of broken glass <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=93rd+%26+beverly,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.723043,-87.664145&spn=0.001533,0.003412&sll=41.656649,-87.631137&sspn=0.003086,0.006824&t=h&hnear=W+93rd+St+%26+S+Beverly+Ave,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois+60620&z=19" target="_blank">around 94th near the corner of the Jewel parking lot</a>. …</p>
<p>In the last week, I've ridden part of all of the trail north of 95th and found most of it pretty clean, with the exception of a bit of broken glass <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=93rd+%26+beverly,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.723043,-87.664145&spn=0.001533,0.003412&sll=41.656649,-87.631137&sspn=0.003086,0.006824&t=h&hnear=W+93rd+St+%26+S+Beverly+Ave,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois+60620&z=19" target="_blank">around 94th near the corner of the Jewel parking lot</a>. I'd like to offer a big THANK YOU to the 19th ward office for their assistance in getting fallen trees removed and grass mowed in this area recently. It looks <em>a whole lot better</em> now.</p>
<p><br/>Today I rode it from 105th to the southern end in Whistler Woods. From 105th to 115th, there was almost no broken glass, with the exception of a bad area on the south side of 115th St. Just south of that spot, I discovered an ugly view. Some of you may remember when I posted last spring about discovering a clearcut area just east of the trail and south of 115th, then learned that an adjacent auto body shop owned the property and was intending to build additional parking there. <br/><br/>They've recently built the parking lot, as shown in <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=115th+%26+halsted,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.683249,-87.643234&spn=0.001534,0.003412&sll=41.723043,-87.664145&sspn=0.001533,0.003412&t=h&hnear=S+Halsted+St+%26+W+115th+St,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois+60628&z=19" target="_blank">this satellite view</a> (which does not capture the ugliness on the ground). The good news: they used only a portion of the cleared land. The bad news: they left mounds of construction waste and demolition debris behind, adjacent to the lot, including tree stumps and old railroad ties. <br/><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242371?profile=original"><img class="align-full" style="padding: 4px;" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242371?profile=original" width="550"/></a>This is completely unacceptable. I'll be contacting the 34th ward office to request that the auto body shop get this cleaned up. <br/><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242299?profile=original"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242299?profile=original" width="550"/></a>The intersection of 119th and Halsted was surprisingly clear of glass - only tiny pieces in limited area. The trail from 119th to 120th was very clean. All street crossings from <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=119th+%26+halsted,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.675957,-87.639892&spn=0.006138,0.013647&sll=41.683249,-87.643234&sspn=0.001534,0.003412&t=h&hnear=S+Halsted+St+%26+W+119th+St,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois&z=17" target="_blank">120th to 124th</a> had varying amounts of broken glass. At 123rd, I encountered a cyclist sitting on a post, changing a flat tire on his bike. He had just passed through the broken glass near 124th (tougher to see northbound). He said it was his first trip on the trail and that he was on his return trip from Whistler, after an uneventful southbound trip. <br/><br/>The <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=122nd+%26+parnell,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.673291,-87.639343&spn=0.012277,0.027294&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=52.77044,111.796875&t=h&hnear=S+Parnell+Ave+%26+W+122nd+St,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois+60628&z=16&layer=c&cbll=41.673291,-87.639343&panoid=vkfujmwUxyYXexLbyzt6-Q&cbp=12,45,,0,0" target="_blank">posts at the trail access</a> between the Metra tracks and 122nd are unchanged. I had an unusually easy time crossing 127th st., thanks to a surprising lull in traffic. The trail surface from <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=122nd+%26+parnell,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.662204,-87.631137&spn=0.006172,0.013647&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=52.77044,111.796875&t=h&hnear=S+Parnell+Ave+%26+W+122nd+St,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois+60628&z=17" target="_blank">127th St. to 127th Pl.</a> is covered with grass clippings, but no broken glass. From <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=122nd+%26+parnell,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.658501,-87.631137&spn=0.006172,0.013647&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=52.77044,111.796875&t=h&hnear=S+Parnell+Ave+%26+W+122nd+St,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois+60628&z=17" target="_blank">128th St. to the river</a>, the problem of brush overgrowth is already returning, especially towards the river.<br/><br/>In <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=122nd+%26+parnell,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.656649,-87.631137&spn=0.003086,0.006824&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=52.77044,111.796875&t=h&hnear=S+Parnell+Ave+%26+W+122nd+St,+Chicago,+Cook,+Illinois+60628&z=18" target="_blank">this section of Whistler Woods</a>, there is a large tree branch down across the trail. It was too large for me to move without tools and assistance. It is possible to detour around it off the path. However, since the ground is very soft from recent rains, I recommend doing it on foot to avoid creating deep ruts.<br/><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242377?profile=original"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242377?profile=original" width="550"/></a>The transition from trail to parking lot is a little muddy and still somewhat of a hole. The section of parking nearest to the trail is rather waterlogged from all that rain. From the high water line of mud, I'd assume it was a bit deeper a couple of days ago. If it stays dry, we should be okay for this weekend's ride.<br/><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242402?profile=original"><img class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35242402?profile=original" width="550"/></a><br/><strong>NOTE: No port-a-john is on site at Whistler yet. </strong></p> I got a couple of updates sin…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-03-12:2211490:Comment:5223062012-03-12T19:29:00.985ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>I got a couple of updates since my earlier post. A friend who works for Amtrak says that post with 298 on it does look like a railroad mile marker, so we have a little piece of rediscovered history on this former freight rail line.<br/><br/>Also, the dead mall property at 115th & Halsted is being redeveloped as a charter school. I guess that solves the mystery of the clearcut lot immediately to the north.</p>
<p>I got a couple of updates since my earlier post. A friend who works for Amtrak says that post with 298 on it does look like a railroad mile marker, so we have a little piece of rediscovered history on this former freight rail line.<br/><br/>Also, the dead mall property at 115th & Halsted is being redeveloped as a charter school. I guess that solves the mystery of the clearcut lot immediately to the north.</p> I took a ride yesterday on th…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-03-12:2211490:Comment:5219382012-03-12T13:38:14.899ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>I took a ride yesterday on the section from 105th to 115th. There was almost NO broken glass - just one significant stripe just north of 115th.<br></br><br></br>A lot of tree trimming and removal work has been done in recent weeks from 105th to 111th. Big thanks to <a href="http://www.greenforall.org/resources/greencorps-chicago" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Greencorps</a> and the Chicago Park District for this huge project. They've thinned the dense growth, which addresses safety concerns…</p>
<p>I took a ride yesterday on the section from 105th to 115th. There was almost NO broken glass - just one significant stripe just north of 115th.<br/><br/>A lot of tree trimming and removal work has been done in recent weeks from 105th to 111th. Big thanks to <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.greenforall.org/resources/greencorps-chicago" target="_blank">Greencorps</a> and the Chicago Park District for this huge project. They've thinned the dense growth, which addresses safety concerns about muggers having places to hide. They also removed a LOT of trash.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240053?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240053?profile=original" width="550"/></a><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240058?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240058?profile=original" width="550"/></a><br/>Tree thinning and brush clearing north of 107th revealed something interesting - the marker shown below. Perhaps it's an old railroad mile marker. I'm trying to find out.<br/> <br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35239981?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35239981?profile=original" width="525"/></a></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">I noticed something else interesting along the way. The area marked in yellow below has been clearcut. Since that's such a landlocked parcel, I'm wondering if it's an expansion of either the school bus company or self storage place to the north, or if there are redevelopment plans for the dead mall to the south. Stay tuned.<br/><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240042?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240042?profile=original" width="510"/></a><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240092?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240092?profile=original" width="650"/></a>I've gotten reports from Peter Taylor and Larry Unruh from the last few weeks that conditions have been good to excellent all the way down to 127th. I'd like to offer another big THANK YOU to the park district for starting trail sweeping and bringing trash cans to each major street crossing. People are using them, and there's a lot less trash along the trail.<br/><br/>Otherwise, it was a beautiful day to see sandhill cranes migrating towards Wisconsin. Did anyone else see them over the weekend?<br/><br/><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240095?profile=original"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35240095?profile=original" width="565"/></a><br/><br/></p> We got some good news this we…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-02-12:2211490:Comment:5124362012-02-12T22:19:27.939ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>We got some good news this week. Following a meeting with Chicago Park District officials, we've gotten a pledge from them to start sweeping the trail weekly in colder months. This means that the trail will be much more rideable in winter. Thank you Chicago Park District!!!</p>
<p>We got some good news this week. Following a meeting with Chicago Park District officials, we've gotten a pledge from them to start sweeping the trail weekly in colder months. This means that the trail will be much more rideable in winter. Thank you Chicago Park District!!!</p> Here's a recent ride report f…tag:thechainlink.org,2012-01-03:2211490:Comment:4978042012-01-03T17:27:49.818ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>Here's a recent ride report from Peter Taylor:</p>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">Saturday Dec 24 I made a preemptive strike on Xmas dinner by riding the MTT. This warm weather should emphasize the need for year round maintenance on the Major Taylor Trail. As long as the trail not iced over it is used not only by cyclists but pedestrians and dog walkers in the neighborhoods along its route. Unswept glass is a community hazard.…</div>
<p>Here's a recent ride report from Peter Taylor:</p>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">Saturday Dec 24 I made a preemptive strike on Xmas dinner by riding the MTT. This warm weather should emphasize the need for year round maintenance on the Major Taylor Trail. As long as the trail not iced over it is used not only by cyclists but pedestrians and dog walkers in the neighborhoods along its route. Unswept glass is a community hazard.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">From the 83rd street trail head south to 87th was fine. I made a detour onto Dan Ryan Woods new paved loop. It is quite nice and I can't wait until we see something similar at the Whistler Woods end.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">The 91st to 95th section was not badly trashed but the difference in maintenance is striking.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"><br/>At 107th street on both sides of the intersection for 100 feet there is some glass. <strong>No change from my last report.</strong></div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">At 115th street on both sides of the intersection but primarily north for 200 feet we have a real problem with glass. This section is non negotiable by bike. <strong>No change from the last report and worsening. We need intervention here because this glass presence is the result of loitering. Because the Major Taylor Trail is Park District property Chicago Park District Security needs to put this spot on their circuit. </strong></div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">117th to 119th varying patches of glass -- very poor rideablity.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">At 121st in the bend just before the Metra tracks -glass. This is a regular hot spot.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">For 100 feet south of the 122nd street intersection some one has been doing some demolition an using the trail to move debris so it has varying junkiness.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">About 126th and the trail - another glass patch with poor rideablity.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">The Whistler Woods section was spectacular.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">I managed to make it home for a total of 17 miles ridden. My Xmas present the next day was a flat rear tire, no doubt a slow leak from glass picked up in my many encounters on the trail. The only glass I encountered in all my riding was on the above sections of the trail. Most streets are cleaner. This is VERY disappointing from the standard of the very good conditions we experienced in the summer.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">One thing I would like to press as part of the Mayor's Streets for Cycling initative is that Chicago inact a bottle redemption system as we have had in the past.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;">Happy New Year to All! And lets do something about these problems.</div>
<div style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Arial;"> </div> Yesterday I rode the trail fr…tag:thechainlink.org,2011-10-31:2211490:Comment:4734162011-10-31T13:56:24.247ZAnne Althttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Anne91
<p>Yesterday I rode the trail from 105th to 115th. There were patches of broken glass on the trail just north and south of 107th St, and several patches between 114th and 115th. Other than those patches, the trail surface was fairly clean. Tree and weed overgrowth is still an issue on the east edge of the trail between 111th and 115th.</p>
<p>Yesterday I rode the trail from 105th to 115th. There were patches of broken glass on the trail just north and south of 107th St, and several patches between 114th and 115th. Other than those patches, the trail surface was fairly clean. Tree and weed overgrowth is still an issue on the east edge of the trail between 111th and 115th.</p>