DJRider.com - Grand Illinois Trail 2000

Grand Illinois Trail

My new book Biking Illinois: 60 Great Road Trips and Trail Rides includes detailed maps and descriptions of many portions of the Grand Illinois Trail, along with other fun and challenging rides throughout the state.

June-September 2000: A Trail Blazing Bicycle Adventure

The plan: In my first year of bicycling regularly since 1993, I wanted to become a Grand Illinois Trail (GIT) Trail Blazer. To qualify for the Trail Blazer award, I had to travel the entire 525-mile route during the first year of its existence, keeping a diary and making note of when I reached certain checkpoints. The promised reward was to be a pin or a patch (which turned out to be a T-shirt), plus my name published in the Illinois State Parks magazine. People told me, " It would take a lot more than a patch to get me to ride my bike over 500 miles!" Of course, the real reason was to prove to myself that I could do it.

This is a rough map of the GIT. I rode the light blue segment instead of the red one.