This past weekend, I had this grand idea to bike up to Milwaukee from Chicago.  It's about 90 miles each way on a trail that runs, for the most part, all the way there.  Some friends decided to join me part of the way.

 

I took these pictures on my phone....and that's all I was carrying along with my wallet.

 

Unfortunately the weather didn't turn out as promised.  It just got cloudier and colder and remained in the low 40's.  I got up slightly past Racine to make it 80 miles, then 15 miles back to Kenosha, then rode around town to make it an even 100 miles.  I then boarded a MetraRail train back to Chicago.

 

These photos show the way there + Racine.  Kenosha will be the next thread.

 

On the way up near the North Channel Trail in Chicago we saw this house being moved

 

Breakfast in Highland Park....18 Miles North of downtown Chicago

 

At about 25% of the way to Milwaukee the trail switches to concrete near the Naval Station at Great Lakes

 

 

Just South of Waukegan

 

Through Waukegan and Zion it's a miserable stretch of crushed limestone.  It's okay to ride a road bike on it....just annoying after awhile.  After passing Zion it starts to get rural

 

Here's the un-ceremonious border crossing between Illinois and Wisconsin.  Just a humble pedestrian bridge.  The trail becomes asphalt pavement rest of the way

 

Kenosha, but I'll save more for a later thread

 

 

Finally I reach Racine.  About 75 miles from home.  Cold, tired, and miserable  But I forced myself to take pictures. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now before you ask "Where's the people????"  It was miserable out.  And I probably looked like a fool pedaling about the wrong way on streets taking pictures of buildings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hey look, a blue thing

 

FLW

 

Worn, but interesting neighborhood commercial district I saw on the way out

 

 

 

 

 

Back on the road

 

Stay tuned for Kenosha

Cool, thanks! Never been to this neck of the woods.

 

LOL@Paul Ryan's Constituent Service Center

Racine seems okay.

yeah what a ride.

 

there are plenty of handsome structures.

 

i do wish we would stop cutting and pasting this damn building all across america tho  :laugh:

I did the same ride, but did it on a nice summer day at around 70 degrees so I wound up going all the way to Milwaukee.  Racine has pretty cool old buildings for a city its size in the midwest.  Next time I do it I might just go to Kenosha by train then bike the rest.

 

I was so sore I needed a day to recover btw, its a pretty intense trip, though pretty easy given the amount of paths.  :)