Tuesday Travels to Suburbia: Illinois Prairie Path
Due to the temporary closure of the trails at Busse Woods, you may be looking for an alternate place to run or cycle. This past Saturday, I tried out a stretch of the Illinois Prairie Path which is located about a twenty minute drive southwest of Busse Woods. The Prairie Path extends from Maywood out to the western suburb of Wheaton, before branching out to Elgin and Aurora. I only ran from Elmhurst to around Villa Park before I headed back.
The path is primarily crushed limestone, although there are some stretches that are paved. There are some drinking fountains along the path, although I advise you to bring water because they are not as plentiful as other places, such as the lakefront path.
My main problem was that because the path extends through several suburbs, the path often crosses a street. As a result, runners and cyclists have to stop and wait for the traffic before crossing. This can be annoying if you are trying to keep a set pace or keep the heart rate elevated. The traffic was not too bad, though, when I was out from 7:00 a.m.-9:00 a.m. The path got crowded around 8:00 a.m. or so and there are a few spots where passing is difficult (a couple of narrow bridges). Most of the people there understood proper path etiquette though, so it was not a problem.
If you are looking for a Busse Woods alternative and want to consider the Illinois Prairie Path, check out this link.
Chicago, Chicagoland, Elmhurst, running, running chicago, cycling, bicycling, Illinois Prairie Path, marathon training, Busse Woods
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