Have done this trail three times: once round-trip, Madison-Dodgeville-Madison (staying overnight in Dodgeville), and once one-way on my way from Madison to Galena, Illinois. It is a strenuous workout for a guy like me in his sixties, but I I enjoyed it a great deal. The trail is shaded for, oh, about 60-70% of the way, and there are interesting stops in Mt. Horeb, Blue Mound, and Barneveld (this last notable for the tornado that destoyed it in 1984, though a good part of the town has now been rebuild). At the west end is pretty little Dodgeville, home of Land's End and the usual array of fast food restaurants. Four or five miles up Rt. 23 is the freaky House on the Rock, and in another dozen or so -- though a very hilly dozen -- is Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin, The American Players Theater (one of the best professional repertory theaters in the country), and the cozy town of Spring Green. The trail is not quite remote enough for my taste but is a pleasure nonetheless.

This is a favorite of many who live around Madison. My favorite ride is the 6+ miles from Riley to Mt. Horeb. The final three miles are up a 3-degree grade which is a 300-foot increase in elevation. It's a workout, but with a number of rewards that make the effort worthwhile. There's the micro-brewed beer and great burgers at the Grumpy Troll in Mt. Horeb, and the 3-miles 'coast' at a comfortable 8 to 10 miles an hour back toward Riley. The Riley Tavern (at the trailhead in Riley) sports an amazing pancake breakfast on Sunday mornings and a relaxing veranda porch that overlooks the Trail and surrounding farm land.

"We cycled west from Verona to Dodgeville on a perfect autumn Saturday; motelled it in D'ville; then returned the next day. Round trip: about 80 miles.
Good trail conditions and amble restrooms at park shelter houses along the way. One short stretch west of Ridgeway was somewhat hilly with enough loose gravel to skid on--careful of that.
Otherwise, the ride has some of the most enjoyable features: lovely, postcard-like views of farm country, splendid vistas, especially near Blue Mound; camping opportunity there, as well.
Restaurants, taverns and pubs at regular intervals, too. And not very crowded, surprisingly."

We rode this trail from Dodgewille to Madison the first week of September 2006.

We stayed the first night in Blue Mounds state park.

The ride was a beautiful and pleasant way to spend a vacation.

We stopped in Blue Mounds and bought a print at an artists studio.

We spend three hours in the interesting community of Mt. Horeb.

The trail head in Verona is great.

The trail then connects to the Capitol City Trail in Madison which is another nice way to spend a day (riding around the city on trails).

Not a lot of people riding this trail (compared to the Elroy Sparta trail or the volume of bike traffic on the Capitol City trail).

I usually start my ride at the new trailhead in Verona and ride through Mt Horeb and to Blue Mounds area. The trail surface is hard packed and generally smooth riding. Scenery is great along the way. Grumpy Troll brewpub in Mt Horeb is worth the stop. I ride this trail 3-4 times a year and highly recommend the trail.