By vonberger on April 23, 2009
The middle of the trail actually has alot of great amenities and the towns are quite close together. Luck, Fredric and Siren is a great 15 mile ride one way and then back the next day. There are restaurants and lodging in both Luck and Siren. Siren has alot of stuff, including a very cute place called the Forgotten Times Retreat. It holds alot of people each with your own bed and is only 1 1/2 miles from the trail.
By Ridewild on December 29, 2008
The Gandy Dancer trail is fantastic starting out in Danbury then heading south. It's a little more rugged heading north of Danbury. Which is fine for the ATV enthusiast or horseback riders. ATV's and horseback is only allowed north of Danbury. That was a great idea though, to allow atv's to the north and keep hikers and the bikers separate from the atv's.
It gives everyone a chance to enjoy the trail
There's a place to park your car and unload your bikes, or you can just hike south, then come back to get your car. The view is pretty enough so you wont see the same things twice. Plus there's a nice little park right there, at the start of the trail in Danbury.
It's an extremely nice, wide, groomed trail with crushed limestone and fantastic views of Yellow river right when you first start out. They even keep up the sides or shoulder of the trail by mowing it frequently. That helps keep bugs down and makes the trail seem even wider.
We noticed right before the big 4th of July weekend of 2008, they were right on it, grooming it so it would look nice for the Holiday weekend!
We bike and hike it alot. It's so peaceful and we've seen our fair share of deer and other wild life while hiking the trail.
Having biked and hiked other trails in many other states, we think the Gandy Dancer is right up there near the top. There are also nice places to stop and eat or shop in the towns along the trail too, though Danbury has the most character.
If you want a nice, long, well groomed scenic trail, try the Gandy Dancer. You wont be disappointed!
By dreamshark on September 12, 2008
We rode the southern 10 miles or so of this trail in the spring of 2008. Frankly, it was a bit disappointing. The first two miles were a nice asphalt surface, but this whole section is one enormous uphill as it climbs out of the river valley. Scenic, but we're not super hill bikers and found it pretty exhausting. After that, the surface changed to crushed limestone and the trail became pretty much a tour of the local cornfields with a very thin line of small trees along the trail. This part was flat enough, but the trail surface was poor. The downed tree branches and puddles were no doubt due to a recent storm, but the deep tractor ruts had clearly been there for a while.
Other reviews mention the the frequent small towns as a plus, and from what we saw this is the case. We very much enjoyed our beer and burger at the Glass House Bar in Centuria. We're from Minnesota, and appreciate the welcoming and ever-available taverns that you find in small-town Wisconsin! And of course, the two miles of hill was a lot more fun when we were coasting down it on the way back to our car. But overall, this trail is not going to be one of our favorites.