Great River Trail:
Illinois
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Description:
The Great River Trail is a breathtaking journey along 60 miles of the Mississippi River. The route is a mixture of paved rail-trail, small-town sidewalks, dedicated bike lanes on the street, and a stretch of road shoulder along the Great River Rd. The Great River Trail begins in Savanna and travels south through many small river towns with traditions still steeped in the quintessential culture of the Mississippi River. There are many opportunities for antiques, sumptuous catfish dinners, and viewing the boats and barges. If you stop for a spell, the friendly locals will chat to you about the river and how it has...and hasn't...changed.
Starting in Savanna, in the north, the Great River Trail is a nicely paved, secluded trail. As you continue on the trail you travel through a beautiful section that is sometimes secluded and quiet and other times parallels Route 84.
Through Cordova, near mile 35, the route follows quiet streets. Be sure to watch for the green bike signs that mark this section. After less than 2 miles, the rail-trail picks up again and closely follows Great River Road for 4 miles into Port Byron, a charming river town visible from the trail's riverbank course. Most of the corridor here is shared with an active rail line, offering a fine example of a safe rail-with-trail relationship.
Three miles downriver is Rapids City. You will see numerous blue herons, gulls, and waterfowl in and over the water here. In town, adjacent to the trail is a stone monument offering a prayer from Native Americans for both the trail and its users.
After another 3 miles, the trail quickly cuts underneath Interstate 80, then through the town of Hampton, past lovely riverfront homes. A large public park on the south side of town has a great wooden playground and makes a wonderful rest stop. Shortly after leaving the park, the trail climbs to the top of a levee wall, where it stays for quite a while. Just ahead on the left, the John Deere manufacturing plant, with row after row of shining new farm equipment, marks the beginning of the trail's urban section. Traveling on top of the levee affords great views of the bridges over the river connecting the Quad Cities.
From Hampton, it is only 5.5 miles to the city of Moline. Follow the bike route signs to navigate through the city and return to the trail on the other side. The Quad City Convention and Visitors Bureau, right off the trail, is a pleasant place to stop. This stretch follows a slough of the river, across which you can see historic Rock Island. The Rock Island Arsenal (operated here by the U.S. Army) was a Union army prison camp during the Civil War.
Leaving downtown Moline, the trail stays up on the riverbank and crosses under the Centennial Bridge as you enter the city of Rock Island, whose industrial area dominates the landscape for most of the final 7.5 miles from Moline. This breaks open when you ride into Sunset Park whose large marina and extensive river views provide a fitting end to this scenic trail.

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Parking & Trail Access:
To reach the Savanna trailhead from State Route 84 (Great River Road), take US Route 50 (Chicago Street) west and turn left on Broderick Drive. The trailhead is on the left.
The Cordova trailhead is on Main Avenue. From State Route 84 (Great River Road) turn west on Main Avenue and the take a left on 11th Street. The parking lot is in the park on the right. You will not see the trail; from the parking lot, head left (north) on 11th Street, turn left again on 2nd Avenue and then look for the green bike route signs.
To reach the Rock Island trailhead from Interstate 280, take State Route 93 (Centennial Expressway) to the Sunset Lane exit. Turn left on Sunset Lane and look for the trailhead on the right at Sunset Park.

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Reviews: [1 trail ratings]
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Plan Ahead - Bring a Map
By saddlesoar in September, 2011
My daughter and I rode the trail from just north of Fulton to the end in Rock Island. The ride was very scenic along the river. We especially enjoyed riding through the small towns north of the Quad Cities. This was a planned century (100 miles) so after a while the scenery and aesthetics become much less interesting than completing the ride. We started in Cordova, the half way point, and road 25 miles in each direction. The city park was our staging area for our adventure. With never having ridden the trail I was relying on signage to keep us on track. As we left the park there were no signs pointing the way to the trail. We embarked on a frustrating tour of Cordova trying to find the trail. Once we understood that the trail through some towns is posted as a 'Bike Route' the navigation became much easier. But it doesn't end there. As we entered the Quad Cities, primarily Rock Island, loosing the trail at a street intersection was quite easy at times. Thank goodness for the map on our 'smart' phones. I understand that signs are vandalized or are victim to something else but the trails needs to be signed so navigation is much more simple. A coordinated effort needs to be made to standardize the signs along the whole route. If you do ride the trail take a detailed map and a fully charged 'smart' phone with a mapping app. A lot of money, planning and time has gone into bringing this trail to where it is today. This trail, and others like it, are a great asset to our state and those seeking recreation.
I loved ti
By ryanalf in June, 2011
I rode from Savannahh to Thomson ( 20 miles round trip). The trail is complete now, so you don't have to go out on the highway. It was paved and when the trail turned into street it was very low traffic. Downtown Thomson has a combination bike shop/ embroidery shop.
From Sunset to Savanna
By dschreiner in November, 2010
I walked the Great River Trail this summer and thoroughly enjoyed it. I live in the Quad Cities so I started at Sunset Marina in Rock Island and would walk about 10 miles per session, 5 miles out then 5 back to my car. The stretch from Sunset Marina to just north of Cordova winds thru several small towns and stays pretty close to the Mississippi river, a pretty scenic and enjoyable stretch, being that it passes thru several towns there are plenty of rest areas / retaurants. The next stretch that was a challenge and not very enjoyable / scenic, fortunately it was only 5 miles long, it starts just north of Cordova at the nucular plant to just south of Albany, it runs right next to Il Route 84, which is traffic going 55 miles per hour. From there the stretch from Albany to Fulton strays from the river and takes you on a lot of back country roads, I was a little nervous at first to walk on these country roads, but they are not very heavily traveled and you are going thru the countryside seeing a lot of scenery and wildlife. The last stretch from Fulton to Savanna is mostly designated trails winding thru the woods, praries and also utilizing some country roads. My favorite stretch was the last 5 miles from a visitors center that sits on the Mississippi and onto Savanna, this section winds 100% thru woods and praries. After I walked the trail this summer I started biking it, but I got a late start so I haven't biked it all yet, but I plan on doing both next summer.
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