Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Dekalb, whether you're looking for an easy short cross country skiing trail or a long cross country skiing trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a cross country skiing trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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I’ve been walking and cycling this trail for most of my life and it’s always a wonderful experience, such beautiful scenery along the river. It’s by far my favorite trail in the Chicagoland area.
Rode part of the Prairie Part starting in Warrenville a couple of days after substantial rain in June 2025. The trail had some very minor puddles but was in great shape. When in Warrenville don’t miss the great bike shop where I got some excellent advice about which way to go on the trail. Highly recommend this route. Thanks to the bike shop guys!
I did this trail on bike 2 years ago and I hated it, signage is terrible, at one point after Golf road, you literally come to an end and have to carry your bike over train tracks and active train tracks. No signs of any sort. You go through a campground that confuses you even more. I won’t do it again. To ridiculous.
I started on the West yellow loop. Two routes, either pavement which is terrible or lose gravel which is dangerous. The East side of Quentin is beautiful. New pavement and a nice meadow environment. Short though.
Section between poplar grove and route 76 is getting worse by the day, the chipmunks are taking over and the sharp granite railroad balast is cutting into our tires. No money in illinois budget to repair bicycle trails, the only people enjoying the trail are on those motorized fat tire bikes.
I rode on this trail for the first time yesterday. It is well maintained, pretty shady, and has well placed maps. I will definately go again. I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because there aren't any water sources at either end or along the trail. There are toilets (vault and a porta potty) at the ends, so that's a plus. At the Willow Springs end, about 2 blocks from the trail end, there's a Speedway gas station with snacks and beverages. You can see it from the trail. So if you go, make sure to bring plenty of water!
Rode this a year or two ago, and although it was a bit rough, it was enjoyable. Now, not so much. The asphalt trail from the east trailhead to Capron has been replaced with "crushed stone". The crushed stone has baseball sized chunks of asphalt and rock mixed in with it, and 50% of the rest are chunks bigger than an inch across. Barely passable on a gravel bike, if you find the right rut on the path. No way a road bike is making it down this stretch. Once you get to Capron, it's back to asphalt for a short bit, then it changes to gravel / crushed limestone. Some of the bridge crossing can be bone jarring, but not overwhelming. It changes back to asphalt outside of Poplar Grove, and continues all the way through to Caledonia. Some potholes can be pretty harsh, but not terrible. At some point between Poplar Grove and Caledonia, it turns back to gravel for a stretch. Although not my favorite, this was done well enough for our gravel bikes. We usually do this trail either from the east trailhead to Caledonia, or Caledonia into Roscoe, as there's a rest stop & parking in Caledonia. If you park on the street in Capron, and skip the first 2 miles, you'll be a lot better off. Although there's no water / bathrooms in Capron, there's a Casey's just down the street from the trail.
the 14.2 mile rail trail was a great trail 20 plus years ago, over the years a lack of state oversight allowed the trail to fall into a state of disrepair, the trail can no longer be roller bladed or skate boarded, about a decade ago they dug up the east section and most of it is crushed lime stone that the grass and weeds are now growing through, in places they ground up the asphalt and used it in place of limestone( horrible to ride on ). the section from route 76 to poplar grove was ground up last year and graded out and is now a section that will tear up road bike tires, there is sharp granite stones from the original rail bed mixed in with the ground up asphalt, the condition of this trail is only going to get worse due to the county not having two Nichols to rub together. If you put a child in a trailer behind you they will wind up with brain damage on the sections that still have pavement. I will say to politicians that it is asinine to allocate funds for new bike trail projects when they cannot provide funds for their future maintenance.
This is such a cool trail corridor, but it's a bit of an adventure to ride it. The scenery is great--there's some neat canal lock remains, the trail has lots of shade, and there aren't a lot of road crossings. It's also nice that the trail passes through several towns, so there are good opportunities for meals or snacks. The trail itself is just okay. It is mostly dirt, with a little gravel, and is rather over-grown for large sections. Many sections are basically single track--keep your wheels on the narrow dirt trail and it's smooth, but it's grass and weeds close on either side. Probably not a good ride for narrow tires or trikes. We went a few miles past Ottawa to ride into Buffalo Rock State Park, the trail west of Ottawa was a bit better. Overall it was a good ride and I'd do it again, but go in knowing that it isn't a smooth wide trail.
note: the trail shown in red is the regional trail. it overlaps with the Waterfall Glen Main Trail except for a couple of areas. Be sure to read the Trail Markers
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