Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Janesville, 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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The Long Prairie Trail journeys across the width of agricultural Boone County for nearly 14 miles on the railroad corridor previously used by the Kenosha and Rockford Railroad, later known as the...
The Stone Mill Trail runs between Lawrence Road in Harvard and Maxon Road in Chemung. The 1.5-mile, paved trail mostly parallels County Highway 17 (Ramer Road) and active railroad tracks, and will...
The Pecatonica Prairie Trail, formerly known as the Pecatonica Prairie Path, is a 14.3-mile rail-trail extending from the western edge of Rockford to N. Farwell Bridge Road west of Pecatonica. The...
The Chain O' Lakes Bike Path is a paved trail that runs between E. Grand Avenue in Fox Lake and Grant Woods Forest Preserve to the east. The trail parallels the railroad track and Rollins Road/CR 31,...
The Wild Goose State Trail is a premier rail-trail, spanning approximately 35 miles in Dodge and Fond du Lac counties. If you are looking for a peaceful and beautiful place to visit, this trail has it...
Rail-trail fans know that Wisconsin’s Elroy-Sparta State Trail is famous for its three tunnels. The Badger State Trail, which heads south from Madison to the Illinois state line (where it connects...
The Wingra Creek Path—also known as the Wingra Bike Path—runs along the winding waterway in Madison. The trail provides a critical link from the neighborhoods south of downtown Madison to the Capital...
The Glacial River Trail provides bikers, pedestrians, and in-line skaters with a 55.8-mile off-road/on-road rural route winding through farmland, prairie, wetlands, and woodlands as it passes through...
The Military Ridge State Trail finds the high ground as it rolls across 40 miles of idyllic farmland from the outskirts of Madison to the historic mining town of Dodgeville. It follows an American...
There’s no debating the historical significance of the Jane Addams Trail. Not only is it named for a Nobel Peace Prize-winning social activist who grew up nearby, but the trail also passes the site of...
The Rock River Parkway Trail in Janesville runs between Rockport Park and S. Jackson Street bridge on the north side of the river. Here, at the trail's eastern terminus, you can easily link to Spring...
About an hour northwest of Chicago, the beautiful Grant Woods Forest Preserve spans more than 1,000 acres, offering an outdoor respite of prairie, woodlands and marshes. The crushed limestone pathway...
The paved Rock River Recreation Trail winds throughout downtown Rockford and environs, following the east bank of the Rock River through Shorewood Park and Martin Memorial Park. Officially, the trail...
Moraine Hills State Park Trail offers a wonderful experience for any geology or nature aficionado. A moraine is an accumulation of earth and stones carried and finally deposited by a glacier....
The paved New Berlin Recreation Trail runs straight as an east–west compass bearing for 7 miles through the western Milwaukee suburbs, from New Berlin to Waukesha. While it is void of trestles,...
Built on a former rail bed dating back to the 1850s, the Stone Bridge Trail provides a crushed limestone pathway through rural countryside. A highlight of the trail is passage on Stone Bridge over the...
The Starkweather Creek Path traces the waterway north from the Capital City State Trail through Madison’s eastern neighborhoods of Starkweather, Worthington Park, Eken Park and Carpenter-Ridgeway. The...
The 52-mile Glacial Drumlin State Trail between Cottage Grove and Waukesha provides a glimpse into the past when glaciers bore down on southeastern Wisconsin in the last Ice Age. Those gigantic sheets...
The Kishwaukee River Recreation Path runs for 2.5 miles in Cherry Valley on the outskirts of Rockford in northern Illinois. The well-maintained, asphalt trail connects the Kishwaukee River Forest...
All it takes is a short ride on Madison’s 5.6-mile South west Commuter Path to understand the critical role it plays in getting people around town. Not only does it pass within a mile of the State...
There’s no debating the historical significance of the Jane Addams Trail. Not only is it named for a Nobel Peace Prize-winning social activist who grew up nearby, but the trail also passes the site of...
The paved New Berlin Recreation Trail runs straight as an east–west compass bearing for 7 miles through the western Milwaukee suburbs, from New Berlin to Waukesha. While it is void of trestles,...
The Long Prairie Trail journeys across the width of agricultural Boone County for nearly 14 miles on the railroad corridor previously used by the Kenosha and Rockford Railroad, later known as the...
All it takes is a short ride on Madison’s 5.6-mile South west Commuter Path to understand the critical role it plays in getting people around town. Not only does it pass within a mile of the State...
The 52-mile Glacial Drumlin State Trail between Cottage Grove and Waukesha provides a glimpse into the past when glaciers bore down on southeastern Wisconsin in the last Ice Age. Those gigantic sheets...
The Military Ridge State Trail finds the high ground as it rolls across 40 miles of idyllic farmland from the outskirts of Madison to the historic mining town of Dodgeville. It follows an American...
If you’re looking for an invigorating motorized-trail experience, the Cheese Country Recreation Trail (aka the Tri-County Trail) won’t disappoint. If you’re on foot, hoof, or self-propelled two...
The Glacial River Trail provides bikers, pedestrians, and in-line skaters with a 55.8-mile off-road/on-road rural route winding through farmland, prairie, wetlands, and woodlands as it passes through...
The Wild Goose State Trail is a premier rail-trail, spanning approximately 35 miles in Dodge and Fond du Lac counties. If you are looking for a peaceful and beautiful place to visit, this trail has it...
The Pelishek-Tiffany Nature Trail runs for 6 miles along an abandoned railroad corridor, between the towns of Allens Grove and Clinton. The trail is open to snowmobiles, cyclists, horseback riders and...
The Chain O' Lakes Bike Path is a paved trail that runs between E. Grand Avenue in Fox Lake and Grant Woods Forest Preserve to the east. The trail parallels the railroad track and Rollins Road/CR 31,...
The H.U.M. Trail (a.k.a. the Huntley-Union-Marengo Trail) was planned to link all three of its namesake northern Illinois towns, but so far only connects Marengo and Union. Interestingly, the...
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The Prairie Trail runs the length of McHenry County and is managed by the McHenry County Conservation District. The rail-trail spans just over 26 miles from the Wisconsin border and the farms and...
Rail-trail fans know that Wisconsin’s Elroy-Sparta State Trail is famous for its three tunnels. The Badger State Trail, which heads south from Madison to the Illinois state line (where it connects...
The Stone Mill Trail runs between Lawrence Road in Harvard and Maxon Road in Chemung. The 1.5-mile, paved trail mostly parallels County Highway 17 (Ramer Road) and active railroad tracks, and will...
Moraine Hills State Park Trail offers a wonderful experience for any geology or nature aficionado. A moraine is an accumulation of earth and stones carried and finally deposited by a glacier....
The Seven Waters Bike Trail is a scenic corridor stretching more than 17 miles northsouth between Burlington and Muskego Lake into Waukesha County. The trail was originally three trails, locally...
The Wingra Creek Path—also known as the Wingra Bike Path—runs along the winding waterway in Madison. The trail provides a critical link from the neighborhoods south of downtown Madison to the Capital...
If you can’t make it to Switzerland, then you can do the next best thing: take the Sugar River State Trail to “America’s Little Switzerland,” New Glarus, Wisconsin. Settled in 1845 by a small group...
The paved Rock River Recreation Trail winds throughout downtown Rockford and environs, following the east bank of the Rock River through Shorewood Park and Martin Memorial Park. Officially, the trail...
The Wild Goose State Trail is a premier rail-trail, spanning approximately 35 miles in Dodge and Fond du Lac counties. If you are looking for a peaceful and beautiful place to visit, this trail has it...
The Long Prairie Trail journeys across the width of agricultural Boone County for nearly 14 miles on the railroad corridor previously used by the Kenosha and Rockford Railroad, later known as the...
The Wingra Creek Path—also known as the Wingra Bike Path—runs along the winding waterway in Madison. The trail provides a critical link from the neighborhoods south of downtown Madison to the Capital...
The Lake Geneva Bike Path runs through the scenic resort city, offering connections to many of the community’s amenities. The trail has five unique, color-coded segments. The Blue Route is the...
The H.U.M. Trail (a.k.a. the Huntley-Union-Marengo Trail) was planned to link all three of its namesake northern Illinois towns, but so far only connects Marengo and Union. Interestingly, the...
Moraine Hills State Park Trail offers a wonderful experience for any geology or nature aficionado. A moraine is an accumulation of earth and stones carried and finally deposited by a glacier....
The Rock River Parkway Trail in Janesville runs between Rockport Park and S. Jackson Street bridge on the north side of the river. Here, at the trail's eastern terminus, you can easily link to Spring...
About an hour northwest of Chicago, the beautiful Grant Woods Forest Preserve spans more than 1,000 acres, offering an outdoor respite of prairie, woodlands and marshes. The crushed limestone pathway...
The Seven Waters Bike Trail is a scenic corridor stretching more than 17 miles northsouth between Burlington and Muskego Lake into Waukesha County. The trail was originally three trails, locally...
The Chain O' Lakes Bike Path is a paved trail that runs between E. Grand Avenue in Fox Lake and Grant Woods Forest Preserve to the east. The trail parallels the railroad track and Rollins Road/CR 31,...
The White River State Trail is composed of two separate segments: a 12-mile stretch that runs between Elkhorn and just west of Burlington in Walworth County, and a 7-mile section that connects the...
The Stone Mill Trail runs between Lawrence Road in Harvard and Maxon Road in Chemung. The 1.5-mile, paved trail mostly parallels County Highway 17 (Ramer Road) and active railroad tracks, and will...
The Starkweather Creek Path traces the waterway north from the Capital City State Trail through Madison’s eastern neighborhoods of Starkweather, Worthington Park, Eken Park and Carpenter-Ridgeway. The...
The 52-mile Glacial Drumlin State Trail between Cottage Grove and Waukesha provides a glimpse into the past when glaciers bore down on southeastern Wisconsin in the last Ice Age. Those gigantic sheets...
The Pelishek-Tiffany Nature Trail runs for 6 miles along an abandoned railroad corridor, between the towns of Allens Grove and Clinton. The trail is open to snowmobiles, cyclists, horseback riders and...
The paved Rock River Recreation Trail winds throughout downtown Rockford and environs, following the east bank of the Rock River through Shorewood Park and Martin Memorial Park. Officially, the trail...
Built on a former rail bed dating back to the 1850s, the Stone Bridge Trail provides a crushed limestone pathway through rural countryside. A highlight of the trail is passage on Stone Bridge over the...
The Kishwaukee River Recreation Path runs for 2.5 miles in Cherry Valley on the outskirts of Rockford in northern Illinois. The well-maintained, asphalt trail connects the Kishwaukee River Forest...
The paved New Berlin Recreation Trail runs straight as an east–west compass bearing for 7 miles through the western Milwaukee suburbs, from New Berlin to Waukesha. While it is void of trestles,...
If you’re looking for an invigorating motorized-trail experience, the Cheese Country Recreation Trail (aka the Tri-County Trail) won’t disappoint. If you’re on foot, hoof, or self-propelled two...
I recently rode the Prairie Trail as part of a ride from Geneva, IL to Lake Geneva, WI. It is a beautiful trail and definitely rideable on a road bike if the path is dry (I had 28mm tires). It’s crushed limestone for ~8 miles from Ringwood, IL to Genoa City, WI — exactly like the Illinois Prairie Path or Great Western Trail. Like the description says- only the northernmost 1/4 mile between the Hebron Trail and Genoa City is chunkier gravel.
Thanks everyone for your previous reviews!
I recently rode the Prairie Trail as part of a ride from Geneva, IL to Lake Geneva, WI. It is a beautiful trail and definitely rideable on a road bike if the path is dry (I had 28mm tires). It’s crushed limestone for ~8 miles from Ringwood, IL to Genoa City, WI — exactly like the Illinois Prairie Path or Great Western Trail. Like the description says- only the northernmost 1/4 mile between the Hebron Trail and Genoa City is chunkier gravel.
Thanks everyone for your previous reviews!
Rode on it this past weekend. There were tire tracks on the trail which caused my entire bike to shake. I would recommend a mountain bike on this trail.
Many busy four lane streets to cross without traffic lights. Sidewalks end without warning. Steep hills you have to walk your bike up. Pretty little picturesque town but not bike friendly.
We started at Freeport, Rode the entire length of Jane Addams trail(stopping at the wildlife santuary right off the trial), continue on to Badger state trail in WI and then hop over to Sugar river trail to New Glarus, WI. We spent a night in New Glarus. Two hotels (and pizza restaurant) in New Glarus are right off the trail and are very bike friendly (Whole town is!) Cycle back the next day. slightly over 40+ miles one way. Jane Addams is definitely the nicest of the 3 trails(and it is FREE, WI charge $5/day to use their trail). Special shout out to the volunteers at Jane Addams(freeport) trailhead that help maintain the trial clean/safe and provide Free ICE COLD Water during HOT summer weekend. will most likely make this trip every year with the family. Bring a spare tire/tube or use gel tube. I hit a walnut seed and had a flat! (28mm wide tires). I would say entire trip is almost 70-80% shaded, we did that on a high 90s day and feel very comfortable.
A very nice trail. Flat with asphalt. Northern half is well shaded. A small section on the southern portion of the tail is on road. At the southern trailhead, there is a family of bald eagles nesting across the river! The northern trailhead is at Riverside Park. Lots of shaded picnic areas, a playground, frisbee golf, shuffleboard and a city golf course. The trail also goes through Janesville’s Town Square which is close to lots of shopping and restaurants. From Kiwanis Trail, there is easy access to Peace Trail and Spring Brook Trial.
We began our adventure, August 31, 2021, at Whispering Oaks Park in McHenry, IL and set off going north. Almost immediately we crossed busy W. Elm St./Rte 120, but quickly left traffic behind as we passed McCullom Lake and East Beach Park and began passing farm fields and then the Glacial Park Conservation Area, full of beautifully blooming late summer prairie plants. Continuing north we passed through the small town of Ringwood and then into Richmond, IL where we negotiated another busy road crossing at Kenosha St/Rte 173 and then on into the North Branch Conservation Area where the Hebron Trail connects to the Prairie Trail, and just shy of the Wisconsin state line. The North Branch Conservation Area is a lovely, restored prairie area with rolling hills and a destination in it's own right. Storm clouds began to gather, and we turned around and headed back south. We stopped for some light refreshment at the Rusty Nail Saloon's outdoor patio, right on the trail, and also noted a good spot for ice cream, milk shakes, etc. just across a large parking lot to the west of the Saloon. This trail has a lovely mix of town and country and this section of the trail was easy riding with good path conditions and minimal road crossings to negotiate. We are hoping to get back again in Summer 2022.
Came from Chicago. The trail head near Harvard was locked up upon arrival had to park on a street in the town over (capron) too get on. Overall pretty cool, nice n flat and nice Midwest middle of nowhere scenery. Trail has some bumps and cracks from time and is partially crushed compacted gravel but very leisurely.
rode from albany to monticello to albany to brodhead. no one else on the trail. saw lots of turtles, snakes and water birds. the old diamond crossing near monticello was great to see. was quite pleased with this trail. would do again.
We started this trail out at merton firemans park, and went east to the falls, trail is all paved, beautiful scenery, goes under 164, nice woods, great view of the quarry, great ride
Was very excited to try this trail between Fish Hatchery (Delafield) and Oconomowoc downtown....but was disappointed. So much of the trail is between power line poles and fairly uninteresting. The worst, however, was the stretch around Nemahbin Lake--where the trail literally disappears completely and you are left navigating a narrow, heavily travelled road with no shoulders in some places! I can't believe this portion is still called the Lake Country trail--when there is no trail. I would not recommend this route for families with young children, given this dangerous stretch with cars whizzing past.
...loved the concept of this path and the ability to enjoy downtown Delafield and downtown Oconomowoc, though. I just wish is was better developed and a bit more interesting/rustic.
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