It has very good bike trails and obstacles to try out. Definitely not a trail to go on after it rained but other than that it’s a great trail and not many people there!

Started at the Bureau Jct TH. Walked bikes across the bridge, started out and found the trail to be a combo of slightly paved, not paved, gravelly, sandy, and deep sandy. A real challenge but not advisable for a road bike. Lots of debris (rock, branches, husks, etc). However, there was no-one else on this section so privacy over crowds is the tradeoff. Saw at least 4 snakes on the trail - prairie kingsnakes and one trapped in the canal. Rode all the way to Lock 6. Nice trail except for the beginning. On the way back we bailed the trail and rode thru Bureau Jct to get to the TH.

In 2021, the longest segment of the trail was extended further west within Marion and now ends at 7th STREET. That stretch is about six miles long from the east endpoint at Oxley Road. The trail goes underneath Highway 13/151.

There is also another segment of trail within Marion that is about 1.3 miles in length. The western endpoint is just east of C Avenue NE. The trail has a high bridge over Indian Creek, and the trail dead ends just west of Marion Blvd. When I visited on 10/04/2021, there was construction underway to complete the 4/10's of a mile gap between the two sections described above. Hopefully, my review will also soon be out of date, and the connected stretches making one eight-mile trail.

The middle 2.3 mile stretch from Creekside Road to Springville Road is primitive, but passable. I would describe that stretch as grass growing through a narrow, gravel footpath. The grass is kept mowed. That stretch is scenic, with full-sized trees. However, with the primitive surface, I had to carefully watch where I was riding, instead of being able to gaze around.

The eastern-most stretch, between Alderman Road and Martelle should not be listed as a trail. It is not maintained, and there are multiple places with trees blocking the abandoned right of way.

Great trail to run, well marked. One thing would be to add some lighting but otherwise it’s easy to access and plenty of parking along the route.

We started at the Visitor Center, (very close to Interstate 80); headed west till we came to the feeder basin and headed north for 4 miles, turned around (due to poor conditions) and went back to the feeder basin to continue west for another 4 miles, then headed back to the visitor center. Total round trip around 27 miles.
We are not from the area and were looking to break up a long car drive, this seemed like the perfect location. I must say the scenery is beautiful, we saw many wild animals, biked thru a patch of grasshoppers (hundreds of them), saw beautiful herons, a long nosed fish and a flock of wild turkeys - stunning!
But as for the path, well I could not tell any paved stretches. Most was light soft gravel or overgrown tire tracks, but the worst part was how overgrown the side brush was, covering 1/2 to 3/4 of the path, especially in the northern section. I was hit by so many branches (we were there in late August, it didn't look like any mowing or trimming had been done all summer). Between that and having to watch for obstructions in the path, it was not very enjoyable. To me the path was very "bumpy" and trying even a pace of 10 - 12 miles an hour was tough.
If you're out for a leisurely stroll, this may be a good path, but the section we rode needs maintenance. And it was very disappointing when we arrived at the Visitor Center on a Monday afternoon, for it to be all closed up, no maps, no bathrooms. The one bathroom we stopped at on the northern section was a mess.
This path has potential, it's a shame it seemed to me no one maintains it.

Overgrown foliage and thorn vines across the path. Bring your own clippers or take another route for access to Clear Creek.

Parked where I-74 crosses the river Headed west along the trail but the headwinds were so strong I turned around and went east but ended up in a warehouse district alone so came on back. A well maintained trail with lots of bikers and walkers enjoying it

Great job of clean up on the east end since last fall. Grass area west of Springville is a nice ride even on a hybrid. Last September it was largely impassable with downed trees from the derecho, but looks good now.

Hi everyone-- did the trail July 31, 2021 on a Diamondback Insight Hybrid, 75 degrees and partly cloudy day.

The trail is...not bad. I wanted to give it 3 1/2 stars, so will round up here. I crossed the state --largely using I&M Canal + Hennepin along the way-- starting at Co. road 1200 E (NW of Wyanet) going all the way to Colona, near the Quad Cities. Generally, the further west you go the better in terms of trail surface. Where I started on the eastern portion it was like riding on 'crushed peat' -- grassy and narrow. The asphalt-ish surface starts around I-80 and goes northwesterly from there. There are a few spots that are 'large' gravel but I wouldn't get too worried about that.

I wish the Hennepin was more marked (mile markers, etc) like the I&M Canal. Not much you can do about the lack of services, so bring plenty of water, snacks and a fully-charged cell phone. Princeton and Geneseo are great bookend towns, so to speak, although Princeton is a bit north of the trail. Very peaceful ride, although a little monotonous after a while. The feeder basin area (where the Rock Falls spur branches off) is pleasant.

A hybrid or mountain bike is 'probably' the best way to go here...especially on a dry surface...which I had, thankfully.

Dreaming a bit here...but I think a fully-paved trail between the Quad Cities to the Indiana border, largely using the Hennpin, I&M Canal and Old Plank Road Trails would be amazing and a financial boon to towns along the way. But the cost of constructing such a thing.............