Find the top rated mountain biking trails in Illinois, whether you're looking for an easy short mountain biking trail or a long mountain biking trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a mountain biking trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Aug 2025
Aug 205
I typically ride prairie path area, but like to get out and find something different from time to time.
Did minimal research before heading down to ride here.
The north end of the trail is on a pretty industrial road beneath an underpass for I-80 and just north of a train crossing.
You can find a place to park within short distance of the trail, but next time I will park at one of the following:
#1
Sugar Creek forest preserve
17540 W Laraway Rd
Joliet, IL 60433
https://maps.app.goo.gl/2GMxcK6ZHjynGe8M9
#2
Near one of the businesses with big empty parking lots on the weekend where the trail crosses Mills Road.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/1Grwn9j5QNm4wT6Y7
Heading south the first few miles is paved blacktop that does not appear to be that old, but has numerous bumpy patches from tree roots. After a few miles it becomes the self healing compacted gravel and is a nicer ride.
I did 16 one way, 32 miles round trip with the south end being Symerton, IL
I think 5 more miles gets you to the river.
There are a couple public rest areas with pit toilets, and a couple fountains also with taps to refill your bottle.
Did not see much in terms of food. There may have been if you ventured off a bit.
The only place inviting bikers were these folks.
Symerton Tap and Grill
https://maps.app.goo.gl/bLMprvEBzoduYS6V9
I don't like a big meal while riding, and just had my own snacks.
Nice ride, its little effort for me to get here, but can see doing this again once each year.
Our annual women’s biking trip did this ride on our 3rd day, a total of 36 miles round trip. Woodstock needs to have a marked bike route from the end of Ridgefield Trace into downtown Woodstock as there is a lot of traffic where the trail ends. Some spots on the trail have a lot of bumpy cracks, but overall was OK for what we needed to get from Crystal Lake to Woodstock. Downtown Woodstock is very cute with lots of shops & restaurants with a cute park/square & where Groundhog Day was filmed.
(8/13/2025) - Beautiful day for a ride on the Jane Addams. Trail was in very good condition and it was a smooth ride all the way from Tutty's Crossing in Freeport to the Wisconsin state line (Badger State Trail in WI). Everything was green and lush and the country side scenery was beautiful. The Addams people do a very fine job of maintaining their trail. One of my favorites to ride every year! Highly recommended. Of course, don't forget to stop at Union Dairy afterwards for some delicious ice cream. It's the best.
Just finished riding this trail over four days. They were in the middle of repaving a section which I thought was great but right along route 84 very scary and hazardous.. you either had to walk your bike through the grass, or take your chances on the highway. The trail is poorly marked when you have to take secondary roads to reconnect with the trail, especially when you’re heading towards Moline.. good places to stay very close to the trail and there is no problem finding any place to eat. I’ve ridden it once that will probably be my only time I will ride this trail..
The Red Paved Loop is great for inline skaters. The path is fairly clear of sticks and rocks. There are a couple of nice declines to build up a little speed, and the inclines aren't too steep. The trail is accessible right from the parking lot
Trail is beautiful but sooooo many people. Pedestrians dont care about the bike lanes, they walk in front of you
I traveled about an hours drive from our home to the parking lot at the NW end of this trail in mid August, 2025, along with my wife. The first 2 miles of this trail, going SE from this parking lot, involves multiple crossings of busy roadways, some with stoplights at intersections, others without. It really slows you down and, frankly, gets tiresome. Once you move away from W. Camp Street, the trail becomes less burdened with road crossings and becomes more interesting. From Faley Hollow Road, still going SE on the trail, there is a gradual, but very noticeable, upward gradient to the trail, much of which travels through some lovely trees. Once you reach the top of the long, gradual hill, the remainder of the trail skirts through some neighborhoods and then closely parallels State Route 150 to trail end. My overall impression is that I would not travel out of my way to take this trail again. For locals, I get it: it's a trail you can hop on and get some exercise. But the 2 miles along E. Camp Street is totally missable, IMHO. And the end of the trail map on the NW end shows that the trail continues for a way once you cross West Washington Street, when in fact the trail ends at this intersection. There is no reason for you to continue going NW on the short section of trail from the parking area towards the intersection with River Road.
After riding 7,000 or so miles since 2019; all over the country (but primarily N IL, Iowa, WI); today is the day I got to enjoy a paved trail in Cook County. We parked in the west and rode to East end in Alsip and back. Roughly 25 miles round trip. Hot humid and windy 92F. I felt like shade was about 50% of trail length. It is a Great trail as in you do not even know you are in one of the busiest counties in the nation. I wish we could figure out how to connect from Alsip to the lakefront. We tried to bike about a mile further east on the road but then it started to seem like an industrial park so we turned around.
Reportedly, a guy got arrested and thrown in jail in July 2025 for riding an e-bike on the Joliet Junction trail. Like, what do these people have against e-bikes? Especially when they are riding responsibly and using common sense, not colliding with anything or anyone else. Totally can not recommend at all. And the cops will stop you, too. They don't care if you're doing 5 mph, if your bike even looks like an e-bike, they'll still stop you.
I ride on the Prarie Path almost all the time and I love it! Goes by many downtown areas and the places you ride by are pretty nice. I would recommend!
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