Joliet, Illinois to Braidwood, Illinois

Slept in a little this morning. Figured it was going to be cold outside at least for a couple hours, so why not? Made some coffee, checked the weather, loaded the gear on the bike, put on three layers of clothes, checked out of the hotel, and was out the door just before 8 AM.

Was a bit surprised that the weather wasn’t quite as cold as expected. And thankfully the winds hadn’t picked up yet. I pedaled a couple miles winding my way through Joliet and over Interstate 80, then onto the Wauponsee Glacial Trail. The sun was shining, the air was crisp and nearly calm. The birds were singing and I had the trail all to myself. A great way to start the day!

I’m pretty sure the Wauponsee Glacial Trail is the last long bike trail I’ll be riding until I get to near St. Louis. It’s crushed limestone, so not as fast as asphalt, but still a pretty nice surface to ride on, so I was making good time. But it didn’t take long for the wind to pick up. Though the trail is somewhat protected by lines of trees on both sides, it still has several extensive stretches where the strengthening west-southwest winds managed to slow me down. And when the trail ended and I headed west on a low-traffic farm road to meet up with Historic Route 66/Highway 53, well, let’s just say I hate pedaling into the wind.

Highway 53 has a decent shoulder, though the dreaded rumble strips actually narrow the bike riding width quite a bit. Fortunately, I only had to ride a short mile or so on that shoulder before I reached the entrance to Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery. I rode inside to pay my respects, but there was a funeral in progress so didn’t linger. It was the first time I’ve been to the Cemetery and was surprised by both it’s size and how many veterans lie in peace there.

Leaving the Cemetery and back on Highway 53, it wasn’t much further to Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie. The name Midewin comes from a Potowatomi word referring to tribal healers. Established in 1996 on the former site of the Joliet Army Ammunition Plant, the refuge is adminstered by the US Department of Agriculture. The first national tallgrass prairie to be established, it is also the largest contiguous open space remaining in northeastern Illinois and is the home to a herd of over 70 bison. (Incidentally, the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery also resides on a portion of the former Joliet Arsenal.)

I stopped for lunch near Midewin’s Iron Bridge Trailhead when the low rain clouds began to roll in. Packed things up, put on my rain gear, and pedaled around the periphery of the grassland (where I saw several bison through my binoculars in the distance.) Arrived at the Visitor Center near the south entrance to the tallgrass prairie just as the wind’s picked up and a light rain started to fall. Checking the weather radar, it looked as if it would take less than an hour for the rain to move through, so I found a nice bench under a veranda and waited the weather out.

45 minutes later, I was back on the road heading towards Willmington and the first of the Historic Route 66’s significant points of interest – the Gemini Giant. This 30-foot tall statue is just one of many “Muffler Man” advertising props found throughout the US in the 1960’s. Took a photo, chatted a bit with a local bicyclist, then rolled across the Kankakee River and onto some back roads that would took me into downtown Braidwood. Booked a room in the Braidwood Motel, where I now sit at a small desk typing up this entry. Later, when I finish posting it, I’ll walk across the street to another of old Route 66’s points of interest in Illinois – the Polk-a-Dot Drive In. A 1950’s style diner full of Route 66 memorabilia, I’ll get a burger and shake, then head back to my motel room for another good night’s sleep.

The forecast is for more afternoon showers tomorrow, but the winds should be less strong. So the 37 miles or so on I-55 frontage roads to Pontiac should be very doable.