Saturday on the North Branch Trail

Last weekend, spring came into full swing. The sun came out, green things came up out of the ground, and the temperature was ideal for cruising. I went out in bib shorts and a short sleeved jersey for the first time this year. It was weird, and I felt chilly at first, but quickly warmed up. I still wore the toe covers and wool socks, paired with some extremely hairy winter legs. It may not have been very #pro, but I was not very concerned. I was just real happy to be out in the sun.

I cruised up Elston, through the bike lane, all the way to the start of the North Branch Trail. The trail isn't too far from my apartment, and it's easily accessible via bike-friendly roads. If you aren't familiar, the North Branch Trail stretches about 17 miles from Caldwell and Devon in Chicago up to Glencoe, ending at the Chicago Botanical Gardens and loosely following the path of the Chicago river and the Skokie Lagoons. It is mainly paved, but there are many offshoots of offroad trail that meander through the forest. Some portions of the paved trail run along the equestrian trails, and if you're ok with horses, you can share those trails with them too.

In short, the trail system is a lot of fun and offers the opportunity for some exploration. I spent as much time off the pavement as I could, stopping numerous times for photos. I finished with something like 30-40 miles, and was pretty beat up by the end of it. I had a strong headwind all the way back home too. I guess I'm  not used to this anymore, but I will be again soon. Thanks to the great weather and the discovery of this trail, I had the most enjoyable ride of the year... so far. I'll be riding out on this trail a lot.

A good ride deserved a good beer. I treated myself to this imperial IPA from Goose Island upon returning home. It was pretty alright.

Winter Woodland Exploration After Dark.

Actual winter has finally arrived here in northern Illinois. On wednesday night, we gathered up a nice group of dudes and rode bikes in the snow. We dove into the woods and explored some trails. Ross was on his brand new Krampus, Derek on his Singular Peregrine 29er, Jake on a KHS Solo One 26er, Peter rode his Surly Necromancer, and I took my GT Peace-9er. All bikes (except for the Necro) were single-speed. All bikes were steel. 

Staying warm is key when you're out in the wilderness, and we were ahead of the game with a mystic bottle of swedish warming elixir.

The trails out in the woods are a bit sketchy, but they're there. There was a lot of ducking through tunnels of foliage and holding onto tree trunks while maneuvering through the madness.

We found ourselves at a dead end. Jake decided to take almost all of the air out of his tires.

We reached the river, and I thought it might be fun to attempt crossing it, via a downed branch. I fell victim to thin ice, but proceeded anyways.

Crossing turned out to be a bad idea, but the makeshift bridge proved to be a nice venue for a break from the ride.

After leaving the woods, we continued to explore some of the stranger areas of town. Jake attempted to climb anything that crossed his path. Find him in the photo above.

It was a fun night of exploration, cycling in the snow, and hangin' out drinkin' wine. In my opinion, this is what cycling in the winter is all about. Just try to get on the bike and keep riding. Have more fun in order to offset the unfavorable weather. Stay local and discover nearby things you've never seen. Don't count the miles. Fatbikes are badass, but a regular mountain bike will usually do just fine. No matter what kind of bike you have, just try to keep riding it.