Great Western Trail Westbound (Sycamore Branch) - Part 4

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• published: 05 Nov 2016
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The western segment of the Great Western Trail in Illinois follows 17 miles of an abandoned railway corridor through DeKalb and Kane counties, between LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve and the town of Sycamore. The Chicago Great Western Railway (later Chicago and North Western) was called the Corn Belt Route because it linked Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha and Kansas City. Today, the crushed limestone trail provides access for cyclists, walkers and joggers, and in winter allows cross-country skiing and snowmobiling (the latter west of Wasco and when snows reach 4 inches). Horseback riding is allowed on another trail adjacent to the Great Western Trail only. The trail also includes shelters and rest areas. The open space created from the trail corridor offers thousands of acres of landscapes that are pleasing to the eye: wetlands, natural areas, farmland and rural communities. The trail passes through Virgil and Lily Lake, paralleling State Route 64. A newer section of the Great Western Trail is found in DuPage County to the east. You can link the east and west segments of this trail—in a long, roundabout way—by continuing on the Randall Road Bike Path at this trail's eastern end in LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve. Take the Randall Road trail north to the River Bend Trail (a.k.a. Silver Glen Trail), which meets up with the Fox River Trail. Where the Fox River Trail meets the Illinois Prairie Path (east of the river in Elgin), take the Illinois Prairie Path east to the eastern segment of the Great Western Trail, where they intersect near Prince Crossing Road.