The Best Paved Bike Trails in the Southwest Suburbs (and Which One to Ride First)

by Brian Wittman

I have ridden Midewin twice over the years and none since I moved out here, but mostly because somebody told me it was flat and I believed them. They were right. What I did not know until I started actually looking is how much paved trail is sitting within twenty minutes of my house, and how much of it connects to itself. And that's what makes this exciting.

That is the part nobody tells you. These are not separate little paths. Most of them link up, which means the four mile ride you were planning can turn into a fifteen mile ride if you feel like it. This is when you want to know more about riding, and not just the best forest preserves and hiking trails in the southwest suburbs, and the two lists overlap less than you would think, because the trails built for walking and the trails built for distance are mostly not the same trails.

What are the best paved bike trails near the southwest suburbs?

The Old Plank Road Trail is the one to start with, a 22 mile paved rail-trail running from Joliet east to Chicago Heights through New Lenox and Frankfort. If you want flat and easy, take the Route 30 Bikeway instead, 7.56 paved miles connecting New Lenox, Mokena, and Frankfort. If you want hills, the Hickory Creek Bikeway gives you 6.65 paved miles through New Lenox and Mokena. Every trail on this list is free, and none of them charge for parking.

Old Plank Road Trail: the one everybody means

Twenty two miles, paved the whole way, running west to east from Joliet out to Chicago Heights, where it ties into the Thorn Creek Trail system. About 14 miles of it sit in Will County.

It is a rail-trail, which is why it rides the way it does. Old rail corridors were graded to keep trains from climbing, so you get long flat stretches instead of the roll you would expect crossing this much of the county. It runs right through downtown Frankfort, which makes the town the obvious place to park, ride, and come back for lunch, and is one more reason people eyeing Frankfort end up walking that downtown on a Saturday.

It is also part of the Grand Illinois Trail and the American Discovery Trail, and it connects to the Wauponsee Glacial Trail, the Hickory Creek Bikeway, the Route 30 Bikeway, and the I and M Canal State Trail, making it very scenic. That is the connection thing again. Old Plank is the spine everything else hangs off.

One honest note on the town list. The trail's own site names Joliet, New Lenox, Frankfort, Matteson, Richton Park, Park Forest, and Chicago Heights. The Forest Preserve District's guide describes it as running through the Mokena area too. Mokena riders do reach it, just by way of the Hickory Creek Bikeway and the Route 30 Bikeway rather than the trail passing through town.

Route 30 Bikeway: the flat one if you are bringing kids

7.56 miles, paved, and the Forest Preserve District of Will County describes it plainly as a flat paved path. It runs from New Lenox through Mokena to Frankfort, which means it touches three towns people actually live in out here and connects to both the Hickory Creek Bikeway and Old Plank. Anyone considering a move to New Lenox can get to two of the three from home without loading a bike into a car.

If you are teaching somebody to ride any real distance, this is the one. Flat, paved, and you can bail into a town at either end.

Hickory Creek Bikeway: the one with actual hills

6.65 paved miles inside Hickory Creek Preserve, split into a western segment of 3.75 miles and an eastern segment of 2.9 miles, running through New Lenox and Mokena. Count the connecting path outside the preserve and it runs to 8.27 miles.

The District calls this one hilly, and that is the point of it. If Route 30 is where you learn, this is where you get a workout without driving anywhere.

Three access points: Hickory Creek Barrens on Schoolhouse Road in New Lenox, Hickory Creek Junction on Route 30 in Mokena, and the LaPorte Road access in Mokena. A 0.65 mile connector ties it to Old Plank. Two of those three trailheads sit in Mokena, which is worth knowing if you are weighing a move to Mokena and wondering what the town actually gives you outdoors.

The 16 mile loop out of Joliet

This is the one I would build a Saturday around. The Rock Run Greenway Trail, 11.24 flat paved miles through Crest Hill and Joliet, links with the Joliet Junction Trail, 4.36 paved miles the District specifically calls out as good for families and beginners, and the I and M Canal State Trail to form a roughly 16 mile loop.

A loop matters more than the mileage does. Out and back means you commit to the return trip at the halfway point. A loop just ends where it started.

The Lockport stretch of the I and M Canal Trail

Worth pulling out on its own, because the canal corridor is easy to overlook next to the big rail-trails. The I and M Canal Trail runs 7.57 miles in four segments through Joliet, Lockport, and Romeoville, on a mix of crushed limestone and pavement. The Lockport access is at Second Street.

It connects to the Centennial Trail, the I and M Canal State Trail, Old Plank, and the Wauponsee Glacial Trail, which means Lockport is quietly one of the better connected places to start a ride out here. The District also allows electric-assist bikes on it, under 750 watts and 20 miles per hour, pedals functional, rider 16 or older, which is not true everywhere and is worth knowing if that is what you ride.

If you are riding the canal for the history rather than the miles, the Joliet Iron Works Historic Site trailhead on Columbia Street is the one to start from.

Wauponsee Glacial Trail: the long one

22.42 miles running from Joliet south to Custer Park. Worth knowing the surface changes: the north segment is paved for 2.8 miles, and the south segment runs 19.62 miles on crushed limestone. Flat the whole way, through prairie. It connects to Old Plank, the I and M Canal, and Midewin.

If you are on a road bike, know about that surface change before you go, not after.

Cal-Sag Trail: the Cook County side

If you are riding out of Palos, Alsip, or Lemont, this is your trail. It is paved, per the Forest Preserves of Cook County, and Friends of the Cal-Sag Trail describe the full route as just over 26 miles running across the Chicago Southland toward Lemont and the I and M Canal Trail. It passes Lake Katherine in Palos Heights along the way, which is one of the quieter arguments for settling into Palos Heights if you are the kind of person who wants a trailhead close to the house.

Here is the one thing to know before you load the car. The western segment, from Route 83 near Lemont east to Cicero Avenue in Alsip, is built and open. The eastern portion is still under construction. So the trail on the map and the trail you can ride today are two different lengths, which is why you will see the number quoted anywhere from around 13 miles to just over 26 depending on whether somebody meant what is open or what is planned. Check the current map before you plan a long point-to-point on it.

If you ride gravel or wider tires

Two crushed limestone options worth naming, both hilly, both Will County Forest Preserve. The Spring Creek Greenway Trail runs 8.45 miles in two segments, 5.01 miles at Hadley Valley and 3.44 miles at Messenger Marsh, and connects to the Pilcher Park trails in Joliet. The Plum Creek Greenway Trail gives you 3.15 miles at Goodenow Grove plus another mile at Plum Valley Preserve.

The District describes both as better suited to more experienced riders, which in practice means hills plus a loose surface. Add the 19.62 mile southern stretch of the Wauponsee Glacial Trail and there is a real gravel day out here if that is what you are after.

Flat loops when the kids are small

The Lake Renwick Bikeway is a 3.35 mile flat paved loop around Budde Lake. The Tall Grass Greenway Trail runs 4.04 paved miles. Whalon Lake, part of the DuPage River Trail, is a 3.71 mile flat loop through wetlands.

None of these are a workout. That is the feature. A flat paved loop you can quit halfway through is exactly the right trail when somebody in the group is six.

Midewin: not paved, and worth the trip anyway

About 22 miles of multi-use trail on the old Joliet Arsenal grounds outside Wilmington. This one breaks the paved rule, so I want to be straight about it: the Forest Service says most of these trails are old roadbeds, with some limestone based sections. Not pavement.

I have been twice and it is genuinely flat and easy, which is what surprised me. The Twin Oaks Trail is a 6 mile loop and the Newton Loop runs 1.6 miles. Watch for debris and thorns, which the Forest Service flags directly, so a wider tire is the right call here.

It rides completely differently from everything else on this list. You are out in restored prairie rather than along a rail corridor, and it is worth doing once just for that.

The quick version

Cheapest way to start: Old Plank at downtown Frankfort, park free, ride as far as you feel like, turn around. Best with little kids: Lake Renwick or Whalon Lake, flat paved loops you can abandon. Best workout without driving: Hickory Creek Bikeway. Make a day of it: the Rock Run and Joliet Junction loop. If you ride gravel: Spring Creek Greenway, or the southern half of Wauponsee. Riding out of Palos or Lemont: Cal-Sag, western segment. Worth the drive for something different: Midewin.

What does any of this cost?

Nothing. No trail fees, no parking fees, no reservation. In a season where a family outing usually means a ticket price per head, an afternoon on a paved trail costs whatever you pack in the cooler.

It is also the kind of thing worth noticing when you are looking at where to buy. Trail access is not a feature that gets built over or priced away, and a house two blocks off a paved trail is still two blocks off a paved trail in ten years.

The Bottom Line

Start with Old Plank because it connects to almost everything else, and let the network pull you outward from there. If somebody in your group is new to riding, start on Route 30 instead and work up.

I am still working through this list myself. If you ride out here and I have something wrong, or I am missing a stretch worth adding, tell me and I will fix it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the longest paved bike trail near the southwest suburbs?

The Old Plank Road Trail at 22 miles, paved end to end from Joliet to Chicago Heights. The Wauponsee Glacial Trail is slightly longer at 22.42 miles, but only 2.8 miles of it are paved and the remaining 19.62 miles are crushed limestone.

Are there flat bike trails near me for beginners?

Yes. The Forest Preserve District of Will County specifically names the Route 30 Bikeway, the Joliet Junction Trail, the Lake Renwick Bikeway, the Tall Grass Greenway Trail, and the Centennial Trail as flat paved options suited to families and beginners.

Do any of these bike trails charge a fee?

No. Every trail listed here is free to use, and the Forest Preserve District and Forest Service trailheads do not charge for parking.

Can I bike from Mokena to Frankfort on a trail?

Yes. The Route 30 Bikeway runs 7.56 paved miles connecting New Lenox, Mokena, and Frankfort, and the Hickory Creek Bikeway connects to Old Plank by way of a 0.65 mile connector.

Which trails connect to each other?

Most of them. Old Plank connects to the Hickory Creek Bikeway, the Route 30 Bikeway, the Wauponsee Glacial Trail, the I and M Canal State Trail, and the Thorn Creek Trail system. Rock Run connects to the Joliet Junction Trail, the DuPage River Trail, and the I and M Canal.

Are the trails paved or crushed limestone?

It varies, and it is worth checking before you go if you ride narrow tires. Old Plank, Route 30, Hickory Creek, Rock Run, Joliet Junction, Lake Renwick, Tall Grass, and the Cal-Sag Trail are paved. Spring Creek Greenway and Plum Creek Greenway are crushed limestone. Wauponsee Glacial is both, paved for its northern 2.8 miles and crushed limestone for the southern 19.62. Midewin is mostly old roadbed with some limestone sections.

Is the Cal-Sag Trail finished?

Not yet. The western segment from Route 83 near Lemont east to Cicero Avenue in Alsip is built and open, and construction continues on the eastern portion. That is why you will see the length quoted as anywhere from roughly 13 miles to just over 26 depending on whether the source means what is open or what is planned.

Can I bring my dog on these trails?

On leash, yes, on the Will County preserve trails. Cook County Forest Preserve rules are stricter about where dogs can be off leash, and the trails are not among those places, which is covered in more detail in a dog lover's guide to the southwest suburbs along with where the actual off-leash areas are.

Brian Wittman is a licensed real estate broker (Real Broker LLC), mortgage loan originator (NMLS #2646598, NEXA Mortgage, LLC, Equal Housing Lender), and life insurance producer (Levinson & Associates). For full disclosures, visit https://bluejeanbroker.com/disclosures.