Mission Endure #81: Ride, Eat, Sleep, Repeat
I haven’t ridden the bike two days in a row for quite a while. The weather has turned nice and I thought I better ride again while I can to take advantage of it. Today it was 85 degrees and not too humid, so it was a great day to ride. I rode pretty much the same route as yesterday, but took more photos today.
If you are looking for the trailhead in O’Fallon it is across Kyle Rd from Fulton Jr High School. There is lots of parking, but, as you can see from the aerial photo, it fills up in the late afternoon after work. There is a porta potty in the parking lot, but no other restrooms and no water available on the trail until you get to a Drost Park up north in Maryville, which is about a 9 mile ride. Kind of hard to believe because there is a huge water tower that dominates the parking lot here at the trailhead.
When you enter the trailhead in O’Fallon there is a nice long straight entry way to help you get adjusted for your ride. It is sunny, but after a quarter of a mile you enter a thick forest and you are primarily in shade for the next mile or so.
The O’Fallon Bike Trailhead and parking lot
About a half mile from the trailhead the trail crosses over Oogles Creek using an old Railroad Trestle. The creek is far below and is a beautiful sight. Unfortunately there is some trash in the creek and lining the banks of the creek, something you find frequently in Illinois. I would go down and pick up the trash, but it is a long way down and I don’t know how to get there. Regardless, it is a beautiful view and a scenic spot. There isn’t much water in the creek this time of year, but the water runs all year and in the spring and early summer it is much larger.
After Oogles Creek you enter thick forest again following Simmons Road off to the west and a few rural homes to the east. There is another big bridge spanning Bethel Road that was the final place to be constructed to complete the trail. It is a beautiful bridge and a nice place to stop and enjoy the view.
After the Bethel Road bridge the trail becomes very straight and continues through farmland and thick forest all the way to Edwardsville where the trail intersects with numerous other trails. The trail has intersections with the Schoolhouse Trail about 8 miles away in Maryville. The Schoolhouse Trail will take you west to Granite City near the Mississippi. About 10 miles away, just south of Edwardsville the Goshen Trail intersects with the Heritage Trail, which will take you east to Marine. And, once you get to Edwardsville the Goshen Trail links you up with numerous other trails that can take you either east or west for quite a ways. It is an easy trail system to explore.
I passed through some beautiful tall corn today that is almost ready to harvest.
There was lots of soy beans that are still very green and won’t be harvested for a few weeks yet
And there were lots of stretches that go through the dense forest.
It was a great ride today and I probably won’t get the opportunity to ride for another couple of days, but I look forward to it.