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Summer bike rides from Downtown Evanston
As a former bike commuter, let me suggest three special summer rides from Downtown Evanston:
1. The Downtown Evanston-Sculpture Park along McCormick Blvd. Take Greenwood west, paralleling Dempster. Cut over at end of Greenwood one block south to Dempster/McCormick. All path. Ride South. ( Google- when they have lectures about the sculpture on Sundays. )
2. Downtown Evanston-Gillison Park, Wilmette. Sherman Ave North to Sheridan Place to sidewalks on Sheridan to Gillison. After a swim, head to Plaza Del Lago.
3. Downtown Evanston to Botanic Gardens, Glencoe. From Gillison Park, take Sheridan north to Winnetka Ave. West on Winnetka Ave to Green Bay. North on GB to Willow. West on Willow to Forest Preserve Path ( quarter mile before Edens, (just past Lagoon Rd. on S. side of Willow ) Take path north to the Botanic Garden through the lagoons and Forest Preserve. ( This is for more experienced Road Riders. Cars pass you by, with no bike lanes on Green Bay and Willow Rds can be dicey. )
4. On a later post, I m'll get you on the Chicago Lakefront Recreation Trail via safe streets in Evanston and Rogers Park.
Until then, Enjoy!
The writer infers that bikers can simply stop at Gillson Park Beach and "swim."
Does the Wilmette beach accept Evanston beach tokens? I don't think they do. Im sure one can't enter the beach area without a hefty fee.
And when one heads to Plaze del Lago afterward, where is he suggesting we go? The Jewel? Crate and Barrel?
The only thing standing between you and a nice swim at Gillson Park Beach is the $7.50 entry fee for non-residents. I'm not sure that Jim ever suggested that it was free, or that the swimming was somehow key to the enjoyment of a nice bike ride along the lake. It seemed to me like he was just offering a suggestion of something to do. If you are really concerned about the "hefty fee" required to swim, you could always just enjoy the beautiful lakefront park for free.
Also, while you could head to the Jewel or the Crate and Barrel in Plaza del Lago, you might also enjoy getting a cup of coffee at the Starbucks, or grabbing a bite to eat at Convito, or browsing through the other stores in the plaza.
I love riding up to the Chicago Botanical Gardens in Glencoe. My preferred route is to ride Sheridan Road up to Tower, then take Tower over to the forest preserve trail. Since there is some major construction on Sheridan, my alternate route is:
Sherman Road north out of downtown Evanston to Central Street.
Central to Ridge (just one block)
Ridge to Isabella (again, just one or two blocks)
Isabella to Poplar, which is just on the east side of the Metra tracks, parallel to Green Bay
Ride Poplar north to Wilmette Ave.
Take Wilmette Ave to 10th street, and ride all the way back to the lakefront/Sheridan Road. At this point, you will be just north of the construction zone area.
Ride north on Sheridan to Tower road (this is a really nice ride along the lakefront).
Take Tower west through Hubbard Woods until you hook up with the Forest Preserve trail at Forestway Drive.
Follow the trail north to Lake/Cook road, and into the botanical gardens.
This is about a 12-15 mile ride from downtown Evanston, and although you back-track a little through Wilmette, this route keeps you off the major roads like Green Bay. Sheridan Road is wide enough that cars can pass you comfortably. Tower road has enough stop signs that cars aren't going that fast (and you're only on it for a mile or two). Once you get to the forest preserve trail, it's all worth it because that is a really nice ride.
Thanks for your and Jim's detailed posts about riding in Evanston... these are great suggestions. Sometimes I get so focused on the training aspect of my rides that I forget to enjoy the beauty that surrounds us... thanks for the reminder!
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