Illinois Prairie Path

The Illinois Prairie Path (often called the Prairie Path and abbreviated IPP) is a network of 61 miles (98 km) of bicycle trails, mostly in DuPage County, Illinois. Portions of the trail extend west to Kane County and east to Cook County. Most of the trail is categorized as rail-to-trail, meaning that the bicycle path is built atop a converted former railroad right of way. In the case of the Prairie Path, the vast majority of its routing runs on the former right-of-way of the Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad.

Illinois Prairie Path
2-mile marker on the Aurora Branch of the Illinois Prairie Path in Wheaton, Illinois
Length61 mi (98 km)
LocationKane County, DuPage County, Cook County
Established1963 (1963)
Designation
  • CR 47
  • CR 48
  • CR 49
  • CR 57
Trailheads
  • Maywood
  • South Elgin (Elgin Branch)
  • Geneva (Geneva Spur)
  • Batavia (Batavia Spur)
  • Aurora (Aurora Branch)
Websiteipp.org
Trail map
  Main Stem
  Aurora Branch
  Elgin Branch
  Batavia Spur
  Geneva Spur

May Theilgaard Watts is credited for a letter written in 1963 that initiated the first project in what became a widespread rail-to-trails program of land use across the United States. In August 2008, the Illinois Prairie Path was inducted into the Rails-to-Trails hall of fame.

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