Thorn Creek Trail to Three Floyds Brewery Ride

Lots of people ride from Chicago to Munster, IN to visit the venerable Three Floyds brewery, and either cycle or take the train back to the city. We decided to come at it a slightly different way, via Thorn Creek Trail with starts in south suburban Chicago Heights. We discovered that if you travel the length of the trail to Bromwell Woods in Lansing, you end up within a stone's thrown of Three Floyds.

The stone's throw turned out to be quite a hurdle, as at the end of the trail we were deposited on a decidedly bike-unfriendly Glenwood Lansing Rd, which features a rumble strip along the entire length of its fairly narrow shoulder. After a nerve-wrecking and bone-rattling journey of a couple miles, skirting a warehouse district and the edge of Lansing Airport, we came to a short off-street spur which delivered us directly to Three Floyds' doorstep.

The doorstep was crawling with other brewed beverage enthusiasts, and accommodations for waiting patrons were quite meager. We were directed to the sun-baked parking lot, where we crouched in the shade of a small bush. Out of boredom, I wandered around the backside of the hedge, and discovered paradise. If you don't believe me, take a look at these photos!

After refreshing ourselves with tasty food and a couple beers, we headed back. Not too eager to revisit the the nightmarish highway experience along Glenwood Lansing Rd, on the way out we cheated and ride a few blocks on the sidewalk fronting a FedEx center on the north ride of the road to just over the Illinois border, where we took a right on a much more mellow Wentworth Ave, and wound our way back to Lansing Woods and the Thorn Creek Trail via some quiet neighborhood streets.

Season: July
Distance: 40 miles
Weather: Hot, around 90.
Highlights of the trip: spectacular water garden landscaping at Architectural Accents next door to Three Floyds. Oh, and beer.