Chicago has a good lakefront path. The suburbs have the actual mileage. If you want to ride for three hours without hitting a stoplight, most of that happens outside city limits. Here are seven trails worth knowing about, organized by where you are and what you're riding.

Length: ~61 miles total (multiple branches)
Surface: Limestone packed gravel
Difficulty: Flat
Best for: Gravel/hybrid riders, longer rides

The Illinois Prairie Path is the longest trail on this list and one of the oldest rail-trails in the country, converting a former Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad corridor starting in the 1960s. The main corridor runs east-west through Elmhurst, Villa Park, Lombard, Glen Ellyn, and Wheaton, where the trail splits into three branches heading toward Aurora, Elgin, and Geneva. You can string together significant mileage by combining branches.

The surface is limestone packed gravel, not asphalt. Road bikes will struggle — you want at least 32mm tires, preferably gravel or hybrid setup. The trail is wide and well-maintained. Trailhead parking in Wheaton at Pioneer Park (off Geneva Road) or Volunteer Park. If you want a manageable out-and-back, Wheaton to Elmhurst and back is about 14 miles round trip on the main stem.

Length: ~7 miles
Surface: Paved
Difficulty: Flat
Best for: Families, casual riders, commuters

The Skokie Valley Trail runs north-south from Deerfield to Lake Bluff along the North Shore Channel corridor. Seven miles, completely paved, minimal elevation. The trail connects to the North Shore Bike Path, which extends the network further if you want to keep going.

Trailhead parking at Deerfield Road in Deerfield. Because it's short and flat, this is a solid option for people bringing kids or getting back into riding after a long winter. It's also a reasonable commuter route for anyone living between Deerfield and Lake Bluff. Nothing complicated here.

Length: ~22 miles
Surface: Paved
Difficulty: Flat
Best for: Families, casual and intermediate riders

The Old Plank Road Trail runs from Park Forest west to Joliet, passing through Matteson, Frankfort, and Mokena. Completely paved, entirely car-free, very flat. The south suburbs don't get a lot of cycling attention, but this trail is well-maintained and uncrowded compared to options closer to the city.

Trailhead parking near the Matteson Community Center area. The full 22 miles one way is manageable for most recreational riders. If you're based in the south suburbs and tired of driving north to find trail access, this is your home trail.

Length: ~11 miles (loop)
Surface: Paved
Difficulty: Flat
Best for: Casual riders, families, anyone who wants to see elk

Busse Woods is the common name for the Ned Brown Forest Preserve. The paved loop runs around Busse Lake, about 11 miles total. It's popular with both cyclists and runners, so expect weekend crowds near the parking lots.

The noteworthy thing: there is an actual elk pasture on the west side of the loop. Actual elk. This is a real feature of a Cook County Forest Preserve in the northwest suburbs. The elk are viewable from the trail. Parking lots are located off Arlington Heights Road. The loop format means you can start and finish at the same spot without backtracking.

Length: ~7 miles
Surface: Paved
Difficulty: Flat
Best for: Commuters, city-to-suburb connections

The North Shore Channel Trail starts at the Chicago border at Peterson Avenue and runs north through Skokie and into Wilmette. Seven miles, paved, flat. The real value here is connectivity: if you continue south into Chicago, the trail connects to the lakefront path, giving you a car-free route from Evanston or Skokie all the way to the museum campus and beyond.

For people who live in Skokie or south Evanston and commute into Chicago by bike, this is the main artery. It also works as a standalone ride if you want something short and low-traffic on a weekday evening.

Length: ~37 miles
Surface: Mix of paved and packed surface
Difficulty: Flat to gently rolling
Best for: Intermediate and serious cyclists, point-to-point rides

The Fox River Trail follows the Fox River from Algonquin south through Elgin, South Elgin, St. Charles, Geneva, Batavia, and into Aurora. At 37 miles one way, it's a legitimate long-distance ride. The surface varies by section — some segments are paved, others are packed gravel — so a hybrid or gravel bike handles the full trail more cleanly than a road bike.

The practical advantage of this trail is that you're actually moving between towns. You can park in Geneva, ride north to Elgin for lunch, and ride back. Or start in Aurora and finish in St. Charles. The towns along the Fox Valley have decent food and coffee options near the trail, which makes point-to-point rides easier to plan. River views throughout, without any dramatic elevation.

Length: ~16 miles
Surface: Paved
Difficulty: Flat
Best for: Intermediate riders, connector trail use

The Salt Creek Trail runs through Elmhurst, Villa Park, Addison, and Bensenville. Sixteen miles, fully paved. It parallels and occasionally connects with the Illinois Prairie Path, making it a useful alternate or connector if you're building a longer route in DuPage County.

It's consistently less crowded than the Prairie Path on weekends, which is reason enough to know it exists. No single dramatic feature, just a solid paved trail in a part of the suburbs that sees a lot of cycling traffic.

If you'd rather not figure out navigation yourself, the Chicago Cycling Club runs organized rides throughout the season at varying pace and distance levels, including routes that use several of these trails. Rides are open to members and occasionally to guests. Worth checking their calendar if you want company or a guided introduction to trails you haven't ridden yet.

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