Path Conditions

[Devon]

Thought it would be a good idea to start a new thread so that people can share their experiences on the path... often i wake up and wonder if its been plowed or not... is there lots of snow? ice? wind?

Well -- if you've been out on the path and get a chance to check in, I'm sure people would like to hear about your experience...

[Devon]

To start things off, I went out around 9am this morning and the path was plowed from the South end to a little past 51st street. The plowed path was great -- not too much snow or ice. I didn't go far on the unplowed portion. There was some thick snow underneath which makes for a bumpy ride, but definitely rideable if you want a bit of an adventure... though it may have gotten worse down the path.

[Devon]

Went to the end of the path today -- everything was plowed and mostly clear except for the stretch by oak street beach, but that is easy to bypass by going on the road that parallels lakefront drive until after the nasty path corner. There is a little snow on the detour when getting on and off the path. There is another small detour at the end of north beach which takes you on a dirt path right next to the bike path for a 100 yards... but other than that, the path is nice and clear! I was on my cross bike, but i think road bikes would manage pretty well. Happy Riding!

[Joe Kallo]

Just took a short ride up the path to soldier field and back. With the exception of a few spots of slush around the Oakwood promontory, it was totally clear, dry, and free of ice.

[Devon]

Went out to the path for some intervals this morning and it is pretty clear. Definitely a number of snowy and wet patches here and there -- nothing deep, and no problem with some knobby tires... may be a little slick on the road tires though. I only made it north to oakwood promontory and then south to 63rd.

[Devon]

Went from 57th to the sledding hill this afternoon and the path is pretty clear. Only two spots with any snow... a pretty big stretch of snow at the oakstreet promontory (an inch or less deep) and a couple short stretches near McCormick Place. Other than that, just lots of salt -- your bike is going to want a bath! Anybody been on the roads going south??

[joel roth]

Sunday, 2/1 - entire path was fine, except for the oak street curve. We took that detour.

joel

[Joe Kallo]

Just rode from 67th to Oak street and the path is mostly free of frozen stuff (I rode it easily on 23s), but getting really sloppy -- I was glad I wore shoe covers to keep some of the water off. Watch out for the piles of salt.

[Joe Kallo]

And the route south to Munster is frozen stuff free, but really wet. Burnham Greenway was still slushy for a mile or so on my way south, but had melted by the time I was back. The 30 yards between the greenway path and the Wolf Lake road was covered in snow, but it'll be gone by tomorrow, I'm sure. Your bike will want a bath when you return(!).

[Suchandra]

The path is pretty much clear of ice all the way to the oak street bend. There's some ice there so you'll need to dismount and walk it or detour. There's a bunch of puddles on the path so fenders would be in order if you want to avoid spray from your tires.

[J]

As of late Sunday afternoon, the bend if totally clear.

[Devon]

The path is pretty clear up to the aquarium, but Northerly Island still has quite a bit of snow/ice.

[Joe Kallo]

Yeah, Northerly is for cross bikes only right now. Specifically, don't go ripping around counter-clockwise and find the snow on the back side at full speed.

(Those must have been your tracks in the snow/ice Devon :-)