I have been wanting to check out the trails in the Moraine Hills State Park (just south-east of McHenry) for a while now and finally had a chance to ride the trails last Tuesday (7/3). This was during our heat wave and our drought but the ride was still scenic and it is a really nice area for a fairly short ride and photos.
Wetlands and Stream in Moraine Hills State Park
I had my camera and GPS Bike Computer with me so I could post photos and document the ride of course and I have posted quite a few photos, along with the bike trail article on this trail here at the Moraine Hills Bike Trail Photos and Ride Report.
As I was updating my photos and the article on this bike trail I searched for other photos of this park and trail and found that it looks quite different at different times of the year. My photos are from a drought in the middle of summer but the scenery looks quite different in the spring, fall and winter. I hope to make a few more trips out there in the different seasons to check out the contrast. When I do, I’ll try to add some updates to the new Moraine Hills Trail pages.
Where I parked, at Pike Marsh (on the south-eastern part of the park), you can get on the main Moraine Hills Trail and the River Road Trail which runs mostly parallel to the MHT at that point . I accidentally got on the River Road Trail and took a 3 mile detour when I first started. This was still the same are and it was also a pretty nice ride but it was not on the actual Moraine Hills Trails.
When I got back on the main trail again I headed south-west first to the Fox River and the McHenry Dam and then around the Black Tern Marsh. This area looked nice but I stopped at one point, close to the marsh and got attacked by some kind of flies. I had to get
Lake Defiance in the Distance
moving again to ditch them. Later I stopped by the Black Tern Viewing Platform, which was very nice (and no flies) and took some photos.
After that, I headed north again (to the other side of River Road) and rode both loops on the northern part of the park. The loop on the west side goes into what they call the Northern Woods and goes around the Leatherleaf Bog Nature Preserve and the loop on the east side goes around Lake Defiance.
I picked up a map of the park and trails at the park entrance which I have scanned and posted on the Moraine Hills Trail article (the link above) along with the GPS map of my ride (including the River Road detour).
As for the trail itself, it is a combination of crushed stone and paved surfaces (mostly crushed stone) and was in very good condition. There is also a combination of hills and flat lands. Most of it is fairly flat with a few steep hills mostly in the northern section (you can actually see the hills and elevations on the GPS map of my ride that I posted with the article linked to above (using the “Player”option on the Garmin page).
Well, that’s about it for this ride (until I check it out in another season). If you are looking for a fairly short, leisurely ride in a nice park with some nice scenery to enjoy or photograph then you may want to check out the Moraine Hills State Park Trails.