What do you do with train tracks when there aren’t trains for them anymore? Turn them into trails. More than 2,400 rail-to-trail routes now dot the country, covering some 26,000 miles. The first was created right here in Wisconsin: the 32.5-mile Elroy-Sparta State Trail, which follows an old Chicago and North Western railway. Next year will mark its 60th anniversary.
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Biking the Elroy-Sparta trail offers the scenic backdrop of the Driftless region. Amid hills and bluffs, the crushed limestone trail never exceeds a 3% grade, making it comfortable for even casual bikers. From Elroy, the trail sets off northwest through open farm country, crossing back and forth over the Baraboo River en route to Kendall.
The restored Kendall Depot doubles as trail HQ and a museum dedicated to the railway, which opened in 1873 and hauled passengers, livestock and grain until 1964. The line even saw President Harry S. Truman roll through on a whistle-stop tour during his 1948 campaign.
A state trail pass is required for bikers 16 years and older before cycling the route; $5 daily, $25 annual. Plan on a half day to bike the trail, or a full day if cycling round-trip.
Just over 3 miles from Kendall, forested slopes rise on either side of the trail. They seem to press in on you, funneling you toward a black void amid the greenery. That void turns out to be an old rail tunnel, the first of three on the route. Blasted by dynamite and dug out by hand, the tunnels all feature 20-foot-tall double doors that watchmen would open for passing trains. Though the trail is open year-round, the tunnel doors are only opened from May 1 to Oct. 31.
Biking through the tunnels isn’t permitted, so after you’ve walked your bike through Tunnel 1 (bring a flashlight), cruise downhill across the Kickapoo River and into Wilton, where an old red caboose sits parked alongside Main Street.
After more farmland, there’s a gentle climb into the forest. Sunlight filters through the trees and creates a dappled pattern on the trail, which soon comes to Tunnel 2. From there, it’s downhill to Norwalk. Cruise along Moore Creek and past the shuttered Norwalk Creamery before the 3.7-mile leg to Tunnel 3. Nearly three-quarters of a mile, it’s the longest tunnel on the route. Standing at its entrance, the exit is barely a pinprick of light in the darkness.
Soon after crossing I-90, you reach the trail’s end in Sparta, the “Bicycling Capital of America.” Here you can commemorate your ride by taking a photo with Ben Bikin’, a 32-foot statue that the city claims is the world’s largest bicyclist.
Everything Else
Rent
- Speed’s Bicycle Shop: Road, mountain, recumbent and electric bikes available (starting at $30/day).
Stay
- Tunnel Trail Campground: Cabins, camping and heated pool next to the trail.
- Caboose Cabins: A modified 1968 Soo Line caboose.
Eat
- Dorset Valley Schoolhouse Restaurant: Local flavors and homemade pies in a 19th century schoolhouse.
- Bailey’s Diner: Mexican home cooking such as tamales and sopes.
- Matsumoto Ramen House: Miso, tonkotsu and other kinds of ramen.
Visit
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Deke Slayton Memorial Space & Bicycle Museum: Displays 80-plus historic bikes alongside tributes to the Sparta native who was one of America’s first astronauts.
