Not too long ago, our Region’s fractured bicycle trail system reflected many of its communities — divided by geographical boundaries and lack of mutual development. Not so much anymore.
Northwest Indiana is now home to hundreds of miles of biking, hiking and walking trails, as well as water trails for paddlers. These trails range in difficulty with a mix of paved, unpaved and dirt trails ushering users to easy-access downtowns, along rivers, across scenic woods and through a national park.
Bike trails now connect our towns and cities more than at any other time in our history, reflecting our state motto, “The Crossroads of America.” This vast and growing network of non-motorized trails directly affects our daily quality of life without much fanfare and not enough utilization.
Most residents use these trails for recreation, though there is a rising number who are discovering the benefits of commuting to work or running errands, not only enhancing our transportation network but also our collective health. This bike trail system has become a selling point to attract out-of-state residents to our casual coast along the southern tip of Lake Michigan.
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Region residents who haven’t ridden a bike in years are now hitting their local trails for recreation, exercise or as an excuse to escape their home. These new users are either hauling out their old bikes from the garage or scrambling to purchase a new bike or electric bike.
Erie Lackawanna. Oak Savannah. Calumet. Prairie Duneland. Porter Brickyard. Pennsy Greenway. Iron Horse. Marquette. Coffee Creek. These are the names of some of the prominent bicycle trails here, many kept in fine condition for local bike enthusiasts, after-work recreationists and pedal-pushing commuters.
For the past 40 years, I’ve bicycled through most communities in Northwest Indiana, as well as the city of Chicago and other parts the country. Finding safe, designated bike routes which connect nearby communities is an important tourism attraction for me. I’ve biked a few thousand miles thanks to bike trails, including Central Park in New York City, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the busy streets of Cozumel, Mexico, and downtown Indianapolis.
That city’s Cultural Trail, one of my favorite trails in the country, zig-zags through Indy’s historic districts, downtown area and connecting outlying regions. During peak times, it feels like Chicago’s lakefront trail though not as jammed with tourists.
In our crowded corner of the state, the Marquette Greenway Trail has been decades in the making, designed to connect three states, five counties and more than 20 municipalities to create an idyllic ride around the southern tip of Lake Michigan, as Times reporter Molly DeVore wrote in 2022.
"It is really going to transform how we can get around in Northwest Indiana," said Rafi Wilkinson of the Indiana Dunes National Park.
The Marquette Greenway is just the beginning, he said. Once completed, the trail will create an expansive east-west connection along Lake Michigan. From there smaller north-south projects will continue to link communities.
“When we look at the next 20 years, the next 30 years, the Marquette Greenway Trail spurs all of these future developments," Wilkinson said.
And with it, our overall quality of life as well.
Fifteen years ago, I tried bicycling across our Region to see if it could be done by a casual biker like me. I trekked 65 miles along our patchwork trail system, from Beverly Shores to Portage to Hobart to Hammond to Crown Point, and all stops in between. It was a challenge, to say the least. I got lost multiple times. Lack of signage didn’t help.
Since then, other Region residents have had legitimate concerns of “connecting the dots” on our map through biking, walking or running. This is no longer true. In fact, you can get a free map at the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission (contact NIRPC at www.nirpc.org or 219-763-6363.)
I have since discovered trails I didn’t know existed, offering a recreational and transportation amenity that too many Region residents know nothing about. Our trail system should be viewed as a “linear park” stretching across multiple cities and counties.
In a single bike ride, I can pedal through parts of Crown Point, Schererville, Griffith, Highland and Hammond. Or from Chesterton to Portage to Hobart to Gary. It’s not as challenging as it sounds. Shorter routes are also available. And with no vehicle traffic in the way.
I’m not one of those Spandex-sporting speedsters who cruise along trails at 25-30 mph. I’m just your casual biker on a beat-up older-model mountain bike who enjoys getting around the Region while breathing fresh air, viewing scenic sites and getting brief glimpses of other people’s backyards. It’s not voyeurism. It’s adventurism.
Unfortunately, our trail system’s development has been delayed by too many “Not In My Back Yard” (NIMBY) homeowners who have stood in the way of getting bike trails built or completed in their towns. I witnessed this in Portage when I lived there. That city’s rails-to-trails pathway, the Prairie-Duneland Trail, was initially disputed by many residents. Not by me. I embraced it, as I embrace plans for the Marquette Greenway.
Fortunately, this NIMBY attitude is slowly evolving across the country and across our Region.
In 1990, only 13 miles of trails were in use, with the Calumet Trail in Porter County accounting for nine of those miles. Today, thanks to the “golden age” of trail development in Northwest Indiana, there are nearly 200 miles of regional trails open for public use, built by more than $100 million in state and federal funding.
Another 30 miles of trails are already funded for construction over the next five years, connecting Lansing to Crown Point, Griffith to Merrillville, Crown Point to Hebron, and Indiana Dunes State Park to Valparaiso.
These will further pave the way for bicycle-connected communities in Northwest Indiana, which can only enhance our quality of life.
Contact Jerry at Jerry.Davich@nwi.com. Watch his "She Said, He Said" podcast. Find him on Facebook. Opinions are those of the writer.