Oct. 30--Before the new walkway across the DuPage River, hikers, bikers and even parents pushing strollers would often push their way through tall grass, scramble down a dirt hill holding a chain link fence, then pull themselves up tall stairs and across a wooden bridge to buy treats, bait and beverages from the trout farm across the water.
Those days are over, though. A recently finished walkway now offers a paved path and a new connection between Bolingbrook and Naperville, and a link between Hidden Lakes Historic Trout Farm and the popular 1.6-mile trail loop around Whalon Lake.
"People kind of created their own path. They'd hold on to the fence and go down with their strollers and kids and bikes," said Andrew Hawkins, superintendent of planning and development for the Forest Preserve District of Will County.
"They'd grab their hot dog and their Snickers and their minnows and come back over."
The 900-foot paved connector trail, completed this fall, put an end to the amateur orienteering. On a recent weekday morning, the handicapped-accessible path allowed for a continuous stream of walkers, runners and bicyclists between the two towns.
"This 900 feet connects basically all of northeast Illinois together," Hawkins said. "It's amazing to think."
The second part of the project, a 300-foot connector trail on the north side of Whalon Lake, extends to Royce Road across the street from Heritage Creek Park in Bolingbrook.
The connectors are the latest additions to the DuPage River Trail, which stretches north of Naperville and south to the I Canal in Channahon, staff said.
"They're small, but they're critical," said forest preserve spokeswoman Cindy Cain.
Dianna Copeland, 40, of Bolingbrook said the connector trails allow her and her daughter, 10, to pedal the 9-mile bike ride from their home to her school in Naperville, all along the trail.
The connectors also allow Copeland to add more ground to her morning walks.
"I love it," Copeland said. "I absolutely love it."
The $456,000 project was paid for largely with forest preserve district referendum funds approved by Will County voters in 1999, according to forest preserve staff.
A grant of $150,000 was promised by the state but pulled in February amid Illinois' budget woes, staff said. The village of Bolingbrook covered the remaining cost of $110,600.
Gbookwalter@tribpub.com
