So, the park district, city, rails to trails people put up this big, honkin' bridge to get the Kellar Branch of the Rock Island Trail over Knoxville Avenue. Yet, in my neck of the woods, you have to dodge three lanes of traffic to get across Adams Street and I don't even get a traffic light. Anyone else find it odd that they abandoned the old rail line WSW of Peoria Heights to run the trail through city streets and Springdale Cemetery (which isn't the purpose of a trail NOT to run on city streets) to avoid the old rail bridge across Route 150/War Memorial. What, we North Valley/East Bluffers not good enough for bridges and traffic signals? Meanwhile, the abandoned part of the aforementioned trail looks like hell and will be a weed infested jungle again this summer (if it ever gets here) which is something the city and R2T people whined like little kids not getting their way when Pioneer didn't maintain it to city/R2T people's standards.
Double & Triple Standards, favorites and a lot of back door politics going on IMHO.
It may seem strange to walk in Springdale and not other cemeteries, but I don't know of another local cemetery that is as large or has as many challenging hills to climb. There are streams, trees, wild blackberries, natural prairie and of course history. Great place to hike!
ReplyDeleteI would also recommend Robinson Park (North & South) and Fort Creve Couer. For a leisurely stroll, try Cooper North & South (East Peoria). When (and if) the flood waters recede, hiking through Spindler Marina and along the river to McCluggage bridge is a great hike, too.