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The North Shore Channel Trail extends 8.3 miles from the junction of Green Bay Road and McCormick Boulevard in northern Evanston to the junction of Lawrence Avenue and Francisco Avenue in Chicago.
About the Route
All but the southern-most 0.25 miles runs alongside the North Shore Channel, a drainage and aeration canal built in 1909; the southern-most 0.25 miles follows the North Branch of the Chicago River. For most of the way, a trail occupies both sides of the North Shore Channel.
Just north of North Lincoln Avenue (US Hwy 41), a pedestrian bridge connects the two main sections of the trail. Known as the Lincoln Village Bridge, the bridge creates a continuous route from Devon Avenue to Argyle Avenue with no street crossings.
On the west side, the paved trail runs south from Green Bay Road through a number of parks, including the City of Evanston's LADD Arboretum, to N Francisco Ave. Crossing several roads including North Lincoln Avenue (US Hwy 41), all street crossings are at grade and all crossings north of Lincoln Ave have traffic lights.
The east side trail runs south from Green Bay Road to Lyons Street (halfway between Emerson St and Church St). Then use McDaniels Avenue to Dempster Street, cutting through the playground on the west side of the grade school at McDaniels or using the alley on the east side. Dempster to Main is asphalt, Main to halfway between Main and Oakton is gravel, then asphalt the rest of the way to Oakton. One block north of Oakton there is a dog park; also nearby is a dock for launching canoes.
The segment from Oakton to Howard is industrial and a fence prevents crossing under the Skokie Swift El tracks. From Howard to Lincoln, trail users can head down Kedzie Avenue. From Touhy to Thillens Little League stadium one block north of Devon, there are some fun dirt paths through the trees that are good for mountain biking.
The paved North Shore Channel Trail continues from North Lincoln Ave to West Lawrence Ave, with one last block on North Francisco Avenue. All street crossings north of Howard are at grade level without traffic lights. From Howard to Devon there are traffic lights at the major cross streets. South of Devon, the trail goes underneath all cross streets except Argyle.
The North Shore Channel Trail runs between Green Bay Rd (Evanston) and N Francisco Ave (Chicago)
Parking is available at:
Visit the TrailLink map for all parking options and detailed directions.
Not a good trail for biking. Trail is adjacent to busy roads which is really loud. Also you have to stop at traffic lights every 1-2 minutes, and these lights take a long time to change.
I started at Clark Park and was able to take trails/greenways all the way to the trailhead without any issues! There are some bumpy parts on the southern end, but it is well worth it to bypass all the busy roads. As of August 2023 some parts are under construction, but there are detours.
This trail continues for 10 miles , 20 miles round trip. I start the trail at Belmont ave by Clark Park and continue thru new connection over Addison Ave continue thru Horner Park . You can travel on Manor Ave to enter the trail at Lawrence Ave and connect to the trail on Argyle. I continue the. Trail thru Green Bay Road . I am able to ride the trail their and back usually in 90 to 100 minutes . Excellent trail not very busy , I have been riding five times a week for 3 months Lou
1. A bridge across the channel just north of Lincoln Avenue now connects the two main sections of the trail. This means you can go from Devon Avenue to Argyle Avenue with no street crossings.
2. The trail through the Evanston arboretum is now paved, so the west side path is continuous from Lincoln to Green Bay Road.
This is a great trail for people looking for something scenic, straightforward, and fun. Very few hills/tough spots and not terribly crowded (on a gorgeous September Saturday) so it was a great choice to bike with our tween and teenager as well. It’s kind of a no-brainer...even where there are no signs, the trail is obvious and, if you get off by accident, you run along a parallel path until it joins back up.
I was afraid I’d get lost on this trail based on reviews but it was great! We started at the Arboretum in Evanston and followed the trail all the way on the West side to a great new bridge on Lincoln Avenue... we then followed the East side through some beautiful parks to Lawrence then headed back...14 miles or so round trip. We loved the extensive sculptures though there was a bit of noise on McCormick.
This trails continues to be improved so that with the exception of one section, you can ride 9.7 miles from a start in the Evanston Arboretum to end in Clark Play lot Park at Belmont Street in Chicago. It is all paved, and almost all at grade, travelling along 3 under paths, 2 bridges, a lovely arboretum and modern outdoor sculpture garden. There are a traffic lights at all but one street the path crosses. Almost any section of this trail will impress you and all of it will delight. Popular with locals and visitors alike; it highlights the wonderful diversity of the urban trails.
NOTE: Please update R-T-T's description of this trail , it's much more in 2020.
I rode from Downtown Evanston and directions to the trail just stop at some point. It's not actually called the Channel Trail when it cuts through various parks. The ride itself is pleasant when you actually find the trail - I wouldn't even bother with the east side of the channel because it's not really connected to the west side. Simplest thing is to get on at Golf Rd or green bay on west side of channel and ride south. I didn't ride south past Oakton because spent so much time trying to figure out the trail. So directions and signage are my actual complaints. The ride through arboretum and sculpture park is pleasant. Hoping locals can improve signage because the quality of the trail is good.
Won’t be riding this again on the road bike. Fumes from roads make this not so pleasant. Sculptures and play ground for kids are great but that’s about it. Got lost when it flips to other side of river. This route is for kids on bikes, not serious cyclists. Fun all the same with the kids for sure
Great Urban bike ride. Start out in a park in North Shore suburbs and goes into the north side of the city. Ride is in a park alongside the Water Reclamation canal. Goes along this very long sculpture garden to start. Wonderful sculptures. Take your time and enjoy the art or bike for exercise. Kind of cool as it zigs and zags. Pretty many road crossings, but well marked with lights. You end up going through a more urban park setting, and stop on Lawrence not far from Wrigleyville.
The northern portion of the trail that goes through the Evanston Arboretum and past the Ecology Center up to Green Bay Road is now paved with asphalt and is nice and smooth as of early 2016. So now the entire length from Green Bay Rd south to Devon Ave is Ashely or cement.
This is a nice urban trail.
The only negatives maybe the many zig zag turns and road crossings.
It's like one long park. It comes in handy for commuting.
The surface is in pretty good condition. Though, there are a few buckles along the Skokie part of the trail.
Trail is paved, nicely landscaped, with sculpture park a good part of the way. Only drawback is many traffic lights along the way.
Easy to connect to Green Bay Trail: take Prairie Avenue (just before Green Bay Rd) to Central, cross RR track underpass at Green Bay to Poplar Drive, which runs right into Green Bay Trail at Wilmette Avenue.
i bike this trail at least once every month during summer (maybe up to three times a month). i live it, it has amazing views!
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