A new bicycle trail along highway 151 helps link Madison and Sun Prairie. This trail would appear in the upper right-hand corner of the Madison map. Traveling from Madison the trail starts where High Crossing Blvd ends at American Pkwy and follows the southeast side highway 151 to connect with O’Keefe Ave which leads into Sun Prairie.

Hastings, in the far SE corner of the Twin Cities Bike Map has a surprisingly robust set of bike trails, called the Veteran’s Home Bikeway. The trail starts just north of Lock and Dam #2, runs on top of the dike that creates the pool behind the locks, and follows the river around downtown Hastings. The trail heads inland along railroad tracks that skirt the eastern edge of downtown, then splits, with one trail leading to CP Adam Park and a second that follows the Vermillion River around the southern edge of town.

Hastings is separated enough from the metro area to be surrounded by farmland and gravel roads, but not far enough to avoid metro area traffic. Ninineger Rd (Hwy 42) is the best escape route out of town. It will take you to the very attractive Spring Lake Park, an excellent destination with a modern visitor center, picnic grounds, hiking paths and great views of Spring Lake (Mississippi River).Traffic is moderate to heavy depending on day of week and time of day.

Hwy 54, SE of Hastings is designated part of the multi-state Mississippi River Trail. This route is recommended for experienced riders only. Traffic is high and the road is narrow with no shoulder.

If you are looking for a 20-25 mile route near the metro area, I recommend visiting Hastings. Downtown has a mix of bars, coffee shops and restaurants for post ride food and drink.

Summer construction has started in Wisconsin and is affecting several bike trails shown on the Milwaukee and Southeastern Wisconsin map. Two of these involve the replacement of bridges built for trains with bicycle bridges. The other two discussed here are projects to pave previously unpaved trails.
The first bridge project is the crossing of 124th Street. It connects the New Berlin Trail with Greenfield Park and Milwaukee County’s Oak Leaf Trail.

In Shorewood, the bridge that carries the Oak Leaf Trail over Capitol Drive is being replaced. With both bridge projects, detours are posted. UPDATE (July 12): The is now open.
In Waukesha county, the Lake County Trail is being paved. Currently the western section between Nagawicka Park and county B is closed for construction (west of county B, the trail is already paved). Construction on the eastern section is scheduled to start in July. UPDATE (July 12): The entire trail is now barricaded.
In southern Racine county, the county trail is closed between Racine and the Kenosha county line. Signs mark a detour from Racine to Kenosha county. UPDATE (July 7, 2010): this trail is now open and much improved.

Brookfield is one of the most challenging places in which to find safe and continuous bicycle routes. Most of the through roads are narrow with heavy traffic. Bike paths along the roads often start and then stop for no apparent reason. Stretches of road will have a bike lane on one side but not the other. These challenges are reflected in the often circuitous routes shown on the Milwaukee and Southeastern Wisconsin bike map, often using winding residential streets.

On the plus side, Brookfield continues to add to its bike trails, with an emphasis on trails through parks. As part of its Greenway Plan, a newly-built trail starts in Wirth Park (near the intersection of North Avenue and Pilgrim Road) and runs northwest to Calhoun Rd. This new trail is part of a marked route, called the Beverly Hills Trail, running between Wirth Park and Mitchell Park.

Another new trail in Brookfield follows Pilgrim Parkway between Bluemound Road and North Avenue.

The second edition of the Milwaukee and Southeast Wisconsin map shows a gap in the Seven Waters Trail just north of Wind Lake. This gap required bicyclists to ride on the shoulder of highway 36 for a short stretch south of Muskego Dam Rd. With the opening of a new bridge this spring, the trail is continuous between Wind Lake and Muskego Dam Rd.

At the other end of the Seven Waters Trail, in Burlington, a paved trail leads southeast along the Fox River to Bushnell Park. A newly opened unpaved trail continues east from Bushnell Park. On the current edition of the map, the route of this trail is shown as the railroad track it replaced. Currently the trail ends at Vandenboom Rd, which is unlabeled on the map, but is the first road west of highway 75.

The country’s merriest festival of bikes, costumes and whimsy is coming to Milwaukee for the first time. Tour de Fat takes place at Milwaukee’s Humboldt Park from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 3.

New Belgium Brewery has been taking its whimsical Tour de Fat around the country for a number of years. Some of the unique features of this unusual event include a bicycle parade through the city in the morning, costumes, beer garden and various festivities.

During the festival one rider will trade in his or her car for a fully loaded commuter bike. To be eligible, participants must submit a 2 minute video to New Belgium Brewery explaining why they want to live car free.

Suggested donation for participants is $5, which goes to the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin.

The Bike Fed needs 100 volunteers to register participants, staff the beer tent, marshal the parade and conduct sundry other activities throughout the day. Volunteers who serve a minimum of two hours receive a Tour de Fat t-shirt and two beer tokens. For more information or to sign up, please contact the Bike Fed’s Jessica Binder.