Biking Illinois :: Greenville

Ride 49: Greenville

Biking Illinois: 60 Great Road Trips and Trail Rides

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Greenville, IL July 21, 2005

Greenville is just down the road from Hillsboro, and I scouted this ride the same day that I rode the Hillsboro-Roubaix race course. But after sitting in the sun watching the races, I was too tired to pedal the Greenville route that day. Instead, I settled for a walk around downtown. Apparently it isn't much of a tourist town since most of the stores close at noon on Saturdays and aren't open on Sundays. I checked into the Best Western near I-70. The pizza from the adjacent restaurant was overpriced and not very good. < Sigh> . Such are the trials that I had to endure while writing Biking Illinois.

I returned in July to ride the route. At least then I knew where not to get pizza. I have since been told by a Greenville native that Mario's Pizza is the place to go.

The Bond County Courthouse is the focal point of downtown Greenville.

The photo at the top of the page and the two below show some clever tromp l'oeil murals on numerous downtown buildings. The term, French for " trick the eye," describes the three-dimensional effect portrayed by these two-dimensional paintings.

The Globe and the Greenville Library are for real. The latter, one of 106 Illinois libraries funded by robber baron turned philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, marks the " trailhead" of this ride.

Outside of town, the ride passes a church almost as old as Illinois in a building dating to 1867.

The Greenville College campus is located in town except for this outpost on Ayers Road.

This awesome brick road didn't quite fit into the route I laid out. It may be the closest thing Illinois has to the cobbled climbs of the Tour of Flanders. If I remember correctly, it's on Hazel Dell Road east of where the ride turns north on Ayers Road.