Schoolhouse trail is a 15 mile section of the multi trail Madison County transit trail system, in southwestern Illinois.
Early on, it feels more rural than it really has a right to, running in tandem with busy State Highway 203.
It’s bounded on both sides by trumpet flower vines before it flows into thick woodlands.
Birds and insects call and hum, just beneath the roar of the traffic and the thump and rattle of industrial plants.
Four miles in, it winds along beautiful Horseshoe Lake State Park.
Then it crosses the highway and transitions to quiet open farmland and through the bustling outskirts of Collinsville.
Collinsville is busy and crowded, but the trail remains completely off the road, except for quick, well-marked crossings.
It drops past town, into a thickly wooded neighborhood trail, that seems to be more heavily used than the earlier section. Translation: I meet probably 8 -10 people versus 3 -4.
Threatening clouds merge into drizzly rain. 2.4 miles from Troy and 13 from my car, Troy seems the better bet.
In a beautiful Maryville park, I stop for a quick snack break.
The rain sputters out. The air is clean and muggy and honeysuckle fresh, chasing me on to the end.
Rambling ... 