The 21.5-mile Old Plank Road Trail was developed by the District and a number of other agencies along an abandoned railroad corridor. Before the railroad was constructed in the 1850s, the corridor had originally been secured to build a wagon and horse road using wood planks, but the road was never built. The trail was our first linear "Rail-to-Trail" project.

The Old Plank Road Trail is paved and passes through prairie, wetlands, and woodlands. The trail runs from Western Avenue in Park Forest west to Washington Street in Joliet for a distance of 21.5 miles. The trail connects the communities of Park Forest, Matteson, Frankfort, New Lenox, and Joliet.

Access to the trail is available at Hickory Creek Junction in Mokena, Park Road in Joliet Township, and Washington Street in Joliet. The trail is part of the Grand Illinois Trail, which travels the northern quarter of Illinois, and the coast-to-coast American Discovery Trail.

Photograph Courtesy of Glenn P. Knoblock