Pour Cercle les Vignobles

Most Chicagoans think of Illinois as farm country flat. On weekends, thousands stream out of the Windy City for the lakes in the North Country. We bike riders haven’t yet mastered the miracle of riding across water, but we do know there are spectacular roads in the Upper Left Hand Corner of Illinois closer to Chicago than Wisconsin’s lakes.

The choicest of these routes meander around the Galena, and some of the most scenic pass by three vineyards which have grown to maturity in the Upper Left during the last decade.

Last autumn, I had it in mind to ride my bicycle along these peaseful roads and visit each of the wineries on a kind of tour I’ll call Pour Cercle les Vignobles, or Circle the Vineyards. The Saturday on Memorial Day Weekend seemed the perfect time to reconnoiter la route. The weather cooperated with moderately warm temperatures and light winds—a splendid day to explore les vignobles, meet nice people, and enjoy a wee taste at each destination.

Leaving the trusty Blazer at Galena’s park on Stagecoach Trail just east of town, I rode immediately to Kayte’s Coffee shop to fuel up on a cappuccino fortissimo. No artificial additives please; just two shots of rich espresso and foamy whole milk.

From Kayte’s we headed out the south end of town on Blackjack Road. Blackjack can be tediously busy and not at all pleasant for biking unless you have a shiny chromed Vee Twin between your legs. So, we detoured left on Irish Hollow Road which flows into Rocky Hill Road and rises up upon a ridge line above Blackjack. To get on top, prepare to climb a 15% to 18% grade which might put you off the bike if you aren’t suitably geared or trained.

Your reward is to roll easily along beneath the shade trees free of traffic with an occasional belle vue over the Mississippi Valley. Cross over Blackjack Road near the ski hill and ride towards Blanding Landing. As you drop off the ridge, squeeze your brakes for a hard left turn on to Batey Hollow Road. This is another lovely bucolic road which will take you back up to Blackjack. From there, ride Blackjack down to Hanover and follow Route 84 through town.

At the southern edge, as Route 84 fades to the right, ride straight ahead and prepare to climb up Hanover Road—about 11%. After you crest the hill, the large limestone gate marks the entrance to Rocky Waters winery. The Spahn family has been growing grapes here for nearly 12 years and just recently opened their handsome tasting room which overlooks the vines and majestic river valley to the southwest. The setting looks like it dropped out of Oregon, but from here you can definitely see Iowa.

Departing Rocky Waters, continue east on Hanover Road over to Derinda Road. At the top of the hill, turn right and ride into one of the most beautiful valleys in the Upper Left, and peddle out on a long steady grade to Massbach Ridge. The road surface is smooth—an excellent opportunity to settle into a nice tempo and pray not to be unnerved by the raucous Vee Twin Harley’s.

Roads like this are Hog Heaven on weekends. But no matter; they pass by quickly, and we’re back into our thoughts and the rhythmic rotation of peddles.

As Derinda tops off, turn left at the sign pointing to Stockton and Mount Carroll and left again towards Stockton. Massbach Ridge winery is just up the road. While not as spectacular as Rocky Waters, this winery has developed a great following over the years.

Today, Peggy Harmston’s tireless work on her terroir is paying off with a remarkable Reserve Red. And that is exactly all I tasted for the day. Peggy was entertaining guests, but took time for a photo with the Chianti Kid. Thereafter, it was time to face the challenge of the route to our final winery.

Continue towards Stockton about a mile or two, and hang a left on Skene Road to take you back over to Derinda Road. The descent off Massbach Ridge on Skene is a total scream. My friend Dennis Robinson has easily topped 50 MPH down this hill on his Baccetta recumbent.

Not surprisingly, the climb back up to Derinda is equally steep. On top, turn right for more steady climbing north to Terrapin Ridge and busy US Route 20. Cross over 20 and plummet into the Apple River Valley on Becker Road.

At the bottom, Becker flattens out and rides easily over the Apple River on a concrete deck which was once an old steel “pony trussed” bridge. We’re now on Goose Hollow Road which narrows and serpentines through yet another picturesque valley up to Shaw Road. Turn left, and climb Shaw over the only gravel stretch to the Elizabeth Scales Mound blacktop.

Like Derinda Road, Elizabeth Scales Mound is smooth tarmac, and has been surprisingly devoid of traffic the last three Saturdays I’ve ridden it. The tree line also scrubs off the stiff northwest winds we’ve been braving in the Upper Left this Spring. We’ll continue north on E-S Mound to Rawlins Road and turn west.

This was one of the few times I’ve had the pleasure of going down Rawlins Road. Instead of slugging up the18% face, we flew down and continued west over Gilford Road to Ford Road. Turning right on Ford Road, we trudged back north up to Stagecoach Trail for our final vineyard.

I had considered a couple extra climbs en route but passed, as I had never been on Ford Road or to Galena Cellars for that matter. The next few miles confirmed a wise decision.

I arrived at Galena Cellars off a sharp hill on the north shoulder of Stagecoach Trail. This oldest of wineries in the Upper Left Hand Corner of Illinois was more humble than I expected. And the view to the Northwest across the vineyards and the Galena River valley is lovely indeed.

Galena Cellars was a buzz with visitors packed inside the tasting room, touring the winery, or otherwise sitting in the shade outdoors enjoying the splendid view. I dearly wanted to flop down in one of the vinyl Adirondacks and join them, but legs stiffened their warning to respect the steep hill back up to Stagecoach Trail.

Unlike Derinda and Elizabeth-Scales Mound Roads, this stretch of Stagecoach is well populated by vehicles of all kinds. So, we cautiously glanced over our left shoulder on our decent into Galena.

Our departure on this journey round the vineyards began with coffee at Kayte’s. If you haven’t tasted enough along your Cercle les Vignobles, may we suggest Jamie Carroll’s Wine Studio? Jamie’s is on the north side of the street a block or so west of Kayte’s.

You can sit in her tasting room, or browse for a bottle to take home.

So now the seed has finally been sown, and we’re planning to organize our first Pour Cercle les Vignbles during the fall harvest. If anyone is interested, please send a comment or email me at cycleupperleft.il@gmail.com.

Jilly's Trek 5500 Now On Sale

One spin on this bike, and I ask myself, why is she selling it. Compared to my 2100, this 5500 is a rocket. It probably is a combination of lightness, stiffness, and drivetrain. Duh!

The 56cm frame is just a bit cramped but not at all uncomfortable. This bike has a dream ride compared to my 2100. The bumps just melt away.

The JillyTrek has a 52/39 DuraAce crankset, and the arms are a shorter 172.5mm compared to my Bontrager 50/36 compact with 175mm crankarms. So, when I step on it, the bike really shoots ahead.

Joe Dadez and I did some basic clean-up of the bike. I had a nice Bontrager saddle, and we installed new cables and cool carbon fiber lookin housings and retaped the handlebars black. I also added a nice Bontrager black bottle rack with black bolts.

The DuraAce gruppo feels more positive than the Ultegra on my 2100, and the Mavic Cosmic Elite wheels are light and tough. But the paintjob on this bike is really cool. It was done by Metal Specialties with a mirage dual tint metalic paint that changes color in the light from green to purple.

This is also the first time I've ridden a bike with real aero bars, and it is slick feeling like Lance or Levi in the TTTuck.

All in all, this is bike will bring a lot of smiles to someone for a Mille Cent.