 2019 Bike Camping Registration Open!Welcome to OOFD 2019! Goodness was last year a blast, and this year is going to be even better. In 2018, we led 19 overnight bike camping adventures that engaged over 250 people. Not bad considering just two years before we led 5 rides for a total of about 45 riders. 2019 saw the Family Program roll with 4 awesome camping weekends and the Youth Program was launched and led number of rides including a some bike camping trips to nearby state parks. Not to mention the 100+ person bike camping festival at Starved Rock. Thanks to everyone who was a part of 2018.
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 Summer is coming and so are the family bike camping adventures from Out Our Front Door! If you love biking and camping but aren’t sure how to combine the two, we offer a supportive communal experience with accessible bike camping rides designed by fellow parents. Our goal is to help you and your kids go from riding in the neighborhood to riding in nature; we provide the organization, logistics, ride support, food, and community of family cyclists to make your bike camping adventure fun, worry-free, and successful.
 We are thrilled to announce our 2018 lineup of family bike camping trips!
This year's series is designed to showcase the amazing diversity of routes and destinations that can all be reached in less than 30 miles. We have something for everyone: easy to advanced, bike trails, street riding, off-road, and a mini-tour. Out Our Front Door is a supportive community of cyclists so whether you are trying family bike camping for the first time or are an experienced cycling family, we hope you join us on one of our fun rides listed below. 
Of Gravel. Dirt. Roads & Paths.
A moonlit bike camping adventure through Illinois Indiana Michigan and Wisconsin.
The idea for the ride was conceived by Out Our Front Door Organization's very own Kyle Trebotich on an excursion from Starved Rock State Park and implemented and designed by Anna H. a Chainlink race team member and an OOFD Field Guide, Thomas TK a donor for Working Bikes, and Andrew the Prairie Rambler from The House of OOFD. Together the three of them set off from Chicago.
The 4x4 Bike Tour is a bike-camp ramble through four States, four breweries, and done in four days all while using four modes of transportation. Hence the name. It takes you through the States of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin where you will be greeted by beautiful people, discover new landscapes to enjoy, and not to mention crossing big blue Lake Michigan by Boat.
Although the path may change and the places and people you will visit will become anew, what does remain the same is that you bike 4 states and 4 breweries by using 4 modes of transportation done in at least 4 days. Hint, one transportation mode is your bike.
With a little creativity and ingenuity you can imagine the possibilities of what this weekend getaway can look like. So we encourage you to to explore your own path.
Story, map, and route down below.
 Before embarking on a 120-mile round-trip bike journey from Chicago to the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, The Out Our Front Door Organization led a collaborative series of events to kick start their first trip of the season. Where the public took part in a 100 year old tradition, learned the battle and struggle for a National Park which sparked a world wide movement and introduced legislation that would forever change American history, and discovered the birthplace of modern day ecology.
 6,023 acres to experience rolling moraine hill topography. An entrance leading you into wild flower prairies, wide eyed views and rich regional wetlands. Plus peaceful lakes and hiking trails too' makes Chain-O-Lakes State Park of North Eastern Illinois a great bike camping trip. Not to mention it's ease of access from Chicago.
 Thousands of years ago the Wisconsin Glacial Episode set off a rapid series of climatic events known as the Kankakee Torrent; hard charging flood waters that stripped and scoured the earth exposing the St. Petersburg Sandstone layer. It is this event and sandstone which makes up the unique topography of Starved Rock today. Surrounded by flatlands and moraines you will find an abundance of waterfalls, 18 dark cool canyons, scenic bluff overlooks and the Illinois River teeming with wildlife. This is one of the mid-west's most awe-inspiring destinations.
 Welcome to a landscape that changes on every visit where ice volcanoes, quick sand, and ridge and swales develop and shift throughout the year as you ride onto the youngest land in Illinois and enter Illinois Beach State Park. A beautiful piece of land that lies just 52 miles north of the city of Chicago. This Park preserves the last remaining segments of Lake Michigan shoreline left in the state free of any major coastal engineering, and the last expanse of coastal dunes in Illinois.
Have some photos of you favorite campground and some cyclist tips?
Get involved and hop on in. Your contribution helps build out this great resource for cyclists and campers alike. If you need inspiration you can take a look at this example here Devil's Lake State Park |
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"To immerse , educate, preserve & advance the history, culture, trails and native habitats of the Lower Lake Michigan Basin Area" Trail Series
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A Bike Camping + Nature Community for Chicago and the Lake Michigan Area
Founded in 2015. A 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
www.oofd.org
Founded in 2015. A 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
www.oofd.org