I have two basic routes to work, the North and the South. They differ only in the ride home, as I like to keep the ride in as short as possible (to minimize the sweat factor).
The Ride In
Starting at the intersection of Division and Newman Roads near West Lafayette, head northeast on Newman. At SR26, take a right (east) and head towards the Purdue campus. At the intersection with Airport Rd/McCormick Road there is a choice. Option 1 continues on State Street east to Sheetz. Hang a right and travel south for one block, then turn left onto Wood St. My office is at the corner of Wood and Grant. Option 2, which offers much less traffic, travels south on Airport Rd. to Gates. Turn left on Gates and ride east all the way to Intramural Drive. Continue east on Harrison Street to Grant Street, and turn north and pedal one block to Grant.
The ride home starts at Grant and Wood streets. Roll north on Grant street. The bike lanes begins at State Street and is very helpful in the 5:00 traffic. Travel up the hill past the high school to Salisbury. Turn left (NNW) on Salisbury (more bike lane) and continue to Lindberg Road. Head left (west) on Lindberg (still more bike lane), ride past the Celery Bog, across McCormick Road, and across Klondike Road. At 400W, turn south and ride all the way to 350W and Division Road where the big tree is in the middle of the road. Turn left (east) on Division Road to go back to Newman Road.
The north route is around 12 miles long.
When riding on Salisbury, continue north to Kalberer Road. Head west to the Cattail Trail, and follow the trail south and west past Wal Mart to Lindberg Road. A right on Lindberg rejoins the original route.
This variation of the north route adds 3.5 miles.
This started out as a detour around bridge construction, but I found that it is a nice route anyway – especially when I don’t have quite enough time for the full North route.
Instead of taking Lindberg all the way to 400W, I cut south on Klondike Road. Then, east on SR26, south on Sharon Chapel Road, and SW on Newman Road gets me home. I sometimes take a shortcut on Drury Lane to limit my time on the highway.
Total distance is 10.7 miles.
To head home on the South Route, start south on Grant St. a couple of blocks to Williams (in front of Freehafer Hall). Head left down the hill to River Road. Turn right and travel west in the handy bike lane. At the stop light take a right to continue on River Road. Roll west a few more miles to Newman Road. Turn right (north) and ride back to Division.
The south route is around 9 miles long.
Another Option on the Avenue
The Wabash Avenue Route runs within a block of my office building, so a reverse of that route is another fun way home.
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