Located At :
13112 Visitor Center Lane
Grafton, IL 62037
38.9731872, -90.5430143

The trail starts on the west end of the parking lot by the Visitor’s Center near the log cabin. We will meet in front of the Visitor’s Center. It will be open & is totally worth popping in to check out!

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The Pere Marquette Outer Loop is a 6.5 mile moderately challenging loop with difficult uphill stretches & an elevation gain of 1,033 feet. It’s the hills & mileage that earn this one the “challenging” rating. The terrain isn’t too technical. This route is actually comprised of several trails connected together & will take us about 3.5 hours to complete. We’ll hike clockwise starting on the Goat Cliff Trail which will kick us off with a climb & take us to the bluffs & scenic overlooks first. After the overlooks we will take a left at every fork to circle around the entire park via the Hickory trails (North & South) & Fern Hollow trail. It’s gonna be an ass kicker but, those views, Babe!

Wear weather appropriate clothing with your NEON BLAZE, comfortable hiking shoes/boots (waterproof might be a good idea this go) & bring plenty of drinking water. You’re definitely gonna want a snack on this hike! Consider bringing along trekking poles & a change of clothes/shoes for after the hike as it may get wet & muddy on our adventures.

REMINDER : ALL HIKES ARE WEATHER PERMITTING. {THIS INCLUDES HEAT, RAIN, CRAZY WIND, COLD & SNOW.} We’re expecting a gloomy 57 degrees in Grafton on Monday with a 50% chance of rain in the forecast; be prepared for wonky weather just in case. (I’ll bring some extra ponchos!) Should be a beautiful fall day for a hike though!

Pere Marquette Outer Loop Trail maps can be found here! >>>

https://plannedspontaneityhiking.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/trails-hiked.png

https://dnr.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/dnr/parks/activity/documents/peremarquette-hikingtrailsmap.pdf

You can find more information about the Pere Marquette Outer Loop Trail here! >>>

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/illinois/pere-marquette-outer-loop

Check out these blog posts that have more information & beautiful photos of the Pere Marquette Outer Loop Trail! >>>

https://www.michaelshepherdjordan.com/blog/into-the-clouds-at-pere-marquette-state-park-illinois

https://plannedspontaneityhiking.com/2015/09/17/pere-marquette-state-park-illinois/

https://www.greatriverroad.com/pere-marquette-1/pere-goat-cliff

Check out this video for a good idea of what to expect! >>>

https://youtu.be/IC80Az-3Kjg

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We’ve done this entire loop one other time, in the dead of winter! It was a super fun hike!!! We’ve also hit up some of the trails individually & pieced them together in other ways too. I absolutely LOVE hiking Pere Marquette SP, particularly this time of year. I’m SO looking forward to hitting up the PM Outer Loop again!

See y’all Monday!

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