West Lafayette Post Tour Featuring the Wabash River

Sep 1 – 4, 2025

Welcome!

We invite you to join us for three days of varied riding in the countryside surrounding West Lafayette, Indiana—home of Purdue University, and by the Wabash River.  The event will be based at the Home2 Suites located on the north side of West Lafayette. 

Event Schedule  (Eastern Daylight Time)

Monday, Sep 1

  • Arrivals throughout the afternoon
  • 5:00 pm – Gathering for social time at the host hotel lobby; soft drinks and some light snacks will be provided, bring your own drinks (including with alcohol, if desired)

Tuesday, Sep 2

  • 8:30 am – Head to Fort Ouiatenon for the remote start.  It’s about a 15 minute drive; if you need more than 10 minutes to set up, please leave the hotel earlier.
  • 9:00 am – Wabash River Tour.  With route options of 33, 45, and 57 miles all head generally west and southwest, crossing the river twice.  Rustic restrooms and a small general store will be available at the midpoint of the short ride (Independence).  More food options will be available in Attica on the two longer routes, and the long route features a covered bridge!  We strongly recommend walking the bridge. 
  • 6:00 pm – Dinner gathering.  Meet at Walt’s Pub & Grill (1050 Kalberer Rd.) for socializing and a buffet dinner.  The restaurant is a short 5-minute drive from the host hotel.  Dinner will include appetizers, a choice of entrees, green salad and bread, and brownies.  A cash bar will also be available, as will vegan food options.

Wednesday, Sep 3

  • 9:00 am – In Search of the Wabash & Erie Canal.  Route options today will be 31, 40, and 51 miles in length, all heading northeast from the host hotel.  Delphi, with multiple food options will be about the midpoint of the longer two routes; the shorter route can stop at a convenience store on the southwest edge of Americus.    All routes go through historic Battleground, the park museum there has restrooms.
  • Afternoon/Evening – Activities and dinner on your own.  See later pages for some options to consider.

Thursday, Sep 4

  • 8:30 am (tentative) – On the Plains.  The ride start time may vary to accommodate departures.   Riding options include 30 and 36 mile routes, both passing through Brookston.   You will not see the Wabash River today, but neither will you see much in the way of hills—lots of flat country, with wind turbines everywhere once in White County.
  • Late Morning/Early Afternoon – Departure on your own schedule.

Overnight Accommodations – Home2 Suites on the north side of West Lafayette:1710 Sachem Blvd. West Lafayette, IN  47906.   (765) 269-4230. A block of 25 rooms has been reserved and will be held until July 28, 2025.  The room rate is $134 plus taxes; a hot breakfast is included.  There are also Marriott and Quality Inn options close by. You may reserve your room at the Hilton website.

Camping – The nearest campgrounds are AOK Campground on the south side of Lafayette and Prophetstown State Park northeast of Battleground.

Ride Information (Ride with GPS Files)

All participants must sign a CIBA waiver.  We strongly recommend using a GPS or the Ride with GPS app on your smartphone for navigation.  We will provide online cue sheets and maps generated in Ride with GPS that can be downloaded to your preferred device.  If you prefer, you may create your own cue sheets and maps.  A composite map showing all routes for the day will be provided.  If you wish to have a printed map or cue sheet for individual rides, you will need to do that yourself—they will not be provided.

Routes will NOT be marked (e.g., no Dan Henrys).  There will be no formal SAG support.  Although our cell phone numbers will be listed on the composite map, we will be riding the event and not immediately available.  The routes are designed to have rest steps (e.g., at convenience stores) along the way.

Local bicycle repair shops include Hodson’s Bay at the south east edge of West Lafayette (the Levee) and Virtuous Cycles in downtown Lafayette.

More Informationtheise@panix.com

Included with your Registration

  • Three days of riding covered by the CIBA insurance policy
  • Online route maps, cue sheets, and GPS files via Ride with GPS
  • Tuesday night banquet at Walt’s Pub & Grill

Registration Fees

  • Per adult: $65
  • Late Fee of $10 per person effective July 1, 2025
  • Last day to register is August 24, 2025

Please register for this post tour while registering for MTR at the Red Podium website.  We are limiting the post tour to MTR participants. If you are unable to register online, please contact Ted Heise at theise@panix.com or 765-490-0257.

    Cancellation Policy

    You may cancel your registration and be refunded for registration fees anytime through July 31, 2025, less a service charge of $10 per rider.


    Local Attractions

    Did you know?  Until the mid 18th century, the Ohio River was considered a tributary of the Wabash. Wikikpedia – Wabash River

    The Farm at Prophetstown

    Located within Prophetstown State Park, the Farm is a farming and education center offering unique experiences on all aspects of farm life. Programs revolve around the 1920’s farm. The livestock enjoy a beautiful, healthy farm/free range setting and the crops are used to feed them throughout the year. Barn chores are done each day at 8 am and 3 pm. Everyone is invited – especially children – to help in feeding the livestock, collecting eggs, and working in the garden. The Farm is a training farm for sustainable agriculture, gardening, canning, as well as farm-to-table cooking, sewing and quilting. It draws on a wide range of resources such as beekeepers, master gardeners, farm experts, and home economics experts. The Farm at Prophetstown is a non-profit organization. Hours are 10 AM to 5 PM daily from April through October and 10 AM to 4 PM Friday, Saturday and Sunday from November through March. Business office open daily. Admission to grounds is included in the state park entrance gate fee. More Info

    Wolf Park

    In 1972, Purdue professor Dr. Erich Klinghammer established Wolf Park as a nonprofit wolf education and research facility. Today, Wolf Park lives and prospers on 78 acres of beautifully-preserved rolling Indiana prairie 15 minutes from Lafayette/West Lafayette.

    Wolf Park is open daily for guided tours, and hosts summer camps, workshops, seminars, and special events throughout the year. Visitors can hit the trail to see their resident ambassador wolves, foxes, bison, and the newest addition in the Turtle Garden. Howl Nights offer visitors an up-close-and-personal view of their wolves and a chance to howl with the pack.

    Wolf Park’s Visitor Center is open daily for General Admission 9:30–2:30 pm. Saturdays until 5 pm.  All available program times can be found at the park’s website. More Info

    SAMARA

    The John E. Christian House (1954), located in West Lafayette, Indiana, represents a pristine example of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian architecture. SAMARA contains refinements of over forty innovations by this world famous architect, yet is unique in that it was specifically designed for Dr. Christian and his wife, Catherine, and their daughter, Linda.

    In 2015, SAMARA was designated a National Historic Landmark, the highest designation conferred by the National Park Service on historic place of extraordinary national significance. Seasonal. Open Mid-April – Mid-November. By reservation only. More Info

    The Haan Museum

    This is three museums in one, all housed in a mansion that served as the Connecticut Building at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. The Museum is known for its outstanding collection of historic Indiana paintings, including the best works by T.C. Steele. We also display hundreds of Indiana ceramics – including tables, chairs, figural works, and architectural forms as well as bronze and stone sculptures and glass. A major collection of ornate antique American furniture adds to the experience. The two main floors of the Haan Museum encompass about 9,000 square feet. More Info

    Five Points Fire Station Museum

    This 90+ year-old building is new again as a fire station museum. The building has been restored to its 1937 heyday and will house a 1937 Ahrens-Fox fire truck that made runs from the station for more than 36 years. Inside you’ll be able to see what it was like to be a firefighter in the 1930s at the station as well as try on firefighter coats and helmets. There are display rooms dedicated to fire toys, fire tools and extingishers and nozzles. A remaining room is restored as a bedroom as it looked in the 1930s. For the history buffs, there is a plethora of photos, documents, newspaper clippings,run ledgers and memorabilia on display that tell the history of the fire department in Lafayette. Call for hours. Facebook Page

    The Celery Bog

    For much of the twentieth century, the Celery Bog was a large vegetable farm which supplied fresh produce to more than 80 grocers in the region.  Though celery was one of the major crops, onions, carrots, tomatoes, potatoes, green beans, peas and cabbage thrived there as well.  Immigrants from northern Holland farmed the Celery Bog, using experience with similar soil in their native land.  They tilled many acres, all by hand – watering with sprinkler cans when necessary. Drainage tiles and other scant traces of these pioneering farmers can still be found in the Celery Bog.” The Bog contains five wetland basins covering 105 acres. It is listed by DNR’s Indiana Natural Heritage Program as one of the “significant sites” in the state.

    The preserve contains four miles of trails through woods along a marsh. It is approximately 195 acres, with 7 acres in Scifres-Maier Woods Nature Preserve.  The Celery Bog Nature Area is home to the Lilly Nature Center and contains 4.3 miles of paved Cattail Trail and a 1.5 mile footpath with interpretive signs and two viewing decks. More Info

    It has taken several tries to build the road that passes through the Celery Bog in a durable way (i.e., to keep it from being part of the bog).  The latest iteration may have finally succeeded. More Info

    You can find many other activities at this great website… Home of Purdue