The River Action annual Ride the River is returning to Arsenal Island this Father’s Day, Sunday, June 21.

In “Ride the Island,” participants can ride the beautiful trails of the Rock Island Arsenal while exploring its rich history by visiting iconic landmarks and enjoying a fun-filled day of live music and activities for all ages. A History Trail holds all the answers to a History Competition with prizes for winners with all the answers.

Riders will get a list of questions, and can find answers along the trail, River Action executive director Kathy Wine said Tuesday. “There are prizes, there’s even a couple of bonus questions at the end, little harder ones,” she said.

Last year, in the first Ride the Island, only on the Arsenal, River Action had 870 total riders, she said. This year, with the 250^th anniversary of America’s independence, Arsenal Island is a perfect setting, Wine said.

A map of the 2026 Ride the Island on Arsenal Island, Sunday, June 21.

“With all the interest in— well, concern that some history gets rewritten and emphasized in different ways, this is a perfect antidote to that because you’re seeing everything real. You’re not getting an interpretation,” she said. “You can ask who, why, what in every situation, and get your own information. It’s really an amazing resource we have here, the Rock Island Arsenal. And so I’m just glad to offer that for families.”

The ride will be June 21 from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and Packet Pickup is Saturday, June 20, 9 a.m. to noon, and Sunday from 7:30 a.m. to noon at 101 17^th Street parking lot in Rock Island. Trek bike repair will assist riders from 9 to noon at the Start/Finish Ride Headquarters. (Look for the big white tent.)

The Start/Finish June 21^st is in the parking lot at the southwest corner of 1^st Avenue and 17^th Street, Rock Island. Participants will cross 1^st Avenue at 17^th Street to the bike trail and then follow the trail to the Rock Island gate to enter the island.

Ride the Island participants can sign a copy of the Declaration of Independence Sunday, June 21 at the 1871 Italianate villa Quarters One, designed by General Thomas J. Rodman.

Anyone can register. Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Cost is $15 for adults, and $5 for children (16 and under), with optional T-shirts for $15.

Arsenal Island passes are NOT required for registrants during the event. Your ride-issued license will admit you. Helmets on the Island ARE required for ALL riders.

As participants explore the rich history of the Rock Island Arsenal, they can tour Quarters One, the second largest federal residence (51 rooms) after the White House, sign a copy of the Declaration of Independence, register to vote at Rock Island County and Scott County voter registration booths, take a photo with U.S. founders, participate in guided Paul Revere Rides, tour the Col. Davenport House, the Rock Island Arsenal Museum, Golf Shop and more along the route.

Quarters One, one of the Ride the Island stops on June 21, is the largest federal residence in the U.S. government, after the White House.

Don’t miss Memorial Park, where riders can stop at Wright Cycle bike repair, can play games, and relax to the music of the band Totes McGotes. A manned grill will be on site to provide the traditional Father’s Day cookout.

Wine is impressed with ongoing improvements on the island.

“They’re making improvements all the time. The golf course being improved— you’re going to ride by where they’re creating a new RV park,” she said. “There will be a new golf club built on the island. So that’s kind of exciting. And they’ve built a new trail along Rodman Avenue, not the entire way yet, but it’s getting close. A lot of improvements have been made on the island.”

The Rock Island Arsenal Golf Course reopened in April 2025, after a seven-year hiatus. The second oldest course in the state of Illinois was closed since September 2018. It reopened featuring 9 holes, mostly using the historic holes from the original course that opened in 1897.

The renovated Rock Island Arsenal Museum reopened three years ago (June 2023) after being closed for more than three years. The museum, which showcases the Arsenal’s role in the U.S. military, originally opened on July 4, 1905, and is the second oldest museum in the U.S. Army.

You can register for Ride the Island up until the day of the event, at the River Action site HERE.

River Action had 870 riders took part in Ride the Island on Father’s Day 2025, on Arsenal Island.

Jonathan Turner

Jonathan Turner -- who has called the Quad Cities home since 1995 -- has decades of experience as a professional journalist and pianist. His experience writing for daily newspapers, public radio and local TV encompasses a wide range of subjects, including the arts, politics, education, economic development, historic preservation, business, and tourism.

Jonathan most loves writing about music and the arts (which he now does as a freelancer for the River Cities Reader and Visit Quad Cities). He has a passion for accompanying musicals, singers, choirs and instrumentalists, including playing for QC Music Guild's 2023 productions of RENT and SWEENEY TODD. He is assistant music director and accompanist for the spring 2025 Music Guild show, ESCAPE TO MARGARITAVILLE. He wrote an original musical based on The Book of Job, which premiered at Playcrafters in 2010. Jonathan penned a 175-page history book about downtown Davenport, that was published by The History Press in 2016, and a travel guide about the QC published by Reedy Press in 2022.