After a busy week of labor within the fast-paced metropolis of Chicago, escaping for a breath of recent air is a necessary option to recharge. Whereas guests might not come to the Windy Metropolis in quest of a nature expertise, locals know that there’s rather more to Chicago than meets the attention.
Inside a comparatively brief drive, you might be immersed among the many towering dunes of Indiana Dunes Nationwide Park, discover vertical sandstone cliffs at Starved Rock State Park, or watch bison retake their pure prairie habitat in Midewin Nationwide Tallgrass Prairie. On this information, we’ll spotlight seven out of doors getaways for Chicagoans to get their dose of nature with out a lengthy, burdensome drive.
1. Indiana Dunes Nationwide Park
From the shores of Indiana Dunes Nationwide Park, you may see the skyline of Chicago throughout Lake Michigan. Only a 1-hour drive east of town, the park’s ecosystems of expansive seashores, thick forest canopies, and shifting dunes really feel worlds away from the bustle of metropolis life.
Granted Nationwide Park standing in 2019, Indiana Dunes is among the nation’s latest parks, boasting 13,000 preserved acres, 15 miles of Lake Michigan’s coast, and 15 path techniques that stretch over 50 miles. Its proximity to Chicago makes it a fast and handy escape to discover a slower tempo within the outside.
One of the crucial common mountain climbing trails is the Succession Path at West Seaside — a 1-mile loop that climbs 75 ft as much as the highest of Diana’s Dune through an extended staircase. For an extended hike, the 4.7-mile Cowles Lavatory Path presents quite a lot of habitats, together with ponds, marshes, black oak savannas, and seashores. Don’t be afraid to take a look at the park outdoors of the summer season season for extra solitude away from the summer season crowds.Â
- Size: 1-5 miles
- Issue: Simple to reasonable
- Restrooms: Accessible all through the park
- Parking: Varied entry factors; $25 per car, $20 per motorbike, $15 per individual on bicycle or foot; passes are legitimate for 7 days
- Canine friendliness: Canine allowed on leash
- Hours: Varies in every space of the park, for instance: West Seaside and Porter Seaside are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., Kemil Seaside is open 24 hours, and all different seaside areas are open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
2. Starved Rock State Park
Starved Rock, essentially the most visited state park in Illinois, sits on the banks of the Illinois River southwest of Chicago. A placing distinction to the everyday central plains panorama, the park is famend for its 18 sandstone canyons carved by floods from retreating glaciers 14,000 to 17,000 years in the past. These canyons characteristic dramatic overhangs and rain-fed waterfalls, surrounded by dense forests of oak, maple, hickory, pine, and cedar.
There’s one thing for everybody at Starved Rock, whether or not you desire a brief stroll or an extended hike. You possibly can climb as much as Sandstone Level overlook, try St. Louis Canyon’s waterfall, or discover the depths of Wildcat Canyon, amongst many different trails.
- Size: 1-8 miles
- Issue: Simple to reasonable
- Restrooms: Accessible all through the park
- Parking: Free
- Canine friendliness: Canine allowed on leash
- Hours: 7 a.m. to sundown
3. Midewin Nationwide Tallgrass Prairie
Positioned within the city of Wilmington simply an hour’s drive from downtown Chicago, Midewin Nationwide Tallgrass Prairie presents a fast escape into nature with 18,225 acres of land and 34 miles of trails, 12 of that are reserved for mountain climbing.
The park is a mannequin of habitat restoration, returning huge areas to their authentic prairie state and reintroducing bison, which as soon as roamed the area in abundance.
For one of the best likelihood of recognizing grazing bison, hike the Group 63 Loop Path and produce binoculars in case they’re at a distance. To expertise the array of habitats throughout the park, try the Prairie Creek Woods Path the place yow will discover ponds, woodlands, and restored tallgrass prairie.
- Size: 1-10 miles
- Issue: Simple to reasonable
- Restrooms: Sure, out there at trailheads
- Parking: Free at trailheads
- Canine friendliness: Canine allowed on leash
- Hours: 4 a.m. to 10 p.m.
4. Waterfall Glen Forest Protect
Out on the sting of Chicago’s suburban sprawl, Waterfall Glen Forest Protect is a well-liked hike amongst metropolis dwellers to get a dose of rolling hills, thick forests, and various wildlife. The park, which presents 11 miles of trails over its 2,503 acres, is understood for its ecological variety of fauna, birds, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals.Â
A well-liked route is the Waterfall Glen Path. This well-maintained 9.3-mile loop showcases the park’s foremost points of interest: Rocky Glen waterfall, the scenic overlooks over Des Plaines River and Sawmill Creek, and savannas and prairie ecosystems. Don’t be afraid to go to outdoors the summer season months, as a snowshoe exploration might be simply as enjoyable within the park.
- Size: 9.3 miles
- Issue: Simple to reasonable
- Restrooms: Sure, at entrance parking tons
- Parking: Free, three parking tons within the park
- Canine friendliness: Canine allowed on leash
- Hours: One hour after dawn to at least one hour after sundown
5. Moraine Hills State Park
Moraine Hills State Park is a superb instance of Illinois’ glacial historical past. From the glacier-formed lakes to the moraine deposits, mountain climbing across the park supplies a geology lesson in regards to the formation and retreat of glaciers within the space hundreds of years in the past. The 48-acre Lake Defiance is one such glacial lake and one of many few examples in Illinois that is still unaltered, basically left in its authentic state.Â
The two,200-acre park consists of lakes and wetlands with greater than 10 miles of trails. The realm is especially recognized for its biodiversity, that includes greater than 200 species of birds that frequent the park. Nice blue herons and inexperienced herons come to feed within the park’s marshes throughout their summer season migration.Â
For an introduction to the park, take the Lake Defiance Path — a 3.8-mile loop across the largest lake within the park. And go away the headphones at residence; listening to the chirping birds is a should to completely expertise Moraine Hills.
- Size: 1-6 miles
- Issue: Simple to reasonable
- Restrooms: Sure, out there in day-use areas
- Parking: Free all through the park
- Canine friendliness: Canine allowed on leash
- Hours: Varies by season, nevertheless it’s a day-use space solely, so plan on returning to your automotive earlier than sundown
6. Deer Grove Forest Protect
Northwest of Chicago within the city of Palatine, rolling upland forest, wooded ravines, wetlands, and prairies await at Deer Grove Forest Protect. The park spans 2,000 acres and is traversed by each paved and unpaved trails. Whereas strolling by way of the quiet woodlands, preserve an eye fixed out for the white-tailed deer, the park’s namesake.Â
A well-liked hike in Deer Grove is the Yellow Loop Path, which supplies hikers a style of the woodlands, deep ravines, and quaint bridges. If visiting within the spring, control the vernal ponds that kind and supply habitats for amphibians like blue-spotted salamanders and refrain frogs.Â
- Size: 1-7 miles
- Issue: Simple to reasonable
- Restrooms: Sure, all through the park
- Parking: Free, a number of parking tons within the park
- Canine friendliness: Canine allowed on leash
- Hours: Dawn to sundown
7. Illinois Seaside State Park
Illinois has 63 miles of shoreline alongside Lake Michigan, however most of it has been developed. The final remaining swath of pristine shore is protected inside Illinois Seaside State Park. The 6.5 miles of lakeshore and 4,160 acres of land supply ever-shifting dunes, oak savannas, marshland, and rivers.Â
The park is cut up into two areas — the North Unit and South Unit — every with its personal path system. A well-liked alternative is the Lifeless River Path within the South Unit. The two.5-mile loop crosses quite a lot of ecosystems earlier than it reaches the Lifeless River, which alternates between free-flowing and blocked because of sand build-up at its mouth into Lake Michigan.
- Size: 1-3 miles
- Issue: Simple
- Restrooms: Sure, a number of all through the park
- Parking: Free, parking tons within the North Unit and South Unit
- Canine friendliness: Canine are allowed on trails and in campgrounds/picnic areas whereas on leash; canine not allowed on the seaside or nature protect
- Hours: 8 a.m. to sundown
This put up was sponsored by Fjällräven.
