I've driven by here literally countless times in the two decades I've lived in the Chicago area. I know there was a pool and toboggan run here but just never had much reason to stop, and it wasn't until the pandemic that I realized what a true gem the Forest Preserve District of Cook County is. I was stunned by how extensive it is, and yes, it does feel like a small woodland. I saw someone with their hammock strung up between two trees. It must have been ok, because there were multiple FPDCC staff around within sight of it. (I don't know if you need a permit or other permission, though.) We were kind of on the western side of the property and farther east in a copse of trees we saw a deer. That deer surprised me a lot, because it was there for several minutes and it was only a few feet from a dog, who was quite interested in the deer. At some point the deer must have decided it had had enough of the dog because it retreated a bit. But it was so fun to see it there. Caldwell Woods has various programming, all of which can be found on the FPDCC website or on one of the signs on the property. We were here with a play group for their yard games day, and it was fun! There may have only been one or two other parties there besides us, but I hope the forest preserve staff don't feel discouraged because our children had fun throwing bean bags, hitting plastic croquet balls, running up the hill, "axe throwing", and so on. They've either recently added or renovated a fire pit area, and one of the master naturalists was up there popping corn and providing materials for making s'mores on the fire. It was a really fun night (though watch the weather; it got a bit chilly and I forgot sweatshirts), and I'm looking forward to more events here and to visit the wellness center. read more

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Large forest preserve with miles of paved paths mostly following the Chicago river. I walked with a small group and we saw deer and chipmunks as well as a golden finch. There also some interesting plants to observe. There's parking at Devon and Milwaukee as well as many spaces within the preserve. There are also several picnic groves with shelters and restrooms. read more

Guess some tree trunks were shifted during the recent flooding and blocked parts of the riverbank trail path. They weren't there just a couple of weeks ago. read more

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This is where my daughter went sledding. She's to mature & cool now. Heart breaking. The sled hill and walking trails are cool. This is a nice place to go relax and get some exercise and unwind. One of the best features used to be a beautiful warming house. There Was an old school round fire place with a welcoming fire. Great for the community. Now, it's an office. I'm sure the person who decided to do this was far more Important than the community they serve. Enjoy your desk. read more

Beautiful serene sociable environment... clean and versatile...From the parking lot I walked alongside the river in search of a decent fishing area... water was too shallow like 2 feet... nevertheless I did BBQ under a hooded/ picnic area. Coal cans for disposal was right there. Picnic tables, etc. Bike trail and walk/running trail spirals uphill and downhill. Excellent for family outings read more

Love Caldwell woods for a beginner type leisurely bike ride. Perfect place to bike with kids. Easy parking. Lovely well maintained path.

So I've been here for the ducks in the pond, but that was during the summertime. During the winter, and with snow, this place has an awesome hill setup for sledding. So if you want to "shred some snow" dudes, come to Caldwell Woods. Pro-tip: As I was wondering where it was; The sledding snow is located near the Devon side, close to the Devon/Milwaukee intersection, and maybe a block or a half from the Whelan Pool entrance. After some snowfall, these hills are awesome to go sliding down on. They have nearby stairs (that kids ignore, and just annoyingly walk uphill instead) to get back to the top of the hill. On a Saturday, I estimated about 30 or so people and there was a decent amount of space for you to slide down on. There were about 6-8 unofficial lanes and even a couple where there were intentional snow bumps on. Heating center with bathrooms nearby if you don't feel like making yellow snow. Everybody, for the most part, were civil... you just have to watch out for stragglers just laying near the middle of the hill waiting to get ran over, or the stupid parents who just stand right at the bottom doing gawd-knows-what. BATHROOM REVIEW: I had on too many layers, so was too lazy to strip off and pee. Will review next time. read more

The worst ever need to be more professional if you need to reserve a pool party make sure you call ahead to make sure reservations are actually made got there and to be told didn't have a reservation paid the deposit in cash and didn't even have that on file and the one who took the cash wasn't even there was told we were able to purchase pizza and what not to come ro find out they didn't have shit but water and Gatorade worst experience ever NEVER AGAIN!!!!!! MY GUEST WERE HUNGRY AND COULDN'T EVEN FEED THEM!!!!!! THE STAFF WAS NOT HELPFUL AT ALL !!!!!! read more

Great place to hang out, picnics, exercise, just go for a walk. Beautiful park lots of wildlife.

best place to watch grass and weeds grow in the area highly recommend it bring your chair helps tremendously

Loved it! Lots of picnic areas and the wildlife was abundant. Loved the trails and facilities.

This place is fantastic, any time of the year, during the summer, we would take long bike rides all the way up to Niles and beyond with our young daughter in tow. There are also kid parks, places to have awesome picnics and super cool trails through the woods. In the fall, we would go often to enjoy the foliage, and the winters we can cross country ski through the trails. We were fortunate to live right in front and there is nothing like the early morning smell of woods and the sight of the dew at the crack of dawn. This is one of those places that makes all the seasons worth living through them. read more

This place is spectacular! I am so grateful we have this forest preserve. It is full of easy to walk paths and gorgeous trees that are beautiful especially in the autumn. Often I see deer here too. Keep in mind that there are several entrances to make access super easy. The only negative is that sometimes you hear airplanes above in the sky. Thank you for having this beautiful place for us. read more

UPDATE 12/31:They repaved! I dont know if they did the whole bike path or not, but at least by me there is all new asphalt down. Cant wait for spring to try the rollerblades on it! Yay! The beginning of the bike trail starts at the intersection of Devon and Central and ends at the Botanical Garden in Glencoe. Yep, you can ride that whole way if you want to be all hard-core and nutter about it if ya want. Me, I get to about Dempster and I've had it for the day. This is a beautiful Forest Preserve, though. Lots of open fields, wilderness and deer to see if you are lucky. It's tough to rollerblade on, though, since the asphalt is kinda bumpy and old. read more

Great big hills for sledding? Check. Winding paths for disappearing into the woods? Check. River full of ducks? Check. Deer everywhere at night? Check. Nice path or bikers/bladers? Check. Yeah, this place isn't missing anything. Pretty clean and well kept. There are some really beautiful green patches in the woods, some nice picnic areas, and a couple good spots to sneak off with your girlfriend and get lost in the brush. If you drop by here in the summer you're bound to stumble upon a picnic full of friendly people offering you a burger, or later, high school students who've rolled in keg into one of the clearing, offering you a big red dixie cup. If you show up in the fall, make sure to take some time and enjoy the "Haunted Trails". Maybe not the scariest thing on earth, but even as an adult, it's still fun. read more

This is the location of a lot of year-round greatness. In the summer time you can enjoy the Whealan Pool aquatic center. The pool is zero-depth which is nice for younger kids. They also have a pretty cool water play thingamabob with short slides and whatnot. Also, there's a lap swimming area and two water slides. It's a good place to take a picnic or to lay out in the sun on the chaise loungers they have everywhere. It's a good place. I just called today and they should be opening some time in June and their hours are generally 1-8 Also, right next to the Jenson slides there's a nice little area for sledding...or if you're daring in the summer time you can go ice blocking. You can see my list for more info about ice blocking. In addition, this area is the start of the North Branch Bike trail which is also a great place to ride-you can go all the way to the botanic gardens! read more

This huge woods/forest preserve covers so much ground that part of it's property is in Niles,Il as well. Many beautiful acres of land are here and the north branch of Chgo. River runs thru the middle of this land. On the premises is also Whealen Pool that is one of the best pools that is part of the Chgo. Park District. There is also a bike path as well that stretches for well over a mile thru the forest preserve. read more

Caldwell Woods - Parks Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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awesome forest. big. big freakin deer! It's like texas. Everything's bigger. There a million entrances, exists, etc. The thing is so huge that it goes from mid-chicago all the way up to lake cook road...so like 30 miles or more? Quite big considering the urban environment. read more

We stopped here today because Christopher and I are Geocachers and we have maintained a cache in the woods here since 2002 and it was time to check it out and see that all was well. If you have a GPS, Geocaching and Yelping go really well together. We use Yelp to pick a dining destination and then combine it with some good old caching. Caches are peppered all over so it is easy to find one or two to pair up with your Yelp destinations. Makes for an eventful day. Caldwell Woods is a really nice place. It has something for almost every interest. I am not so much about the recreational parts as the nature. Over the years I have loved to follow the development of the Bunker Hill Prairie. I used to come here quite often with a photographer friend of mine and spend hours taking pics of the prairie plants and insects. Even though the woodlands in our forest preserve system are damaged, it is still nice to spend time here. read more

The best place to walk and enjoy some nature. Easy to get to and lots of parking. I love coming here!!

Caldwell is a lovely slice of the Cook County forest preserve. The Chicago river cuts through the woods and there are usually ducks hanging out by the bridge waiting for the kids to feed them. It's an easy access point to the north branch trail. So between that and the picnic area, the parking lot gets full quickly. There's street parking as a backup plan. And best of all, Super Dawg is closeby. Hello, Whoopskidawg. read more

Great Forest preserve,lots of walking and biking trails about 30 miles or more. In the winter they have a amazing huge hill for sledding or even skiing and they have a great warming house with a huge fire pit in the middle so comfy and cozy. And at sunset you can see deers coming out looking to forage ALMOST daily great place for picnics in the summer with family read more

Bicycle path that winds into the north suburbs of Chicago, great cycling g and great memories! Sweet deer crossings and sometimes ritual offerings by teenaged kids on the bike paths. read more

Did you know they have a warming center for people sledding on a nearby hill in the winter? Do you even know what a warming center is?! Yeah me either and that's only the half of it. Go and find the fuck out. read more

A great place in the summertime and the wintertime. In the summer there's picnics going on there all the time and you can always take a dip in Whealan pool to cool off. In the winter time you can sled next to the Jensen Slides. I'm not sure if they still do this, but they used to have a "Haunted Trails" Halloween haunted woods which was a ton of fun! read more

If you get here blindfolded the whole time, you wouldn't think you were in Chicago. Thank god they didn't cut down anymore of the wilderness, back when the city was in its early stages, because the forest preserve area is huge, especially by city standards. Plenty of parking, not too crowded, and surprisingly, there were a good amount of deer in the area. Plus, its a well kept area, no gangbangers around. read more

This is a great place to walk, bike, or have a bbq. If you take the bike trail make sure you pay attention to the trail map or you could end up biking all the way to Lake Cook road! read more

one of my favorate hang outs its a way to unwind after a long day at work . also for a day off of work you can have much fun grilling , ball playing , and what ever kind of entertanment you can think up of . read more

A great place to bike or picnic on the weekends. Lots of families and friends hanging out here on warm summer days. Plenty of room for frisbee and volleyball, too. read more