I passed through this lovely park on a walk through Evanston. It has amazing beachfront views,…read moreespecially in the mornings. I noticed all the grass and trees looked lush and well maintained.

The views here are incredible, it feels like you are in a different place in the world and not 5…read moreminutes drive from busy Chicago!

This is my favorite park to spend a day at with the Kids. Located RIGHT off the Dempster exit from…read morethe Edens. Although they recently did some work to the place and cut down a LARGE shade tree that would make the park 90% in the shade....they did plant a new one, so hopefully in years to come, the shading will be back for my grandkids. Great park, with nice play structured. All sand, so bring the sand toys. They have picnic benches through out the park and some very close to the play area. Shaded basketball half courts, tennis courts, and a baseball diamond. I love that there are no "campers" that over run the park during the summer like at chicago park districts. We usually pack a lunch and stay for most of the day. Grassy areas to play it as well. Only downfall is that the only bathrooms are a portapotty- BUT, it is actually decent and is cleaned out every couple days according to the check list in the porta potty. Never really gross or anything...so yeah for that. I took off the star, because like I said earlier, they just cut down some trees and did some work, that made it more exposed to the sun and hotter to play in....but still shaded more than most other parks.

What a beautiful little park not far from the Fullerton CTA Red Line Stop…read more There were tulips in full bloom, benches to sit at, and apparently it is the start/meeting point for the Fullerton Neighborhood Tour. This is also a beautiful sculpture called "Calligraphy" by Guy Bellaver in the forefront of the circular part of the park. Who is Julia Porter you might ask? "[Julia] Porter is a woman who in 1882, mourning the loss of her 13-year-old son, Maurice, transformed her grief into a gift: the creation of an eight-bed cottage at Halsted Street and Belden Avenue for the free care and treatment of sick children. It was named the Maurice Porter Memorial Hospital, which would later become Children's Memorial Hospital and is now Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago." Source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-dillinger-kogan-sidewalks-ent-0704-20170703-column.html

Cute park hiding in plain sight. Reminds one of a nyc park. Benches surrounded by a flower garden…read morein the center, and the city streets right on the sides.

This is a peaceful area close to the Morton Grove Metra Station. I've come here during lunch and…read moreI've seen deer here sometimes, but mostly it's just people in their cars. It's beautiful in the fall with the colorful leaves, but I've never ventured out into the woods. Stop here for a little forest bathing, there's plenty of room, and its so green.

Came here for a birthday party for my friends' son last summer. It's a great area, and they had…read morereserved a pavilion so we had a lot of space. The pavilions also seem to be spaced out enough that you're not right on top of another group. My one complaint was parking: there was a verrrrrry large group a few pavilions down, and because there was so many people their parking spilled into the space for our pavilion, so we had to park a ways down. I get that it's all open parking, so not really anyone's fault, but it was pretty hard to find parking. The pavilions are good size, and had plenty of table space and seating (plus room for some games). There was also plenty of 'lawn space' around for people that wanted to be out in the sun. Porta potties were the only bathrooms I saw, and depending on which pavilion you were at it could be bit of a hike to them. Overall, not a bad place to have a larger gathering.

Sometime ago I took notice of Community Park. It was recommended that I take my client here for…read morewalks on the track, switching up our typical scenery, plus because of it having softer pavement. During the evening of being introduced to Community Park I spotted quite a few runners and walkers on the track which built that interest to stop in in the future post finishing my work shift. During my initial run here I noticed that the track has a slight square shape to it different from any other, yet still accurate in distance and consisting of the rubberized artificial surface like any other. It is open as a community park, yet utilized and marked 'Bulldogs' referring to the Old Orchard Jr High School Bulldogs. And depending on what time of day you choose to utilize the track & field on the weekdays you may encounter the junior high school students conducting physical education class. Off to the side, there is even a tiny playground allowing you to keep an eye on your children as they play on the equipment. As for parking, there is access to parking along Kenton Ave which may be limited at select times of the day. But if it is then there is also access within the neighborhood. For me, the Community Park track is a relief because it allows me to get my run in after finishing my work shift because if I wait later I tend to procrastinate and maybe say forget it depending how fatigued I am from work. Even though Skokie is already a pleasant city, I most definitely recommend Community Park if you prefer a somewhat secluded area that will allow you to run, walk, play soccer or flag football. Thomas G

The sculpture park spans two miles along the west side of the north channel of the Chicago River…read more It's not a playground park, though of course you could play here. There are trails for walking and biking, and dogs are welcome as long as you pick up after them of course. In a few areas of the park there are picnic tables as well, and there are parking lots in a few spots along the park. Currently, in 2023, the southern end of the park is under renovation. You can take tours of the park--they happen monthly. Of course you can embark on a self-guided tour as well, viewing some or all of the approximately 60 sculptures in the park. My favorite has always been the whimsical birthday cake. There's a section that has pieces by students at the local high schools as well which is a pretty cool way to incorporate folks from the community into the fabric of the park.

A few of us recently visited the Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park, as it was a gorgeous and warm…read moreSaturday afternoon and we wanted to enjoy the great outdoors in a socially distant manner. The Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park stretches between Dempster and Touhy in Skokie alongside the north channel of the Chicago River, so it runs for a significant length. Due to time restraints we did not walk the entire length of the park, but you can appreciate several "sections" of the park and still feel good about it. This park is fine for joggers, bicyclists, or walkers looking to enjoy some nature with some public art mixed in. While there are no Picasso or Calder masterpieces amongst the sixty-plus number of sculptures, there is an eclectic variety in the collection. I liked the use of industrial materials such as steel coils, re-bars, and even parts from airplane wings. The Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park is free and is open every day. There are several free parking lots along the length of the park for visitors.

Pretty decent neighborhood park not too far off of Willow Road. Emphasis on "neighborhood" park as…read morethere is no designated parking lot for this park; you'll have to hop on a residential side street and park your car there, and walk across the street. Greenview Park has a small little playground, swings, a few outdoor exercise equipment, like a rower and leg press. There's also a half-court basketball court, a small little field, and a small walking trail. Not too bad, if you're in the area and looking for a secluded park to hangout with the family and enjoy the fresh air.

We looked at this park for accessibility for mobility challenged people. Know before you go! Here…read moreis what we found: - No handicap accessible parking spots (street parking only) - One handicap accessible water fountain - Terrain is wood chips, patio brick walkway - About 10 feet from main attraction to street Nice Park!!!

This is a rather large park out of the way from most of the busy traffic along the major streets…read morenearby. Woodland Park straddles the Niles-Park Ridge border and is another hidden gem of a neighborhood playground in the area. While most of the park space is devoted to soccer games, it has a sparkling new playground which was totally rebuilt in the summer of 2006. To get to this park from Dempster, you can take Parkside Ave. all the way to the parking lot near Glenview Ave. From Oakton, it's 2 blocks north on Western Ave. in Park Ridge. Lots of dead-end or cul-de-sac streets keep outsiders from finding this place. You can't get to it easily from Greenwood Ave. Besides soccer, there are tennis courts and a basketball court. The playground is in the middle of the park, next to a big hill, which is great for "wheee moments" riding in a wagon, bicycle or on skates. It's also fun to run up and down the hill, though I have seen many kids falling down while doing that. In the winter, you can sled down this hill - even do it on a flat sheet of cardboard - as I saw some kids improvise last winter. A very large weeping willow nearby gives it the added touch of beauty. The playground has a fancy climbing apparatus that resembles a funnel-shaped spider web of red, braided rope. It connects to a walking bridge and 2 slides. This looks dangerously scary at first but seems like most kids navigate it quite well, including my 3-year old. There is also a steep climbing wall for the kiddies. A smaller playground for little kids is at the other side of the playground, but it is not as exciting. The little sandbox has clean white sand. Early in the day or in the evening after soccer is over, the open fields of grass are great for running around and playing in what looks like a big backyard next to all the residential homes nearby.