Best park that's in Channahon of course. Channahon State Park has some nice views of the DuPage…read moreRiver. It actually is bigger than it seems with lots of open areas and trails. Has lots of places for grilling. The park also usually isn't crowded so it's a good place for chilling and hanging. A lot of great scenery around. It's located along the DuPage River. This is near the end of it where it flows into the Des Plaines River, so around here there's certainly lots of water. Among the other features is the war memorial. This honors those from Channahon who died in various wars. It consists of a few flags and pillars with names of those who died. The park also has a building that looks like it has bathrooms but it's closed off it seems. Gets crowds when it's good weather for boating. It's located close to the marina with the Big Basin Saloon, a popular hangout. There's plenty of areas along the water including a few trails.

First time coming here, wanted to try something new to visit on a day off work and this place is…read moresuch a beautiful gem! Great views everywhere from all places! The park itself is great for the summer for shade from the sun. Bathrooms are okay. The dam itself is really cool to see. Highly recommend coming here on a run to take everything in better. Even a better place to fish at! Not too crowded at all, very peaceful! 4.5 stars

Great place to fish, relax and enjoy the great outdoors!…read more The lake is not far off historic Route 66 and an easy drive. There are several areas to fish from the bank or you can launch your boat. The fishing/boating areas around the lake are well marked and feature other appreciated amenities. The park areas are clean and well maintained, and free! We caught Bluegill, Shad, and Rock Bass. Also saw a few snakes, frogs and turtles. Open dawn to dusk.

This property is beyond beautiful and well maintained just wished it was open to the public more…read morethroughout the year instead of just hunters and fishers

Great park for kids of all ages! Splash pad in the summer is a great time as well!! The restrooms…read morewere very clean and I have no complaints!!

Great park for young kids. Gets busy during summer afternoons. There's a decently large playground…read morewith a padded ground, multiple tall slides, monkey bars. Next to the playground is a large splash pad with several shaded benches. Not much shade to be found elsewhere in the park. Small concession stand open when we went (June). Bathrooms at the entrance to the playground/splash pad. Several picnic tables on the other side of the parking lot that are partly shaded by trees.

Potowatomi Camp: What a beautiful, quiet campground, neat, well kept, with a good size shower…read morehouse, and wooded areas separating the sites. The bike trails were awesome. The river views were picturesque. They had parks and swing-sets, pavilions, a nice suspension bridge and river overlooks. 10/10 would come again.

We stayed at Chippewa one of Kankakee's state parks had a wonderful time. The hosts "D and R" are…read morewonderful people. They are very attentive to their campground and were there when we needed help. We definitely will be going back. The sites are spacious and very clean. J and Lisa

Great park located around Yorkville with a few big lakes. It has lots of hiking trails. Silver…read moreSprings State Park gets its name from the pool of bubbling water. Of course, there's tons of other things to see around it. The popular activities include boating, fishing, and picnicking. Bigger park with a lot of history. It's an area that was purchased by the state in 1969 and turned into a park. The park was originally 1,250 acres, and added a prairie restoration project in 1980 among expansions since. Kind of what the land was like before settlers took it. There's a path that goes through it where visitors can check out animals, grass, and wildflowers. A few man made lakes are highlights. Loon Lake is the biggest one, popular for fishing or getting photos. A refreshment stand is located by it. The spring is the biggest attraction of the park though. Amazingly the water in it never freezes. There's amazing plantlife around it including watercress. Also fun when it's colder. There's a toboggan hill that's fairly steep. Among the kinds of trails are equestrian. There's also plenty for basic hiking. Has lots to look at here for hours and you can even stay overnight by camping. It's got an area that's available for youth groups. This area is only reachable through backpacking so it's far away from loud noises or vehicles.

Serene lake with a good 2-mile hike along lake, river, woods amd some prairie. It was a quiet…read moremid-day walk one snowy day... until I pass by a group of kids screaming and sledding along a slope, how fun :)

My wife and I love this area for taking peaceful walks, and we especially love when we come across…read morethe deer, if you're calm and quiet enough, they will not run away!

I've came here a few times and I wonder why my review got deleted? This place is absolutely…read morebeautiful! Tons of stuff to do and see, the trail has recently been repaved. Very well maintained by the city of Plainfield. Plenty of parking but use advisory from coming in from the Lockport road access.

Midewin is worth the drive from Chicago -- 90 minutes…read more The visitor's center is closed during the pandemic. We followed the signs and went there, thinking we'd find the trailheads. We didn't. We eventually found a man moving grass who recommended we drive north to the Iron Bridge and park there. That was good advice. Not only is there parking, pit toilets, and picnic tables, but the trailhead, and connections to several trails. I recommend everyone start at the Iron Bridge trailheads. We did not see the bison, but we did enjoy a few hours of walking on flat trails. We admired the prairie grasses and flowers, reveled in the sunshine and breeze on this cool day, and just loved every minute we were there. Hikers, remember to wear a head covering. You are on the prairie, after all. Officially, this is a national park, and I brought my national parks pass, but we saw no rangers at all. Nobody checked for park passes or any kind of entrance fee.

If bison, wildflowers, wildlife, & pastures are your thing, you've come to the right place. I'm…read morefrom Ohio and it was my husband's idea to come here. He saw it on a map and said, that's something we've got to do because we live less than 6 hours from it and it's got National in the name... We were not disappointed. I noticed that most people come here for the bison viewing, and that was nothing short of spectacular. However, there are so many trails in addition to that that make this place all the more worthwhile! I especially enjoyed the history, this park was the former Joliet Army Ammunition Plant, and when you walk some of the trails, that becomes apparent in the sense of abandonment that it gives you. However the peaceful ponds and gorgeous wildlife found along the way makes the hike both interesting and fulfilling. The hikes are not strenuous unless you hike in the heat like we did. There are no inclines or anything. You'll be out in the prairie or into the shade of the woods, but more of the former. Just be aware if you hike in the heat, to bring lots of water and sunscreen, as the sun seems to be more brutal in the open plains. The park gave us plenty to do in our 3 days in the area and it was a unique park for us in the sense that it was a prairie and not woods or mountains or beach...when have you ever hiked a trail through a prairie? Try it, you won't be disappointed.

Loved this park! Kids 3 and older will enjoy the fort and surrounding area. The splash pad was not…read moreopen when we were there

I came here for a 5 year old's birthday party. Its a very spacious play area. Nice water area, lots…read moreof water related activities for the kids. There is also a playground, if you prefer to stay dry. It is even a picnic area, but no glass is allowed, which is understandable.

Braidwood Dunes is a natural area on the edge of this little town that makes a good walk for…read moreawhile. It isn't that long to get around, so it's good for those with only about an hour. Pretty much nothing much is happening around here, but it's all just nature. Check out the grassland and forest. The preserve is much bigger than just the part with a trail. An important thing is knowing where the trail goes. It only loops around a small area of the preserve. There's a lot more than just this. For the part with the trail, it starts off in the parking lot. This is just a small lot with dirt and gravel, so it's not a big attraction around here if that wasn't already obvious. Also this preserve is close to peoples' homes. You can hear them while on the trails and think there's someone else walking these, but they're actually just residents. Be careful to not go too far off or you'll be in someone's backyard. There's also a pond but this is too far off the trail to get to from here. Good place to look around maybe an hour if even. It's a good chance you'll be the only one here. There's people in town who don't even know about it, so it's a well preserved nature preserve.

A nice place for some nature in Joliet. It seems like an interesting place for a couple of minutes…read more Pilcher Park doesn't have a ton to do but it's good for kids with a short attention span. Check out the nature center. There's some woodland critters like snakes and turtles. It kind of is out of the way from the rest of Joliet but that helps this be not as busy. Often it's pretty quiet and only a few people are here. There's some fantastic learning opportunities. Good for kids. It doesn't have a whole lot to look at so good to get in and out. They have some interesting critters to look at while in there. Be sure to check the nature center's hours. It's only open a few hours or so. There's up close and personal interactions with woodland critters if you're a fan of especially snakes and whatever.

I'm walking down memory lane and ended up here at Pilcher Park. I haven't been here since age 14 -…read morenever mind how long ago that was! It's changed a bit. Some of the buildings are in disrepair and the wishing well is dry. Regardless, it's still an amazing park. The green trees and lush foliage are breathtaking still. The walking/bike trails are well maintained and everyone appeared to be relaxed and enjoying themselves. What a great day!