Nice disc golf field. Not too many tree hazards and didn't lose any discs. Also a nice family park…read moreand well kept.

This is a very large park complex, running the length of Deer Creek Parkway, and leading towards…read morethe Deer Creek Racquet Club. Along the way are several playgrounds for kids of all ages, tennis courts, a fenced in dog park, a fishing pond, a limestone trail with fitness equipment, numerous places to sit, a little league baseball diamond, and a sweet 9-hole disc golf course with some nice long fairways. There's so much to do, and the Highland Park Park District does a great job of maintaining it all. My favorite feature is the little fishing pond in the middle of the park. It's a gorgeous wetland area, with several spots to fish. It's stocked nicely, and is catch-and-release. On a nice day, it's not uncommon to spot lots of wildlife communing in or beside the pond. I've spotted numerous great blue heron stopping here, every season. The limestone path circles the park, and offers some nice sights. Part of it parallels the Skokie River, and encircles a fishing pond, but always manages to stay dry. Parts of the field can sometimes get a little wet, but none of the play areas. The baseball diamond, all of the disc golf fairways, and the path all seem to be raised so they drain well. The playground equipment looks to be top-quality stuff, and the play area has good padding. It's a nice open area, so guardians should be able to easily watch their kids play from the various sitting areas. The workout equipment along the path are similarly sturdy, and seem to hold up despite being exposed to the elements. The baseball diamond has bleachers, a bullpen, and a scoreboard that seem to work well. The disc golf baskets are also all in great shape. The Debbie Gottlieb Beitler Dog Park is fairly nice, once they've had a chance to re-seed or re-sod some of the back corners of the run. Every season the grass gets torn up a little less than halfway through - sometimes sooner. I've suggested they maintain the turf at least one more time during the year, but instead they chose to make it into a pay-to-use park. There are way fewer dogs (there were numerous times my dog and I were the only ones here for over an hour), resulting in the turf lasting much longer, but I honestly don't feel it's all that good of a deal. I stopped paying to use the Highland Park dog parks this year, using the ones in Deerfield and Northbrook more - they're just as nice, don't cost $50 a year for residents or $150 a year for non-residents, and there are often more people and dogs to play with. I've only been to the Deer Creek Racquet Club twice, and it seems like a nice facility. Everything is well maintained, and the courts are kept in meticulous order. The parking lot is partly shared with the disc golf course and the baseball diamond (though there are additional parking to the south of the diamond) so it can get a little crowded when there is a game going on. There is additional parking for the other park amenities all along Deer Creek Parkway.

I have two puppies about each about one years old and they both love coming to the dog park they…read morecome home exhausted every time we go and they are so happy in the car ride there cause they know where we're going and on the car ride home because they just ran their hearts out and are ready to go take a nap. I have a third dog and each of them can all do their own thing there--it is big enough they all have their own likes so it's perfect for every type of dog my oldest dog is 11 and he doesn't really play fetch doesn't want to hang with other dogs but he loves the freedom to just explore so he'll walk the perimeter of the park while were there he'll mark his territory everywhere he just likes to roam and he loves his freedom to sniff and there's lots of shade for him to relax but he also likes to bask in the sun. my next dog loves to play fetch and so I'll bring my chuck it and just launch it as far as possible so he will sprint back-and-forth a couple times and then go take a break in the shade and get some water at the cute dog water fountain but he loves this huge open space that he can sprint full speed and not worry about a fence or any boundaries or restrictions because he has so much space to just run as fast as he can and he loves it. my last dog is the friendliest dog you'll ever meet he loves making friends at the dog park he loves other dogs he will play at every dogs exact level with puppies with little dogs big dogs he will roll around on the ground to do somersaults with the little dogs he will run and chase after them he'll run away from them and let them chase him he has so much fun he greets everyone who comes in will make friends immediately and it's just his favorite place to go you can tell how happy he is every time we go home after he's made a bunch of friends. there's a huge open space where we usually play fetch and then it turns a corner and there's a nice path with a bunch of tall grass in the back corner so will usually take a couple laps around the path and spend a lot of time in the open area up and we usually stay for about a half an hour at a time maybe a little longer depending on how hot it is that day just because they get so tired so fast cause they're just running running running and having a blast but it's a great place it's a wonderful way to spend time with your dogs to get some energy out and exercise them and let them have a great day it's always a highlight of our day when we go to the dog park and usually we end up getting puppiccinos on the way home from starbucks :)

This location makes for a nice walk. It's sort of in the middle of nowhere and the scenery is…read morenothing special but it is very clean and well-kept. Glenview does a really awesome job with its park districts. Great place to bring your dog for a walk.

One of the grand-darlings started her 2026 softball season and this park is her team's home field…read more From what I saw, the huge 113 acre park and the facilities are extensive and top notch. I only experienced the use of their well maintained, well equipped, and lighted youth softball fields on my first visit here and there are 4 of those, but there is much more here. There are batting cages, a snow sledding hill, a 9 hole golf course, a 22000 ft2 skate park, soccer/lacrosse fields, walking trails, and an activity center building which includes a fitness center and basketball courts among other things. There are also well spaced and adequate parking lots for all of these facilities. Impressive public sports and fitness venue and a big thumbs up!

I've driven through Techny, but I have never heard of Techny Prairie Park and Fields. Northbrook is…read morehaving a plein air photography festival open to the public (even the non-Northbrook-resident public) so we made our way up here to take photos fitting the challenge, one of which is to take a photo here. This park is really quite extensive. They have a workout facility which had fewer folks there than I expected for a Sunday afternoon. The parking lot of the park is very large as well, which is good to support all the activities. They have multiple ballpark fields (three, I believe), as well as batting cages and a soccer field. There's a skate park, and I was surprised to see the breadth of folks who use it--there were some younger folks here but I also saw someone in his 50s or 60s skateboarding. They have a playground. There's a picnic-type shelter for people to have gatherings, complete with a fire pit. And there's a golf course! I don't know anything about golf but it certainly looked large. I think the golf course is free, as may be the other activities (unsure about the batting cages). There are also walking trails, and you can fish here but you must release what you catch. And near one of the ballparks, there was a tall hill... perhaps tobogganing in the winter? Really nice, well-kept park for all to enjoy. Glad to have learned about it and hope to return.

Lovely place. 44 acres of wooded space for your dog to run and play and do doglike things. There…read moreis a large retention pond ("lake") for your dog to swim in, in addition to a 1-mile loop of trail for you to walk through. The space is maintained very well. They recently put in a new fence, entrance gate, and gazebo for the human patrons. They will also periodically place gravel in low-lying areas in the park to prevent flooding. The volunteers are very kind, as well. There are many baggie stations, and on the whole, the other patrons are friendly and clean up after their dogs. There was one incident in which a couple would frequent this place with their pair of aggressive German shepherds, but after a few complaints their membership was revoked. The FPDCC and the volunteers are very protective of this place, which makes me feel very comfortable coming here with my dog. This is largely populated by larger dogs, but there is so much space that smaller dogs have plenty of room and are not overrun. Come here in autumn to walk the trails, or brave the snow in winter for a peek at the gorgeous natural landscape. Bring bug spray in the summer - the mosquitos are huge. The price of $55/year may seem somewhat high, but I gladly pay it for access to such a nice facility. Thanks FPDCC!

My dog LOVES it here. So glad we signed up. Between the lake and trails she always finds something…read morefun to do and it tires her out so well.

I love that Winnetka has a dog beach. The only thing dividing Elder Lane Beach and Centennial…read moreBeach is a private residence. My family has had a few Fourth of July picnics here and have fond memories here. The dog beach is great and have taken other people's dogs here to let the dogs have fun. Parking is decent. I love the small rolling hills here at the park.

On my way to the nursery nearby, I noticed this little hole-in-the-wall, blink-and-you'll-miss-it…read morepark and nature preserve in Wilmette. When I say you'll miss it, I'm not kidding--I thought it was a random, very small parking lot (maybe an extension of the business next door) but then saw a small gate to the park. Keay is a 4.6 acre nature preserve. (It is not part of the Cook County Forest Preserve system.) There are various trails that loop through the park and it's about a half mile, very easy walk. They have trail guides at the entrance, and according to that they suggest it would be about 30 minutes to walk through. I probably did take about that long, but that is because I stopped to look at some birds, and at a lot of the memorial plaques, and read the trail guide at some of the markers along the way. And I also took the advice of the trail guide and sat down for a few minutes to just listen to the sounds around me--mostly birdsong, and simply appreciate my surroundings. But if I hadn't been going through slowly I think it would be 10 minutes or so. I have absolutely no sense of measurement or distance, but was I'm surprised to learn that it's about a half mile walk. I'd think it was much less. I would call this nature preserve pretty accessible, though that's not really my place to say since I would not need accommodations. However, it's a flat trail and there is a bridge over the pond. There are numerous benches throughout the preserve if you need a break or would like to pause and enjoy the atmosphere. It's really surprising how much you feel like you're out in the middle of nowhere--I didn't hear a lot of traffic and but for the service roads a quiet peaceful way to spend part of your day. There is a port-a-potty on site if needed, and a drinking fountain as well.

Lovely and peaceful park with clean even trails and a lake with a waterfall. Lots of bushes and…read moretrees, with plenty of squirrels, rabbits and even big turtles.

I've been coming to Gillson Park since I was a kid, and it's been great to see it evolve and get…read morebetter over the years. The Lake Michigan views, beach, and open spaces make it a great place to spend the day, and the lake is a great temperature for swimming toward the end of summer. On this visit, I saw these two dogs wearing sunglasses and had to get a picture!

I love this beach so much! It's beautiful and clean, but just recently, they fenced up a few parts…read moreof the beach and now require payment for residents and non-residents AND when you leave one part of the paid beach to move to another part, you have to pay again! Which is absurd. I was also thinking about renting out a shelter for a party, but the park doesn't allow you to bring your own grill, doesn't allow alcohol, only provides you with two tables, and you have to still pay for parking and access to the beach. It all just seems like a money grab, which sucks because the beach was free to the public for so long! I know a lot of people are upset about the new rules. Aside from that, there is a park, tennis courts, and Fat Shallot, where they serve food and drinks. There is also a patio area to eat and drink, and outdoor showers. PARK ON MICHIGAN AVE and just walk down to avoid some fees!

I have been coming here since 2010 and frankly, I don't know if we could have kept our dog without…read moreit for energy burning swim time those first few years (seriously). As Rafi said, it's a "nice stretch of pristine beach" - absolutely lovely, perfectly well maintained. It's buttressed by two rock "piers" which keeps it somewhat contained, water wise, and there's a gate to enter. The dog portion of the beach is essentially a peninsula so they can't escape on any side, although there is a break in the fence down by the water, so they can get around that (I've seen it happen a few times). You can throw a Chuck It as far as possible - either land side or into the water, you've got plenty of room. A teenager WILL check your dog's ID Memorial through Labor Day, so you'll need that tag. I think it's currently $33 for Wilmette residents and $160 for non residents. Check the schedule online - they're closed on Labor and Memorial day for dogs and also during the day certain hours because it's used for summer camps. People are mostly nice, although the ones that refuse to let their dogs off their leash cause a kerfuffle. Very rarely, there's an aggressive dog, but offhand maybe I've seen 2 in 7 years. (I'm pretty tolerant though). My dog specifically just wants to play fetch and more fetch and more fetch into the water, but there's usually someone else around who wants to play catch me if you can or steal my toy and let me chase you or wrestle until we knock the humans over. As a bonus, the Baha'i temple and the yacht club are just behind the beach, so the view is spectacular! If you're not a Wilmette resident, you'll have to park slightly more far away, but it's not that bad at all, and the walk is good for ya. Highly recommended and I don't know what I'd do without it!

Nice stretch of pristine beach, well kept. Nice dogs, great fun in the water. Requires a pass to…read moreget in, but my guess is that if your dog doesn't appear aggressive, no one will ask.