I was just reminiscing about my sweet hometown. With COVID still going strong, most of us do not…read morehave the opportunity to go visit family. Soon I'll be able to see everyone back home and visit all the places dear to my heart. Eichelman Park is one of those places. Kenosha is situated right on Lake Michigan and offers incredible, easily accessed parks and beaches. Complimentary parking is abundant, which is unheard of in Chicago. I marvel at the innocence of this park. Always clean and less visited, the sand, grass and foliage is always perfectly cared for. I often times see families enjoying a small picnic and beach glass hunters slowly roaming the edge of the water. There are homes across the street with perfect views to this great lake, park and beach. Wouldn't it be wonderful to wake up each morning to a sunrise peaking above the horizon? Situated next to the downtown shopping area and just north of Allendale neighborhood filled with elegant old mansions, it is a perfect oasis to relax without a crowd. The vintage beauty called the Kemper Center is next door as well. The general area is just exquisite. I often stop by when I am in town, no matter what the weather is offering. It is just lovely in all four seasons. This park and beach is certainly worth a visit for a picnic, swim or photos.

Nice park and beach... never too busy, but the beach can be kind of messy…read more Great sheltered place for kids and even to bbq. Super nice!

Chain 'O' Lakes State Park is a nice, convenient state park to escape to if you live in the…read morenorthern-ish burbs of Chicago. It borders the famous Chain 'O' Lakes (hence its name) and is definitely geared to those who want to boat and fish. We camped mostly at Mud Lake campground. We didn't have any mud issues but I think a new name might not be a bad idea. Our campsites were always clean and seemingly nicely maintained. No issues with bathrooms or facilities in general. I love to hike but never really got to check out the trails - one visit was on the most humid July afternoon ever and hiking was not an option anyone wanted to consider. Another visit was with young folks who wanted to canoe so that is what we did. Be careful - the canoes are rented out of a little inlet and when you leave the inlet in your canoe, the lake, Grass Lake I believe, can be very choppy depending on the wind. Boats also are in the area so it can be a challenge if you are a novice canoer. This is a nice state park to spend a night or two at. Close enough to us so it is not a huge expedition. We did camp through a huge electrical storm on that humid July night. Most of the campers broke camp and left, but we stayed. Overall worth a visit if you love to camp in northeastern Illinois.

The park in general is very nice and beautiful. Lots of thing to do. That alone is 5 stars…read moreespecially being so close. But the thing that ruins it is the Rangers/dedicated law enforcement for this area. They are just fishing for whatever like they have nothing better to do. I've heard stories but my personal story is I got pulled over, complained about how I was speeding and then threatened to search the car. Absolute power trip. Other then the tyrants that work here very beautiful place.

Reserving and checking in were very easy. We made our reservations online just a couple days before…read morearriving, and purchased the vehicle pass online upon arrival. We did self-serve check in and got to our campsite immediately. Bring bug spray! Lots of mosquitoes and dear flies.

This is a beautiful state park/recreation area. Lots to do. Free entrance if you're just driving…read morethrough and not exiting your vehicle... Then you do not need to buy a permit. The lands and the views are gorgeous. The Rangers are super friendly and helpful. Be sure to check it out.

I don't make it out to the Kenosha area very often.But a friend's band was playing at the…read morepetrafying Springs beer garden, so we took a drive out for some Saturday evening entertainment. Tons of parking available. A huge amount of picnic table seating around the small stage. Plenty of activities happen all throughout the week.On the different days. The beer garden has a wide selection of beverages and also has large refillable beer stein's available for purchase. All the food that came out of the kitchen looked absolutely amazing. We tried the kenosha Pizza and also the pretzel, which was accompanied with somersausage cheese, curds, a delicious mustard and an absolutely incredible cream cheese type dip.I highly recommend it. Music was done at nine o'clock and the beer garden closes at ten. Played an interesting game which you can view in the photos. Very kid and dog friendly with a playground and dog park nearby. Wasn't able to walk through the rest of the park , but had an amazing time just at the beer garden. Stay thirsty my friends.

What a nice park. We were cruising through town and saw this on the map and decided to check it…read moreout. There is a lot going on at this park. + Free spring water where you can fill up your own jugs. + A dog park + A beer garden (though unfortunately it was closed given it is off season) + A golf course + Plenty of picnic areas and shelters + Hiking trails + Bike trails + A raging river (spring runoff) + Many playgrounds + Free Wifi (given the ravine it is in cell service was spotty - at least T-Mobile) The one negative is that a number of the picnic shelters do not have convenient parking nearby - it is a very odd set-up. Overall a real gem for this community.

Wow! Kenosha is so lucky to have this gorgeous stretch of beach, beautiful park, lighthouse museum…read moreand the big red beauty of a lighthouse that is photographed by many. When I was in town, my sister and I walked the beach searching for beach glass. Not only was it relaxing, we met several friendly people enjoying the last moments of summer. Always clean and cared for, Simmons Island is a destination for locals and visitors alike. They have built a great little play area for kids and have recently added extra parking. I love Kenosha's lakefront and only wish I had appreciated it more as a kid growing up here. Now that I live in Chicago, we share the same Great Lake. But Kenosha's beach and park are so much more accessible. I visit Simmons Island every time I'm in Kenosha no matter the season.

Water was great but the bees were awful. Stung my grand daughter. Not crowded at all.read more

On a spur of the moment decision, me and my boyfriend decided to go camping over the long 4th of…read moreJuly weekend that we both had. The camping grounds were nearly full, but you are able to reserve camp sites online. There is about 100 camp sites, easy meandering hiking trails, a small lagoon for fishing (restriction in place on the lagoon limiting fishing to those 16 years old or younger), and a very small beach. Pros: - The camp sites are split into a tent camping area and a RV area. Each site is well sized and the majority are made more private by plant growth between the sites. Some of the tent sites are walk-in (maybe 100-200 yards) if you want a more private feel. - Each site has a picnic table and fire pit with grate. - There is ice and wood sales on site. A good size bundle of wood which lasted us two nights costs $6. (Cash only!) - Nice new shower/flush toilet house located centrally in the campgrounds. Cons: - Busy on holiday weekends. (and really, that is our own fault for choosing to go then!) But, if you are interested in visiting on a holiday weekend, be aware that the front area of the park fills up with families having holiday parties. The place was absolutely packed on the 4th. - Poor beach. The very narrow beach runs right up to the road and has no separating guard rail. While the traffic that goes through the area is conscientious of people crossing the street, it still is not the safest beach front. - Hiking trails are very easy. If you are looking for anything a bit more challenging, or with more variety, this is not it. Things to do: - Walk along the lake shore path to downtown for a meal. It is about a two mile walk each way, but it runs through the backyards of the large manors on the lake and is right next to the waterfront, so you have nice views on both sides. To find the path from the park, turn right when you reach the beach and continue to the end. There will be a crosswalk shortly after the beach ends, and there will be a pathway that leads into the trees towards the lake. This path will take you all the way to town. - Of all the trails we went on, I thought the orange trail was the best. It goes through restored tall-grass prairie, and was rather picturesque at the time we went as there were many flowers in bloom. - We did not brave the hordes on the 4th to try and get to the beach to watch the fireworks, but we did go on the 3rd. While there were not quite so many, the beach was nearly empty and we had a great view of a decent show of fireworks mixed with the odd firework thrown up by an individual. Length: - I would recommend no more than a long weekend.

Big Foot Beach State Park was conveniently located near a wedding, allowing us to camp here instead…read moreof doing a hotel. The state park is much smaller than average. Additionally, there is not as much to do. There are some trails, although they were cutting plants and working on some. The main attraction was the lagoon near the road. The city was working on gates from the lagoon with painted crosswalks. Given the minimal traffic past downtime, walking on the side of the road is safe enough. It connects to the Lake Geneva lake trail that goes through the backyards of nice houses. Calling it a beach state park is a bit of a stretch. Across the road from the entrance lays about 2 feet of sandy beach. The campsite does have RV options.

Beautiful place for walking/hiking. Lots of greenery and nicely groomed gravel paths. Saw some deer…read moreand waterfowl while hiking.

Nice preserve with lots of trails to walk on. Fishing spots, cook out areas and volleyball sandy…read morecourt. Lots of beavers which is fun to see their dams and tree eating. Very busy, lots of families, plenty of parking!

Please don't go here because I want this place all to myself. This is a beautiful area to take…read morepictures and there is plenty of parking. There was a very nice restroom on a trailer the day I went.

A hidden gem. It was a great setting to unwind a little with the family. The water was clear, it…read morewas nice, cool and breezy. The kids loved it.