Palos Trail System

The Palos Trail System is a multi-trail system located in southwestern, Cook County, Illinois. It is part of the 15,000 acre Palos Forest Preserve.[1] The Palos division headquarters of this forest preserve is in Willow Springs, Illinois.[2] This trail system is the largest trail system in the Forest Preserve District of Cook County.[3] There are over 40 miles of unpaved trails and they all connect to each other by the many intersections. The longest of these trails is labeled “Yellow Unpaved” with a 9.2 mile distance, and the shortest is labeled “Brown Unpaved” with a 1.1 mile distance. These trails are made for hiking, bicycle riding, horseback riding, and even skiing in the winter. There are 16 entrances to the Palos Trail System and it's open from dawn to dusk everyday along with the whole forest preserve system.[2]

Popular sites along the Palos Trails

Camp Bullfrog Lake

This campground has year-round camping. It has campsites for tents, RV's, as well as large and small cabins. One needs to make a reservation in advance. They also offer kayak rentals for registered campers. It has a camp store and shower facilities.[2]

Camp Kiwanis Equestrian Center

It's a place to rent horses for horseback riding near some of the trails.[2]

Fishing Lakes

There are many lakes to fish at in the trail system. Saganashkee Slough is the largest one. Maple Lake, Bullfrog Lake, Tomahawk Slough, Long John Slough, and Horse Collar Slough, are some of the other larger ones.[2]

Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center

The building was a regular school from 1886 to 1948, and it became a learning center for children and adults starting in 1955. It is now open year-round but closed on Fridays. At this center one can learn things about nature of the surrounding area, and as well as the plants and animals that live there.[4] Many schools have educational field trips at this nature center for free. There are several walking trails that start at the Schoolhouse where kids can go exploring along one of these trails, you can find a 6,000 square foot garden.[2]

Maple Lake

At the Maple Lake Boating Center you can rent canoes, kayaks, and row boats. They are open from April until October 6 days a week while being closed only on Tuesdays. It also has an overlook area for scenic viewing as well as a mountain bike staging area.[2]

Picnic Groves

There are many wooded areas that have picnic tables with and without shelters. You need to make reservations in advance and get a permit in order to hold parties. The locations all vary in size and can hold up to several hundred people.[2]

• Buffalo Woods
• Country Lane Woods
• Hidden Pond East
• Pioneer Woods
• Pulaski Woods
• Spears Woods
• Willow Springs Woods
• Wolf Road Woods

Red Gate Woods

Red Gate Woods is the burial place of the first nuclear reactor from WWII. It was transferred there from the University of Chicago and was part of the Manhattan Project. The reactor was rebuilt here in 1943 for more wartime experiments but was shut down at the end of the war as it was not needed anymore. There are historical markers that indicate exactly where it's buried.[5]

Saganashkee Slough

It is a 377-acre man-made lake. At its largest depth it is 6.3 feet deep. It has 3 entrances: East, Central, and a boat launch entrance if you want to bring your own boat. Starting at the East entrance, there is a path used for hiking along the southern part of the lake, and it goes for about 3 miles.[6]

References

1. "Have You Discovered the Palos Forest Preserves". Openlands.
2. "Forest Preserves of Cook County". FPDCC.
3. "Palos Forest Preserve". Cambr.org.
4. "Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center". Enjoy Illinois.
5. "Red Gate Woods". Atlas Obscura.
6. "Saganashkee Slough Woods". Openlands.