Chicago Transit Hikes

Lindsay Welbers is a journalist and sustainable transportation advocate. She runs the blog Third Coast Hikes at https://thirdcoasthikes.com.

• IntroductionWhy Take the Train if I Already Have a Car? How Cars Ruined My Hike: A cautionary Tale What You Need What to Bring What Not to Bring Apps to Download Outdoors Safety COVID Safety Trail Etiquette Leave No Trace Practices Levels of Difficulty Transit Hubs Metra CTA South Shore Line Divvy A Note on Maps Hikes in ChicagoChicago Lakefront Trail Museum Campus/11th Street: Northerly Island Park The 606 Conservatory Green Line: Garfield Park Conservatory Rosemont Blue Line: Des Plaines River Trail, Catherine Chevalier Woods, and Chippewa Woods Union Pacific NorthHubbard Woods: Skokie Lagoons Fort Sheridan: Fort Sheridan Nature Preserve and Openlands Lakeshore Preserve at Fort Sheridan Zion: Illinois Beach State Park and Campground Milwaukee District NorthForest Glen and Edgebrook: LaBagh Woods and the North Branch Trail Morton Grove: Frank Bobrytzke Forest and the North Branch Trail Northbrook: Somme Preserves Libertyville—Prairie Crossing: Des Plaines River Trail, Old School Forest Preserve Round Lake: Hart’s Wood Park Round Lake: Nippersink Forest Preserve Ingleside: Grant Woods Forest Preserve Union Pacific NorthwestDes Plaines: Des Plaines River Trail, Camp Ground Road Woods Barrington: Baker’s Lake Nature Preserve Barrington: Citizen’s Park and Cuba Marsh Forest Preserve Palatine: Deer Grove and Camp Reinberg Crystal Lake: Veteran’s Acres and Sterne’s Woods and Fen Woodstock: Emricson Park Woodstock: Ryder’s Wood Park Milwaukee District West to ElginRiver Grove: Des Plaines River Trail, Schiller Woods Itasca: Springbrook Nature Center Itasca: Songbird Slough Forest Preserve Hanover Park: Mallard Lake and Hawk Hollow Forest Preserve National Street: Fox River Trail Union Pacific WestRiver Forest: Thatcher Woods Geneva: The Fox River Trail Elburn: Elburn Forest Preserve BNSF RailwayLaGrange Avenue: Salt Creek Woods, Possum Hollow Wood, and Bemis Woods SouthWest Service and Heritage CorridorThe Big Palos Adventure Camp—From Palos Heights and Palos Park—SouthWest Service to Willow Springs—Heritage Corridor Rock Island DistrictMajor Taylor Trail Blue Island: Cal-Sag Trail Oak Forest: Midlothian Meadows and Oak Forest Heritage Preserve Oak Forest: Midlothian Reservoir, St. Mihiel Woods, East Yankee Woods, and the George W. Dunne National Golf Course Oak Forest: Camp Sullivan and the Area around Bachelor’s Grove Woods Joliet: Joliet Ironworks Historic Site and the I&M Canal South Shore LineDune Park: Indiana Dunes State Park Miller, Portage-Ogden Dunes, and Beverly Shores: Indiana Dunes National Park and the Dunewood Campground Suggested ItinerariesAcknowledgments

“This guide is an invaluable resource to anyone in the Chicagoland area who loves to get out in nature and explore our wonderful trail system, all while utilizing one of our best and little utilized resources: our public transportation system. Lindsay Welbers writes with humor, joy, and a deep love of our undervalued Midwestern landscape. Whether you're a runner, cyclist, hiker, or prefer another mode of transportation, this book will point you to your next perfect outing.”--Allison Yates, founder of Read & Run Chicago