By Sue Shekut, Owner, Working Well Massage, Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Wellness Coach, ACSM Personal Trainer
We had a great snowfall in Chicago this weekend! And maybe you want to go sledding. Or your kids want to go sledding. Where do you go? The Chicago Area Forest Preserves have a number of Sledding hills you can check out. Some are lighted and open until 10pm. Others are not lighted and only open til sunset. DuPage county also has sledding hills and other winter activities listed below Chicago Forest Preserve hills. Will County also has some great hills including the 40-foot long sledding hill at Goodenow Grove.
Check out the list of Cook County Forest Preserve hills below to see which ones are closest to you.
Cook County Forest Preserve Winter Activities-Click here for more info.
Sledding and Coasting
When snow conditions are suitable, the areas designated below are available for sledding and coasting.
Sledding and Coasting Hills With Lighting (Hours: 8 A.M. – 10 P.M.
Dan Ryan Woods
87th and Western Ave., Chicago
Swallow Cliff Woods
Route 83 and Mannheim Road, Palos Park
Caldwell Woods
Devon &; Milwaukee Avenues, Chicago
Deer Grove #5
Quentin Road, north of Dundee Road, Palatine
Westchester Woods
Cermak Road, east of LaGrange Road, Westchester
Sledding and Coasting Hills Without Lighting (Hours: 8 A.M. – sunset
Indian Hill Woods
16th Street & Edgewood Avenue, Chicago Heights
Pioneer Woods
107th Street, 1/2 mile west of LaGrange Road, Willow Springs
Indian Road Woods
Central Ave., 1/2 mile south of Caldwell Ave., Chicago
Schiller Woods
Irving Park and Cumberland Ave., Schiller Park
Deer Grove #4
Quentin Rd., north of Dundee Rd., Palatine
Public safety requires the closing of many Forest Preserve parking lots and driveways during the winter season. However, parking facilities involved with winter sports will be open daily.
Forest Preserve District of Cook County Sledding Hill Rules and Regulations
• Use of Forest Preserve District of Cook County sledding hills is a visitor’s own risk.
• Proper use of appropriate sledding devices which are in good repair and have no sharp edges is recommended.
• Use of skis, inflatable tubes, carpets, snowboards and metal-railed sleds is strictly prohibited.
• Unauthorized building of ramps, bumbs, moguls, hills or jumps out of a material or substance is strictly prohibited.
• Children under the age of 12 should wear a bicycle or multi-sport helmet and should be supervised by an adult.
• Sledding hills may be closed due to a lack of snow cover or for any other safety-related reason.
• Pets and alcoholic beverages are strictly prohibited on sledding hills.
DuPage Forest Preserve Winter Activities-Click here for more info.
Snow Tubing
The snow-tubing hill is located at Blackwell Forest Preserve in Warrenville.
* The 800-foot run is open December through February on weekends and school holidays, except Dec. 25, when the hill is covered with 3 or more inches of snow.
* Participants must use District-rented inner tubes.
* Rentals, which are at the base of the hill, are $4 per tube per day (cash only).
* Updated hours of operation and snow conditions are available at (630) 871-6422.
Sledding and Ice Skating
Unless otherwise posted, the Forest Preserve District allows sledding and ice skating in all forest preserves.
* Neither sledding nor ice skating requires a permit or has an associated fee.
* Rangers do not monitor ice conditions.
* All ice-related activities are done at the user’s own risk.
* As a guideline, not a guarantee, a minimum of 4 inches of ice is recommended for any ice activity.
* Sledding is always prohibited at Mount Hoy at Blackwell Forest Preserve, the closed landfill sites at Greene Valley and Mallard Lake forest preserves and any slopes at Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve.
Will County Sledding Hills-Click here for more info
• Forked Creek Greenway (Wilmington)
• Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve (Crete Township)
Goodenow Grove in Beecher provides a includes a 40-foot-high sledding hill. Sledding tubes can be rented at Plum Creek Nature Center, which is located near the sledding hill. Guests can also bring their own sleds, but no steel runners, snowboards, or steerables are allowed. Please also note that no dogs are allowed on the sledding hill. To check on sledding conditions at Goodenow Grove, call the Plum Creek Nature Center at 708.946.2216 or check the Winter Recreation Report during the winter season.
Lake County Forest Preserves
Sledding
Grab your sled and head out to the sled hill at Old School Forest Preserve or at the Lakewood Winter Sports Area. The hill at Lakewood is lighted and open until 9 p.m. every day that it is in operation. The sled hill at Old School is open until sunset every day when conditions allow. Note: no sleds with metal runners or snowboards, please.
Check back here for current conditions or call our Winter Sports Hotline at 847-968-3235. Click here for more info.
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