Comments on: Help me find hills in the flatlands

Question: Help me find hills in the flatlands

walla — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 09:23:08 -0800

Are there any places within a few hours of flat-as-a-pancake Chicago that offer a scenic, preferably hilly hiking experience?

By: hydrophonic

hydrophonic — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 09:31:15 -0800

Starved Rock State Park is very popular.
Also check out Apple River Canyon, Mississippi Palisades, and Moraine Hills.

By: found missing

found missing — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 09:32:10 -0800

Devil's Lake State Park near Baraboo, WI, is a little over 3 hours from Chicago. It is hilly and scenic and well worth the drive.

By: bibbit

bibbit — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 09:40:24 -0800

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is only a couple hours (depending on traffic) and has some VERY hilly dunes. And it's gorgeous. At lesat, during the summer it is - I wouldn't be able to tell you what it looks like in this horribly crappy way-too-warm weather we're having.

By: DevilsAdvocate

DevilsAdvocate — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 09:45:53 -0800

Ah, bibbit beat me to the recommendation of Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. I second it.

By: CMichaelCook

CMichaelCook — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 09:49:03 -0800

Second Starved Rock, too. Beautiful, tons of trails, pretty hilly, just 90 minutes or so from downtown Chicago.

Though it will probably be a lot more scenic (and warm) in March/April/May-ish.

By: scazza

scazza — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 10:16:04 -0800

Second the dunes and this great hotel we stayed at, The Spring House Inn. Try to get a room with a forest view.

Since the dunes are sandy it makes them a challenging hike. I've seen it in rainy fall, and it's lovely.

By: ArcAm

ArcAm — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 10:26:42 -0800

Closer in there's Palos and you can also find decent singletrack to hike at Waterfall Glen.

Here's the local mountain bike group's trail map to Palos which is fairly well done and will get you to some neat places.

Bonus about Palos: If you go to the right spots you can find where the reactor from the Manhattan Project is buried!

By: drezdn

drezdn — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 10:44:33 -0800

I second Devil's Lake. It's worth the trip.

By: christinetheslp

christinetheslp — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 11:13:50 -0800

The Kettle Moraine State Forest, which is located near Cedarburg, northwest of Milwaukee, is a good one too.

By: Green Eyed Monster

Green Eyed Monster — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 11:22:03 -0800

Southern Illinois is hilly, and has several small parks in the Shawnee Forest, I like Ferne Clyffe myself. But it's more like a 5 or 6 hour drive. Depending, of course, on who's driving...

By: njb

njb — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 11:36:38 -0800

I can't remember how far the drive was, but I took a school trip from Chicago to Galena, where it was hilly enough for skiing.

By: walla

walla — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 11:59:31 -0800

These are great, everyone, thanks! And bibbit, I hear you on the creepy weather. Where's my Chicago snow? My puffy ankle-length coat is languishing in my closet!

By: readery

readery — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 13:58:29 -0800

i have been hiking around Chicago for years...best bet not requiring a day trip - the Sag Valley Trail System in Palos, part of the Cook County Forest Preserves. The loop that starts at the Palos Park Woods is about as hilly as it gets in the Chicago area. A little farther, Moraine Hills State Park in McHenry, last time we were there in the Fall, there were pairs of sand hill cranes in a few diiferent places in the park.

By: First Post

First Post — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 14:41:36 -0800

We used to just go out to Busse Woods.

By: rlef98

rlef98 — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 15:19:38 -0800

Hoosier National Forest in south central Indiana is a great place...moderate hills, trees, and occasional views. Good times.

By: Pollomacho

Pollomacho — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 20:27:28 -0800

I'll nth the dunes and further, as I happen to own a cabin smack dab in the middle of it, I will vouch for the hillyness of the Hoosier National Forest.