Chicago Botanic Gardens Hike

What better way to spend a nice summer day than to visit the beautiful Chicago Botanic Gardens. We'll meet at the Erickson Woods parking lot and hike the North Branch Trail for about 5 miles before reaching the Gardens south entrance. Along the way we'll hike past the scenic Skokie Lagoons. The Potawatomi Indians called this marshland "Chewab Skokie" meaning "big wet prairie".

As we enter the Botanic Gardens we'll find ourselfs surrounded by 305 acres of landscaped heaven!! This is the part of our hike where things get very interesting for us :) We'll meet and re-group at the visitors center before hiking the 2 islands on the Gardens eastern loop and back to the North Branch Trail.

Hiking distance should be about 12 miles so please wear comfortable walking shoes. The trail is mostly paved and easy to walk. Bring plenty of water and snacks as needed. The visitor center has refreshments also. Dress for the current weather conditions.

DIRECTIONS: From Chicago, I-94 north, exit 33b Willow Rd (east). Erickson Woods is 0.2 mi. east of I-94.

Sorry, No pets are allowed.

Please try to carpool if possible, thank you.