We got back yesterday after a great two night stay in a heated cabin here. I took my teenage son and three of his friends. We camp a lot and were looking for a winter adventure over break. Bullfrog was 45 minutes away and definitely did not disappoint. First of all, the area is gorgeous. I have never been to Willow Springs and was amazed by the landscape. Hills, woods, lakes, the Des Plaines River, huge Cook County Forest Preserve areas, with ample shopping and restaurants nearby of needed make this an ideal camping destination. The campground has a welcome station with after hours gated access. We were the only campers in the cabins and our first night there were a couple other groups using tents. It was amazing basically having this place to ourselves for about $100 a night. The cabin is accessible for those with special needs so it has a roll in shower and ADA accessible routes and features, for those seeking those amenities. It had 4 bunk beds in the main sleeping area, a separate bedroom with two beds, and the aforementioned bathroom. There is a wall unit for AC and heat in both sleeping areas so our comfort was at peak level. Those babies put out the heat and fast! This was especially great after we took an 8 mile hike which included a trip to the Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center. The cabin and surroundings were immaculate. There are also a couple heated bath houses, dining pavilions, and docks for fishing or enjoying the beautiful views. In addition to the large cabins they also offer smaller ones without heat for warmer trips. Boat rentals are available when warmer out, as well. I saw canoes and other manual craft behind a fence by the welcome station. Inside the station they sold ice cream bars and much needed firewood bundles for $5. I would guess in the summer they offer more treats. The cabin featured a large fire pit with a swing out cooking grate, which was much appreciated. We cooked many a thing on it! A picnic table is also provided at each cabin. The staff were super friendly and helpful. I highly recommend this place for your next camping and hiking adventure. We look forward to returning this summer! read more

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Nice park with great views. Some 30/50 amp sites. Check the website for specs. No water during winter months. That means no water at the dump site as well during this time. read more

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First time camping and was excited to experience this BUT upon checking in they informed us that they were out of firewood( can't bring your own) but was told that since they were out that we could bring outside wood in. Fine. Second the restrooms were locked and only 2 portapotties were available and the campground was packed. Nasty!!!! They did eventually open them up but closed them again later in the day. Third the upkeep of the tent pad was unsatisfactory, overgrown with weeds, rocks and all other kind of mess!!! One thing that I did enjoy was being able to kayak. Definitely would not be visiting here again read more

Bullfrog Lake is part of the Palos Preserves area, and a park within the Forest Preserve District of Cook County. It has camping available year-round. You can reserve a campsite online at least 48 hours in advance, in addition to phone or in person; if you go in person to the site where you wish to camp, you can make a reservation that day if one is available. Bullfrog has cabins, but you can use tents too. They also have gear rental for some items and you can have firewood delivered to your cabin for $5 per bundle. There are quiet hours, and if you leave after a certain time you can't return until 7 am the next day. Parking is available, but is limited to two cars per reservation, so plan accordingly. The lake is right here and there are other areas as well a short walk away, so you can go biking, fishing, walk the trails, and so on. I'm not much of a camper myself; I was here for a program on outdoor survival skills. I can't say I would say no to camping here if I were to go, given they have cabins and are within distance of other places that aren't just the woods. And poison Ivy abounds, so watch out! read more

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Nothing like being on the lake at sunrise to kayak and fish. Bullfrog Lake is a small, but nice sized lake in the many of Chicago's forest preserves. I love taking my inflatable kayak out to fish. Yes, you can catch fish here. Have a license, parks department has been known to show up and ask for it. This is one of many spots I frequent. There is no swimming permitted in the lake. If you don't have a kayak or canoe you can rent one here on site. There is also a campground for tents or you can rent a cabin. Nice little place for a weekend "away" and still be close to home. Picnic areas have grills. Many great bike trails too. Lots of bikes out this way. Very popular. Lots of parking too. Stay close to home but "get away" for the day or weekend. read more

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Been here twice definitely going back, you have trails nice little lake staff is friendly you see them doing their rounds only 15 minutes away from Chicago ridge. read more

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Great place to hike fish and camp but honestly, Terri, the lady running the show was amazing. She really makes you feel welcomed, she's so happy and friendly and just sets a good vibe for your stay. She deserves a raise! read more

Bullfrog Lake Campground - Campgrounds Near Me - Willow Springs, Illinois

Beautiful place unfortunately 12 or more people were camping next to us having a party at night. I was told nothing could be done about the drugs and alcohol use. Not a place for families. Asked for a refund and was told they are not responsible for people on there campground that chooses to party and be disruptive. We packed up and left at midnight. read more

Now I can only rate this on our experience and overall it was not ideal. We are avid campers and I'm sure this is probably one of those obscure camping moments, but still. We came to the area to mainly camp with our dogs and enjoy the weekend in Chicago for our sons birthday. First of all for the type of facility it was definitely very expensive at $62 a night. We were booked Thursday-Sunday. We pulled in around 9pm on Thursday and it is definitely tucked back in off all main roads. Driving in we were excited by the nice views. Lots trails and lakefront. We pulled up to an empty office and cones blocking entrance. We look at map to try and determine where our spot is. We had reservations but once we got to our spot it was filled. We drive back around to find a number to call and ask what we are to do. Lady on phone very nicely says just take a spot and we will sort it in the morning. Well we have a 32 ft trailer and most these spots are tight and uneven gravel spots. It took more than an hour to try and get set up properly. Bath house was thankfully open and semi clean. Showers were tolerable; not much pressure or hot water. At around midnight someone drove around campground blaring music and seemed to be under the influence. Bit annoying but can tolerate, So at about 1:30am our heat went out and my husband was looking into it when a couple started coming to our site. Loudly talking walking around our camper and then banging on our door saying HELLO HELLO over and over . I was awoken and then on edge all night. In the morning we found out that the camper in our reservation spot had most likely been stolen and abandoned. Cops had shown up later that morning. When we went to talk about our spot we chose we were told we'd have to move but he wasn't sure where to put us. He obviously seemed flustered and we decided to ask for money back and we would just would find another campground. Thankfully he obliged. I think biggest complaint would be lack of security. So like I said this is probably one of those fluke scenarios and it's probably a decent little spot. We did have nice lake view; We however would not return. read more

Bullfrog Lake Campground - Campgrounds Near Me - Willow Springs, Illinois

I'm in total and complete love with Bullfrog Lake and its surrounding area in Palos Forest Preserve. For lovers of all things outdoors - hiking, biking, fishing, camping etc, the immense system that is the Forest Preserves of Cook County is one of the true gems of the Chicagloand area. This is a brand spanking new Campground and as a camper and mountain biker I could not be happier this place exists. [x] love it beyont read more

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My boyfriend and I were looking for a new way to camp and Bullfrog lake definitely delivered!! We have decided this Is our new go to for summer and fall camping trips!! Bathrooms and cabin were very clean and the office employees were always available (during office hours!). Love bullfrog lake campground! read more

The Forest Preserve is an amazing Government funded agency, Great people and always there to help.

The campground is great. So close to Chicago! Beautiful scenery, great hiking and biking trails. Working bathrooms with a shower, not the best shower but at least there is one! Fair warning, the campsites them selves are packed stones and sand so they drain well and are flat but you WILL need a mallet and heavy duty metal stakes to stake down the tent. The camp office is open 24 hours which is nice. You can't bring in firewood and it costs $1 per log so using it for heat could get expensive. Happy camping! read more

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Clean! Beautiful! Free firewood! Kayaks, and evening hikes and super close to the city!

We just got back. Perfect starter campground for young families. We rented a large cabin ... and for two families it was perfect. 10 twin beds 3 sinks, air conditioner, nice hot shower. What more could you ask for? This is like beginner camping or even glamping. Paul in the store was so kind to us and he really made our trip memorable. We rented a tandem kayak for $20, and we found out why it's called Bullfrog Lake! Thanks... we will be back. read more

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A really clean nice new camp ground that is part of the cook county forest preserve. We took our Cub Scout den and it was amazing. We stayed in the large cabin that has its own restroom and shower as well as heat or AC and ceiling fans which makes for comfortable year round camping. The cabin had a nice big front porch with built in benches and in the back it had a fire pit with a grate for grilling on the fire. There is also a picnic table. They give you your first bundle of wood with your rental. There is a 24 hour office which is staffed and a camp store where you can get most anything you might need and you can purchase more wood bundles or bait for fishing. Can't wait to come back. Kevin was super helpful. :-) read more

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What a find. Lovely campground tucked in a forest preserve IN Chicago. New buildings, lake, fishing pier, cabins available, quiet.

I would love to rate this campground higher because it is beautiful, easy and the amenities are nice, however they are not maintained. We only stayed one night, just getting our camping feet wet for the summer, and we're glad we did. The toilet was terribly dirty as was the sink in the bathroom. Every trash can was over flowing with garbage. This was a Monday to Tuesday, not busy by any means. There was an attendant who went into the bathroom but it's hard to say what he did in there since it is in such poor condition. I'm disappointed as My family and I would love to make this a regular spot, it's close to home and pretty peaceful. read more

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Camping here is easy! great facilities. great staff. great activities available. Lots and lots of stuff to do closeby and all of it SO easy to get to from the city or suburbs. Nice to gather for coffee in the morning, so surprised by the complimentary firewood! THANK YOU!! read more

Bathrooms were dirty and not kept up well. Toilets were very messy and not cleaned well. They close the gate off at 10pm so you're locked in. Overall just wish they kept it up better read more

This campground is a breath of fresh air just on the outskirts of the city. Some highlights from staying there this past weekend include the new facilities, complimentary coffee and your first wood bundle included, sites right on the lake (that has docks and kayak rentals), as well as all levels of trails nearby. The reason I had to deduct a star though was for the abundance of bees. The infestation was so bad it appeared to be affecting every camp site, which made it difficult to eat or even just relax without them swarming. When we and the family staying at the site next to us alerted the office, they only had a half can of Raid on hand, which really didn't do anything. Hopefully management can solve the bee problem somehow for future campers! read more

Nice campground. Very close to Chicago which is great. No water hookups. If I was tenting it would be a 5 star. The people were really nice and the bathrooms were nice. read more

Finally a campground near Darien Il. Friendly staff. Mike is always there to help.

We stayed at Camp Bullfrog Lake on the first weekend in October. Our group had 4 camp sites. 3 had mulch tent pads and one was designated as handicapped accessible. It has a crushed gravel path and tent pad. The tent pads are important because they are the reason this is only a 4 star review. It rained all weekend long. The tent pads did their job. They drained the water just as they were designed to. The problem is the tent pads have a layer of mulch, about 3 inches deep and then a fabric barrier over gravel. Tents require staking. Tent stakes to not go through fabic barriers well. They are also difficult to drive in to gravel. We got our tents staked properly with out damaging our tent stakes. It took a lot of extra time. Apparently we took more time than most because the office normally sell tent stakes. They were out due to so many campers ruining their tent stakes. Other than that issue the camp ground is nice. Bring your own water as the water available is not drinkable. Bring your own shade because this camp ground is new and the trees are not yet tall. Bring your fishing gear and hiking shoes. Fishing is easy and child friendly from the dock. There a miles and miles of nice hiking trails. Kayaks are available for rent. We were there during paddle fest. Kayaks were free. The FPDCC also had pumpkin painting, tie dye t-shirt making, smores and hot apple cider. It was nice that the kids had something to do during the rain. We will definitely go back. read more