Took Cardio Tennis classes here Spring 2025. I usually take classes at Humboldt Park but wanted to…read moretry a different time slot. I like that the parking is close to the courts. I love seeing all the pups walking while we are doing tennis early in the morning. This park only has 2 courts so an intimate court. The court has been recently remodeled to include pickleball lines. All in all, no complaints. May check out the pool this summer.

I will never take my kids there again they are so races I have a copy of their schedule for the…read morepool we' was supposed to get in at 2:15 pm until 3 pm but when we got there the white lady told us we cannot get in it was a adult swim and they told us to come back at three and we did when we got back there they had white kids in the pool and then they told us they had adult swim again mind you we already had the schedule and they was looking at us like they was not use to seeing black people the white lady was so rude I will let everyone know how races and dirty they are and to never take your kids there to have a good time because you will be disappointed

I love this little park in Printer's Row! It's really warm and inviting, with multiple paths and…read morelots of seating. It's a nice place to sit and enjoy the trees. I like to read here. Lots of people pass thru with their cute dogs. It's a relaxing and positive vibe.

Cool small park located in the South Loop. Dearborn Park is also in the neighborhood of the same…read morename. It has a few features including a fitness course and a playground. Mostly exists for the residents around it. This is next to the large housing complex, and most people here are from there. A redevelopment of a former train station resulted in the creation of this green area. It's the former site of the Dearborn Street Railroad Station. The architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill laid out the residential complex in the 1970s, and the park is the centerpiece of this. Among the features is a fitness course. The neighborhood and park are named after General Henry Dearborn, who was also a Secretary Of War. He served as this for Thomas Jefferson. The park has a pretty modern playground Good place for people who live here to hang around. It's also close to the Chicago Curry House if you get hungry. There's a few other places around to eat or whatever.

My discovery of Sunset Bridge Meadow came after I took an alternate run route because the underpass…read moreheaded north towards Schiller Woods South was blocked off due to flooding. And since then, I have been slowly moving further south with hopes of locating paths that lead to Thatcher Woods which I hope to eventually start off at in the future to train for marathon runs as I have done before, but at Fullerton Woods trailhead. What I like about this trailhead is that its parking lot is spacious, and highly visible being that it sits along a highly driven on W North Ave. And on top of it having a spacious parking lot, it has a huge open field that is perfect for activities outside of outdoor picnics at the grove. Out of the trailheads in this area which are Fullerton Woods and Jerome Huppert Woods, I recommend this one for safety and security purposes due to its location if you plan to be on the Des Plaines River Trail for more than an hour exploring. Because with its location being in a highly visible area along W North Ave anything suspicious will be easily identified. And also there are a decent number of visitors in-and-out. Once you enter the Des Plaines River Trail, it is a whole different world where you can easily escape reality and be one with nature that covers an estimated total of 28.4 miles. And if you are lucky you will encounter some of the wildlife that live within the preserve too. On the Des Plaines River Trail, you will encounter hikers, dog walkers, mountain bikers and trail runners which all are friendly from what I have experienced. Most encounters with mountain bikers can throw your pacing off depending on how many there are in a pack which most of the time are no more than four. I do recommend taking the encounters as the time for a short break to hydrate or gather yourself until they pass by on whatever portion of the trail you may be on if there is not enough room. And lastly, a tip on how to not get off track on this trail is to stay along the Des Plaines River, which will end up on your left hand side once you cross the bridge. If you cannot see the river then you may have went in the wrong direction, but I assure you it is not hard to miss. And the further north you go towards the state line of Wisconsin the more the trail disconnects. ~Blessings~ Thomas G

To better serve the growing population of Uptown, the City of Chicago's Bureau of Parks and…read moreRecreation created a small municipal playground in 1951. Named for the street on which it is located, Carmen Park was turned over to the Chicago Park District in 1959, along with more than 250 other properties. Re-planting the landscape and adding new playground equipment in the 1960s, the park district made further improvements in the early 1990s. It's well-shaded on a hot day, but a bit dark. Also, playlot wood chips take up the whole space, i.e., no grass.

This is a really nice little playlot. Clean, hidden, and safe.read more

Friends lived near and participated in Pilsen's El Paseo Community Garden in Chicago for a number…read moreof years, and we all still return to help or just to visit! This Sunday (Aug 2026) there was food and light merch for sale. We got fresh eggs! And there was a snake you could hold!

El Paseo Community Garden is one of those things that defines the greatness of Chicago. Humble…read morebeginnings of vacated land made way for the sunlight and brought neighbors together. Plants, specifically edible varieties of fruits, vegetables and herbs are the focus, but there are beautiful flowers and indigenous prairie species in abundance as well. Translated to English, El Paseo means the way. The name speaks to this green spaces role as a path connecting two streets, as well as an approach to life in the city that generally speaking is the way for us all to stay sane and even happy living together in the vast urban jungle of Chicago. Growing things together.

It was a breath of fresh air the evening I decided to run at Miller Meadow Forest Preserve. Being…read morethat I work nearby as well as drive along Roosevelt Ave where I pass by Miller Meadow - North, it was only a matter of time that I would conduct some form of an activity at Miller Meadow. I entered off 1st Ave which is labeled as Miller Meadow - South; and the first feature that immediately caught my eye was its off-leash dog area which was huge. As a fitness enthusiast that has been running for years, I would categorize the difficulty level of Miller Meadow - South as moderate because the terrain is not entirely flat. Distance markings are marked along the path, a loop style path totaling 1.70 miles per loop. I encountered mostly walkers, a few joggers, and a couple of recreational bike riders along the path. At one point during my loop, there was a woman who caught and overtook me as I ran. We went back-and-forth with me overtaking her and her overtaking me which brought competitiveness during my time on the path. I spent no more than forty-minutes during my initial run on the path but could have easily gone longer if I had the time. While well into the path, I felt that sense of being in nature as well as engulfed by tall grass in certain parts. I also felt that feeling of being secluded, but there were always nature's animals within sight that kept me in the moment. I could not help but enjoy the beautiful sounds of birds chirping, glimpses of the red-winged blackbird throughout the entire path, and I even saw a deer from afar in the woods. There are a variety of activities you can conduct within the path of Miller Meadow - South; some of those activities I can certainly see are hiking, running, walking, biking, in-line skating, or even bird watching. The area can also be used to conduct large gatherings, or picnics; and its large field is perfect for many recreational activities you can partake in. The area is well-maintained, consisting of benches with tables located in shaded areas near or underneath trees, but very few picnic shelters which are perfect for large gatherings; and there are even a couple of portable restrooms within the space. Along the path, there are waste and recycling bins, even in some of the secluded spots. And on top of it all, Miller Meadow has a very spacious parking lot. Overall, I had a very pleasant experience at Miller Meadow Forest Preserve, as indicated in this review and would definitely return. As a runner, I can see myself returning just to conduct interval runs around its loop in build-up to long run events I participate in. ~An adventure a day keeps the doctor away. ~ Thomas G

It was good. It went perfectly. I got to ride a tandem bike. There was a lot of stuff to do!read more

This is an excellent spot to have a coffee, maybe a short date, or just a quick reconnect with…read morenature. I bet dogs love it. It's wonderful, first of all, but I guess I was expecting it to be a little longer, like maybe a mile, but it's a little guy, maybe a big block. Wild life was spotted -- saw a turtle and a family of ducklings. And the mechanics of it are fascinating. I guess i also wasn't expecting it to face the waste management facility, but just try not to look at that really. I'm glad it's here and i look forward to more. I hear they are having a wildly successful impact on the cleanliness of the river; a tip taught to the city by the indigenous who absolutely know what they are doing.

Chicago has its own floating gardens! "Wild Mile" is a built island, home to local plants and…read morecritters. We just walked around checking it out, and we heard there are various events, little concerts, yoga, what-have-you. This wild mile is the razzmatazz!

Man haven't been here since I was a kid back in the 80's. I forgot the place existed. I thought My…read moretrashnore didn't exist and was just a name of a hill I used to sled on. Can't wait to come back when it's snowing and bring my kids

A great big hill in the neighborhood. Convenient. The only bad thing is when the snow is used over…read moreand over walking up the hill can be dangerous for kids. It would be nice if there was stairs or a safer way to get up. But overall still a fun bill