Get outside Chicago! These 5 hidden gems make it easy and accessible

Want to escape the frenetic energy of the city but don’t want to commit to a long drive? Skokie Lagoons is the perfect starting point for suburban exploration. Primarily, it’s a system of seven lagoons connected by channels on the Skokie River, and it’s an ideal spot to get out on the water. An accessible trailered boat launch is available to the public on Tower Road, where visitors can rent a canoe or kayak (they even offer tandem kayaks!) by the hour. The 894-acre destination offers more than just water activities, too. In addition to ample fishing spots (bluegill, sunfish and largemouth bass swim in the waters here), the lagoons provide a habitat for migrating ducks, herons and cormorants making it a great spot for birdwatching. See if you can spot any while hiking along its mix of paved and unpaved trails.

Connect with the historic past of the Palos Hills at the Little Red Schoolhouse. Built in 1886 amid farms, woods and prairie, the structure replaced a log cabin school and hosted generations of children, until the late 1940s. Now, instead of traditional reading, writing and arithmetic, visitors can come to learn about the natural world around them. Special programming includes evening “moon walks,” weekend art fairs and science-centric exhibits. While there, be sure to pop into the 6,000-square-foot, fully accessible garden. It’s ADA compliant and features interpretive signs featuring tactile English letters alongside Spanish, Polish and Braille.

Although you don’t need to pitch a tent and stay overnight to enjoy Camp Bullfrog Lake, if you do want to go camping, there’s hardly a place better—or easier—than this one. Offering year-round camping, you can reserve a spot mere steps from the water or rent a cabin for a decidedly comfortable stay (and with rates as low as $43 per night for Cook County residents, it’s hard to pass up the opportunity!). Insider tip: When you arrive on the campgrounds, request a “Camping Adventure Backpack,” which is stocked with field guides, a compass and binoculars to help you make the most of your time. With ample birdwatching in the area, you’ll be glad you did.

The nearly 4,000-acre Ned Brown Preserve, popularly known as Busse Woods, is not to be missed. In fact, it’s one of the best-used natural areas in all of Illinois. For starters, its unusual combination of flatwoods, ancient upland forests—many of the tall red oaks, hickories, maple and elm trees date back to before European settlement—and marshes have earned it National Natural Landmark status. In particular, visitors come to see the elk pasture. Since 1925, a small elk herd has inhabited an enclosed section of the Busse Woods, and sightings make for great photo opps.

This small-but-mighty nature area is home to a diverse offering of wildlife and habitats, from beautiful wildflowers to birds. Come winter, it’s the perfect place for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. You can book a lesson or just rent gear by the day or even week—they’ve got skis for kiddos as young as two years old. Another fun, adrenaline-spiking addition to this forest preserve is its Adventure Center, which features a climbing tower, a high ropes course and a low-to-the-ground team-building obstacle course. Situated throughout the 38 acres of old growth oak trees, a facilitator can lead you through a customized half-day or full-day program that encourages trust, self-confidence and communication.

*Outside Chicago is a part of Tourism Alive, a program in support of tourism operated by the Cook County Bureau of Economic Development.