Pulaski Woods Offers Opportunities for Hiking, Mountain Biking, Picnicking, and Stargazing, Plus Splendid Views of Bullfrog Lake

BY ANDREW MORKES, FOUNDER AND AUTHOR OF THE NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND BLOG (FOUNDED IN 2017) AND BOOK

I visited Pulaski Woods (Wolf Road, south of 95th Street, Cook County, IL 60480—near Willow Springs) yesterday. It was cool and overcast. The wind blew strongly, the trees creaked in the strong breeze, the sky couldn’t decide if it wanted to be completely cloudy or nearly cloudy, and the shadows looked odd in the dense woods. The smell of smoke wafted over from a nearby campfire, and I occasionally heard a few muffled “yells” (Excitement? Fear? I couldn’t tell) from other hikers who were hidden by the trees. It’s a cliché, but the woods felt spooky. But not spooky enough to skip a hike, just to make it a little more interesting. At least a spooky hike was fitting for one to enjoy just a few days after Halloween.

An early November hike in Chicagoland. It’s a time of year in which you simply hike to enjoy nature—even if it’s off-peak nature. A time of year in which the skies are often gray, and, in the woods, there are few flowers (although I saw a few daisy fleabane blooms and the nonnative Queen Anne’s Lace). The fall colors are past peak, massive piles of orange, red, and yellow leaves blanket the ground and it’s fun crunching through them as you walk. It’s a time of year in which you appreciate the waning fall colors (and temps in the 50s and 60s, rather than in the 10s and 20s), but also savor the details—big and small—of the natural world: glacial boulders occasionally breaking through the earth; the gradual rise of hills that have become more noticeable because of the thinning tree canopy; the loud, rattling bugle calls sounds of sandhill cranes heading south (with stopovers at places like Jasper-Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area in northern Indiana); and things like acorns, tree rings, the lone grasshopper I saw during my hike, and pretty moss on the sides of trees and stumps.

It’s important to note that Pulaski Woods is not just one place. It has three units:

Pulaski Woods (listed as such on the entry sign): This is the main preserve. It features a grove with a large stone picnic area, native plantings, and beautiful views of Bullfrog Lake. You can link to the Bullfrog Lake Trail at the far east end of the parking lot or hike down to the lake to access it.

Pulaski Woods-East: This section is located across Wolf Road from the main Pulaski Woods section. You’ll find a few picnic tables and a memorial stone to Brigadier General Count Casimir Pulaski, who was born in Poland, but who was a key figure in the American Revolution. “Above all, he is the man who provided the American colonists with their first true legion on horseback, cementing his place as “The Father of the American Cavalry,” according to the National Park Service.

Pulaski Woods-South: This section features a picnic grove, serves as a mountain biking staging area, and provides access to challenging mountain biking trails and moderately demanding hiking paths to the north, south, and east. This is the area where I parked and hiked (although I also visited the other two sections). I hiked north on the trail that starts at the end of the parking lot (and then eventually reversed my steps back to my starting point). The narrow trail winds through rolling terrain, and it appears popular with mountain bikers—but I didn’t see any during my visit. I also hiked the east trail, which is much wider and travels through open prairie and oak groves. I liked this section better because it provided more diverse habitats and felt less claustrophobic. I walked till I reached a clearing with the remains of a building foundation. Perhaps a cabin? The trail appeared to continue east past the clearing, but I headed back to my car because the sun would soon set.

To use baseball analogies, Pulaski Woods is not a “home run” destination, but a solid double or perhaps even a triple if you factor in the views of Bullfrog Lake. With that said, I’d return to spend more time on the trails and explore the nearby preserves. And I’m sure its three sections are stunning amidst the spring, summer, and fall blooms.

But I wasn’t done exploring. I got in my car and checked out nearby Camp Bullfrog Lake, which offers year-round camping (e.g., tents; RV/tent campsite, with electricity; cabins) and water-based recreation such as fishing and kayak rentals.

Additionally, the Palos Preserves, but especially areas around Pulaski Woods, Bullfrog Lake, and nearby Maple Lake, offer some of the darkest skies in our Chicago urban environment. In 2021, DarkSky International named the Palos Preserves as an Urban Night Sky Place, so keep it in mind the next time that you hear about an upcoming eclipse or meteor shower, a comet, or a high probability of low-latitude Northern Lights and are seeking a local dark sky spot. Here are other great stargazing locations in the Chicagoland area. You can also check out my article on Northern Lights watching.

My last stop was Maple Lake, which is located just northeast of Pulaski Woods. The 60-acre lake is a popular fishing spot. You can fish in various spots along its more than 8,000 feet of shoreline or rent a boat at the Maple Lake Boating Center (MLBC). (Boat rentals are available from April to October, weather permitting.) Species that are found in Maple Lake include northern pike, bluegill, sunfish, largemouth bass, yellow bass, crappie, channel catfish, and bullheads. You can access the Yellow Trail at the MLBC, which includes a mountain bike staging area. Maple Lake is supposedly haunted if you believe those kinds of things—or just want to enjoy a ghost story. For years, strange lights have been spotted hovering over the lake—even in the dead of winter when few fishermen would be on the water. An odd red glow has also been seen around the shoreline. Ghost hunters classify the types of lights at Maple Lake as nocturnal lights. “These are lights, generally spherical, almost always moving just above ground, sometimes disappearing upon approach and reappearing nearby,” William Corliss explained in his book, Handbook of Unusual Natural Phenomena. You can read more local ghost stories in my article, “My Personal Ghost Story, Ghosts of Chicago’s Southwest Suburbs, and 13 Spots for Post-Ghost-Tour Fun.”

Before You Go:

Open year-round, sunrise to sunset

Dogs (on-leash only)

Cross-country skiing and snowshoeing are available in certain areas.

Here’s a larger map of the Palos Preserves.

Copyright (text): © Andrew Morkes, except quoted text from the National Park Service and the Handbook of Unusual Natural Phenomena

Copyright (photos): © Andrew Morkes

Looking for some other great nature destinations in Chicagoland? If so, check out my book, Nature in Chicagoland: More Than 120 Fantastic Nature Destinations That You Must Visit. It features amazing destinations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Click on the title to learn more. The book has 306 pages and 210+ photos and is only $19.99.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

ABOUT ANDREW MORKES

I’ve been a writer and editor for more than 30 years. I’m the founder of College & Career Press (2002); the author and publisher of The Morkes Report: College and Career Planning Trends blog; and the author and publisher of Hot Health Care Careers: 30 Occupations With Fast Growth and Many New Job Openings; Nontraditional Careers for Women and Men: More Than 30 Great Jobs for Women and Men With Apprenticeships Through PhDs; They Teach That in College!?: A Resource Guide to More Than 100 Interesting College Majors, which was selected as one of the best books of the year by the library journal Voice of Youth Advocates; and other titles. They Teach That in College!? provides more information on environmental- and sustainability-related majors such as Ecotourism, Range Management, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Built Environment, Sustainability Studies, and Sustainable Agriculture/Organic Farming. I also served as a member of the parent advisory board at my son’s school for five years.

In addition to these publications, I’ve written more than 80 books about careers for other publishing and media companies including Infobase (such as the venerable Encyclopedia of Careers & Vocational Guidance, College Readiness: The Vault Guide for High School Juniors and Seniors, the Vault Career Guide to Consulting, and many volumes in the Careers in Focus, Discovering Careers, What Can I Do Now?!, and Career Skills Library series), Lerner Publishing, and Mason Crest (including those in the Careers in the Building Trades, Hands-On Careers, Social Media Today, Woman in STEM Careers, Getting Started, and Cool Careers in Science series). Many titles that I have written and edited have received positive reviews in Booklist; Voice of Youth Advocates; Library Bookwatch; CHOICE, a publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries (a division of the American Library Association); and other publications.

Here’s a list of the environmental- and clean energy-focused titles that I’ve written or co-written:

• Nature in Chicagoland: More Than 120 Fantastic Nature Destinations That You Must Visit
• Wind Turbine Technicians (Great Careers Without a Bachelor’s Degree series)
• Environmental Scientists (Cool Careers in Science series)
• Renewable Energy Careers (Cool Careers in Science series)
• Environment (Getting Started series)
• Solar Power Technicians (Careers in Infrastructure series)
• Women in Environmental Sciences (Women in STEM Careers)

Articles about my work have appeared in the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Practical Homeschooling, and other publications. My photographs of musicians, artists, and the natural world have been published in several books. My poetry has been published in Cadence, Wisconsin Review, Poetry Motel, Strong Coffee, and Mid-America Review. As an amateur artist, I’m pleased to say that four of my paintings were included in the 2025 Beverly Art Walk. Additionally, six of my photographs were featured in the 2026 Beverly Art Walk.