York Woods Forest Preserve by Patricia Hayden
The main entrance for the York Woods Forest Preserve is on the north side of Harger Road about .25 miles west of York Road. There is also a second entrance on the south side of Timber Edge Drive about 1 mile north of Harger Road and York Road.
When you turn into the main entrance to the preserve you’ll find a fairly large parking lot with multiple handicapped parking spots. Exiting my car, I headed toward the “Information” sign and learned this area is considered a coyote habitat and also has the oldest picnic grove in the county. I continued my walk keeping the 100-person picnic shelter and the washroom facilities on my left.
As I came to a fork in the trail, I headed left onto the Salt Creek Greenway Trail (you’ll see a sign for the trail). This asphalt trail is approximately .6 miles in length and is mostly flat, but does have several minor inclines. There was a nice mix of sunshine and shade as I walked this trail and there is also a small 25-person picnic shelter tucked into the woods along this trail.
At the end of the Salt Creek Greenway Trail, there is a small parking lot for the second entrance. This parking lot has an entry point for the second trail – the Woodland Trail. I could turn around and go back the way I came (on the Salt Creek Trail) to the main entrance or walk across the lot and onto the Woodland Trail which would loop me back into the Salt Creek Greenway Trail.
I chose to walk the Woodland Trail, and like the Salt Creek Greenway Trail, it is also asphalt, mostly even with a few inclines and is approximately .4 miles in length. The Woodland Trail provides a good amount of shade and as I walked I could hear some traffic noise from nearby roads. As I walked, I came to a fork in the trail and headed left to reconnect with the Salt Creek Greenway Trail and back to the main entrance.
There were quite a few people on the trails the day I was there – walkers, dog walkers, runners, bikers and also skaters. And on the trails I saw many plants including White snakeroot, Canada goldenrod, and Virginia creeper.
More information about the site can be found here: https://www.dupageforest.org/places-to-go/forest-preserves/york-woods and information about reserving the large picnic shelter can be found here: https://www.dupageforest.org/things-to-do/recreational-activities/picnicking.
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This post is part of the “Take a Hike” series by Patricia Hayden. To learn more about this blog and see information about all other featured hikes click here.