Known for its popular picnic groves, Bunker Hill contains remarkable natural areas, including a floodplain forest, open savanna and the Sidney Yates Flatwoods. The site is part of the extensive North Branch Trail System and offers easy parking and natural play areas for kids.
On this page:
Connecting People to Nature Challenge at Caldwell Woods & Bunker Hill
The Forest Preserves is investing $1 million across three locations in Cook County through our Connecting People to Nature Challenge. How should we improve Caldwell Woods & Bunker Hill to better serve your community? What kind of events and activities would you like to be involved in there?
Contact us at Experience.Nature@cookcountyil.gov or call 708-771-1573 to be involved in future meetings and feedback opportunities.
Learn more about improvements at the Caldwell Woods and Bunker Hill.
Location & Things to Do
Bunker Hill
Entrance
Things to Do & Amenities
- Parking
- Accessible Indoor Bathroom
- Accessible Portable Bathroom
- Trail Access
- Hiking & Walking
- Bicycling
- Dogs
(on-leash only) - Cross-Country Skiing
- Birding Hotspot
- Volunteer Opportunities
- Indoor bathroom open April 1 to October 31 depending on weather conditions.
Picnic Groves
- Grove #1
(with shelter)- Capacity: 300 people
- Grove #2
(with shelter)- Capacity: 200 people
- Accessible Grove #3
(with shelter)- Accessible May 1 to October 31.
- Distance to parking: 292 ft
- Distance to accessible portable bathroom: 250 ft
- Capacity: 300 people
- Grove #4
(with shelter)- Capacity: 300 people
- Accessible Grove #5
(with shelter)- Accessible May 1 to October 31.
- Distance to parking: 315 ft
- Distance to accessible indoor bathroom: 500 ft
- Capacity: 350 people
- Grove #6
(with shelter)- Capacity: 300 people
- Grove #7
(with shelter)- Capacity: 300 people
Hours
Year-round: Sunrise to SunsetClosures & Alerts
Trails
North Branch Trail System
The North Branch Trail System offers paved and unpaved trails along approximately 20 miles of the North Branch of the Chicago River, making it a premier biking route in the northern suburbs.
Location: Chicago, Glenview, Morton Grove, Niles, Northbrook, Northfield, Skokie & Winnetka
Surface
Paved & UnpavedEstimated Total Length
36.7 milesHours
Year-round: Sunrise to SunsetClosures & Alerts
Nature Notes
Bunker Hill is small in area but big on diversity. Unique flatwoods, floodplain forest, open savanna and oak woodlands all share a relatively small parcel of land, allowing for a new experience around each bend.
Throughout the growing season, wildflowers and grasses bloom in the savanna, including blazing star, prairie sundrops, big bluestem, mountain blue-eyed grass and fringed gentian. Birds and insects flit amid the oak trees. Swallowtail butterflies and song sparrows enjoy the sun-dappled areas. In the spring, woodcocks perform their unique mating dances at dusk. Ducks, geese and herons enjoy the slow-moving river.
Volunteer Opportunities
This beautiful preserve is just one example of the rich diversity that once was the vast Illinois landscape. Its open savanna, oak woodland and river bluff ecosystems offer interesting views in all seasons. Join North Branch Restoration Project volunteers as they remove buckthorn and other weedy species, protecting these high quality natural areas.