Forest preserves offer plenty of winter activities
From ice fishing to snowshoeing to cross-country skiing, the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County gives residents plenty of reasons to get outside and play this winter.
When there's plenty of snow on the hill (usually more than 3 inches), thrill-seekers can snow tube down the 800-foot run on Mount Hoy at Blackwell Forest Preserve near Warrenville.
Only district inner tubes are allowed and inner tube rentals are available at the base of the hill for $10 a day.
The tubing hill is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; rentals end at 3:30 p.m. Tubing hill dates for the 2018-2019 season are Saturdays and Sundays, Dec. 1 through Feb. 24; winter break, Dec. 24 through Jan. 4 (closed Dec. 25); Teacher Work Day Friday, Jan. 18; Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 21; and Presidents Day on Monday, Feb. 18.
Visitors also can explore the forest preserves by snowshoes. If you don't have a pair, you can rent some from December to February at three preserves when there's plenty of snow on the trails. Rentals are $10 for two hours or $15 for the day. The preserves are:
• Blackwell Forest Preserve. When Mount Hoy is open for snow tubing, rent snowshoes at the base until 2 p.m.
• Visitor Services at the district headquarters at Danada Forest Preserve in Wheaton. Rent snowshoes from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays. Call (630) 933-7200 for availability.
• Fullersburg Woods Nature Education Center. Rent snowshoes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily. Call (630) 850-8110 for availability.
At Kline Creek Farm in West Chicago, visitors can enjoy 20-minute horse-drawn sleigh rides at 2, 2:30 and 3 p.m. Dec. 21-23 and 28-31. Rides are on a first-come, first-served basis and use wagons if there's not ample snow on the trails.
For daily trail condition updates, call (630) 876-5900.
Kline Creek Farm also will host "Farm Life in Winter" from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Thursday through Monday, Jan. 3-Feb. 25.
Visitors can see tool repair in the wagon shed (bring your garden tools for sharpening), harvest ice on Timber Lake, check the sheep shed for new lambs, or take a sleigh ride around the farm. Call (630) 876-5900 or check Kline Creek Farm's Facebook page for each day's activity.
For fans of cross-country skiing, rangers groom more than 70 miles of trails at forest preserves such as Blackwell in Warrenville, Fullersburg Woods in Oak Brook, Danada and Herrick Lake in Wheaton, Greene Valley and Springbrook Prairie in Naperville, Mallard Lake in Hanover Park, Meacham Grove in Bloomingdale, Waterfall Glen in Darien and West DuPage Woods in West Chicago.
Visitors who aren't classic skiers should use the inside of the trails to avoid damaging the set tracks.
Ice fishing, ice skating and sledding are allowed at most forest preserves, although never at Spring Creek Reservoir in Bloomingdale.
Additionally, sledding is not allowed at Mount Hoy at Blackwell or at the closed landfill sites at Greene Valley and Mallard Lake. The district does not monitor ice conditions, so visitors go on ice at their own risk.
As a guideline, not a guarantee, there should be at least 4 inches of clear ice for any activity for one person; 8 inches of clear ice for a group. Anglers can find complete regulations in the online fishing guide.
Finally, when there's adequate snow conditions, mushers can dog sled on the Thunderbird Spur Trail at Greene Valley and on the West Branch Regional, Bobolink and connector trails north of Mack Road at the McKee Marsh area of Blackwell Forest Preserve.
A complete list of winter programs and activities is available on the district's website or in the quarterly Conservationist. Print subscriptions are free for DuPage County residents and $5 per year for nonresidents; email subscriptions are free readers. Subscribe online or by emailing forest@dupageforest.org.