Palmisano Park Natural Area — Attraction in Chicago

Very cool park built on/near an old quarry and landfill. Lots of paved walking paths and some cool metal bridges among the prairie grasses and wildflowers that lead down to the quarry where you can fish (catch and release only) and watch the ducks and geese. There are two elevated hills with walking trails and big patches of grass for lounging and one of them has a cool rock sculpture/formation that makes for interesting photos with the skyline in the background. There is a little workout station with a pull-up bar and sit-up ramp at the bottom of the steps leading up the bigger hill. If you need a bathroom, there is a little play park and fieldhouse across the street that has one. The big hill has some benches and nice view of the beautiful Chicago skyline and some trashy billboards but you can get some great pictures with the right angles. Great for getting your steps in, seeing a cool repurposing of space, and seeing some wildflowers. Brown-eyed...

Great park that I take my kids to so they can walk and fish. The hill is great in the warmer months for flying kites and sledding when it's winter. My only 2 complaints are that even though there are signs posted for no dogs allowed at both entrances, people bring their dogs in. I don't have too much of an issue, but when they let them off leash and let them into the pond, it scares the fish away and ruins the experience for my kids. The other issue is that the fishing pond is catch and release but there are certain groups of people that disregard the posted signs stating that. When my 6 and 4 year old remind people that they need to put the fish back, the people tell my kids to mind their...

Fun park, in the middle of a neighborhood if you just want to escape for a bit. It's main feature is a hill that lifts you just above the neighborhood and you feel like you can see everything. You will often find people having picnics, flying kits, or just rolling down the hill. The park also features a quarry with an accessible ramp that you can descend to the bottom, lots of great lookout points, and the fishing in the quarry must be pretty good cuz insee people there every time I go. There is also an area with sculptures and another area with exercise machines. Honestly, it's a great place to take a date or just to spend your lunch eating outdoors or to take a nap on the...