Fullersburg Woods Forest Preserve — Attraction in Oak Brook

This used to be a really beautiful location. Not anymore! I just visited the location and I was awe of how much it's been destroyed. The Forest Preserve District of DuPage County is undertaking a "Restoration Project". It's basically destroyed the place. The infrastructure around the old mill is OK, and so was removing the old dam, but the biggest change is the near clearcutting of the forest around the creek. The trees were piled up and burned. The ground was herbicided (you know, right next to a waterway! What could go wrong with that??!!).

They've tried to justify it under the guise of "we're making a savannah"...but that is just convenient cover for cutting everything down. Savannahs don't naturally exist in riparian zones, which is what this used to be. The erosion into the Salt Creek will be legendary in the years to come!

It used to be a great place to go on a hot day to get out of the sun, into the shade, and walk around in the trees. Now it's a great place to get a sunburn and heat stroke.

Use the money to replace lead pipes? No! Use the money to put in place EV charging infrastructure? No! Use the money to fund schools, after school programs, or address other residential needs? No!

Use the money to cut down the forest and create problems where there weren't any...

This place offers excellent walking trails with beautiful views. For some time now they have been eliminating a lot of the forestry. Not sure why. Typically I'm I am not a fan of removing trees and plant life as I love nature the way it is. However, I will say that they have done a great job of opening the area up and improving the views of the creek. You can spend well over an hour walking the various trails in these woods. I recommend it! Note that this is a very popular place and even on a Monday, in the afternoon, we were unable to secure a parking spot in the main lot. We had to park down by the mill and even then there was just one spot available. There is additional parking on the east side of York road across from the...

Fullersburg Woods is free, and a terrific place for both adults and children. The trails are beautiful, some along a river. Best of all is the little museum. Amazingly, there is a mastodon skeleton found nearby. A coloring table was surprisingly (to me) a huge hit with kids. An indoor tree house was easily accessible to kids. My favorite was a table filled with a substance like silly putty where animal footprints could be made with little stamps. We all spent way too much time there. Grau Mill is also worth a visit and there is even a trail to it if you don't want to drive...