Reviews

Eliseo Dominguez

Nice place. We did the quad cabin thinking they were the only ones with a fireplace but they all have gas fireplace so next time will do a small cabin. Very cozy

Gordon Shaffer

A very popular, northern Illinois state park known for quiet setting, camping amidst tall stands of white pines, nostalgic log cabins, a lodge restaurant serving top quality meals, and fords. Yes, fords! Through one of the park's streams, fords were constructed instead of bridges allowing visitors to drive through the creek. You're never too old to enjoy submerging your car tires in a moving stream! We came to hike some of its trails. All are short and looped and intersect. We parked at the cul-de-sac lots and headed to an old stone bridge. We followed the easy path, managing four low water crossings and completed the Sleepy Hollow Tr (orange) in no time. We then turned upstream to find the Sunset Tr (white). Having to circumnavigated a ford stream crossing, we found a flight of stairs on the right ascending to the ridge above. There, the Sunset Tr went to the right that would loop back. Going to the left is the Lookout Tr (red) that brings you to the lodging area. We were hungry and wanted to find the lodge and its restaurant before hiking further. By staying on RED (either direction) the trail will open to a road accessing the lodging area of quaint, log cabins. The food at the restaurant has an excellent reputation. Even the lunch we had was superb. I had a cod fish sandwich with sweet potatoes fries. My wife savored the W.P. Sampler (see photo).

Roxolana Sklepova

Absolutely loved it here!! Such a beautiful state park, wonderful campgrounds, so peaceful, quiet, tranquil, well maintained, there are two playgrounds on site, a million picturesque picnic areas, ample and very clean restrooms, helpful staff, will definitely be back!!

M S-S

Highly recommended for a peaceful retreat close to Chicagoland—perfect for couples, families, or solo explorers seeking a blend of forest hikes, wildlife encounters, and cozy historic lodging. Spring blooms and fall foliage are especially magical, and cabin stays with dinner theater add a fun layer to the park experience.

Taylor Childers

Camped at Fox Canyon with a Scout Troop. The sites are very close together and when you register they say they're for up to fifty people per site which is ridiculous. We didn't have any neighbors which made it great, but next time we might reserve extra sites to ensure we have enough space. Also, it seems there really isn't any enforcement by the park on who can rent the group sites because there was definitely just a family of five renting a site near us. There was another big group, but they didn't appear to be scouts. They seemed like just a group of friends or family.

Karina Nehrkorn

My boyfriend and I went here last Sunday to get more active. We brought hiking gear which helped. We went into the gift shop area and got a map of the trails. That helped us. We did 2 medium and 1 hard course. The mediums weren't bad. The hard course was tough. 3 or 4 stream crossings. A couple of the stream crossings had some concrete stepping stones but one of them did not. I ended up with wet hiking boots (luckily that was our last course). We would love to stay in a cabin and I will post a review when I do. The gift shop is just as I remember. We got there 945am and didn't leave til about 130/2pm. For us, it is about a 25/30 minute drive. The restroom that I went into didn't have a sink or place to rinse hands. Otherwise, great spot to get some exercise and the maps were helpful. I've been here a few times over the years and will keep coming back for walking/hiking aspect. We are by no means professional hikers; mainly casual.

Nirali Sorathia

This park is beautiful and huge, it was lovely woods and a recreation area with campgrounds and picnic grounds too. The river stream flowing is a fun spot for fishing lovers. We camped at Cedar Ridge Family Campground and it was a wonderful experience. They have walk-ins too. It was peaceful and scenic.

Missy Gaul

There are several hiking trails that merge together. I used AllTrails app to track and navigate the trails. The stream crossing was a little challenging. Beautiful park.

Deanne Curcio

This is one of our favorite places to come and hike. We went on a crisp fall day. The leaves were beautiful. There are multiple trails to hike with varying difficulty. They are not stroller friendly. I recommend downloading a map of the trails ahead of time so you can choose what you want to do. One of the coolest things is the option to drive over fjords to get to other parking spots. There are bridges for foot travel. A couple trails require water crossings over cement stepping stones that are a bit worn. But we think that is fun. There is a restaurant and cabins one can rent. We have never done so but they look Cute. We walked around the campgrounds just to see what they were like. Most sites do not allow for much privacy from neighbors and many are not flat so probably a good idea to scope out a site before choosing. Overall one can spend the entire day hiking and exploring this park :)