It was a bright and sunny morning and the temps were climbing fast! Did we head to the pool? Nope! I dragged everyone out to check out the Lake Katherine Nature Center & Botanic Gardens. We had been here once before pre-pandemic and enjoyed ourselves, so I thought it would be fun to squeak in an outing before it got too hot. The park grounds are open from dawn to dusk, and the nature center is open from 9-5 Monday through Friday and 10-5 on Saturdays. The park is located at 7402 Lake Katherine Drive in Palos Heights, a southern suburb of Chicago.
When we arrived at the park, we found parking easily enough in the parking lot, although there was a lot of activity with people parking to visit the park or to use the Cal-Sag Trail. Lake Katherine Park is situated alongside a small portion of the Cal-Sag Channel, and the park trails intersect with the Cal-Sag Trail, which will eventually be a paved trail 26 miles long, from Archer Avenue near Lemont, Illinois to the Burnham Greenway near the Indiana border. At this time only portions of the Cal-Sag are open, while others are still under construction. You can check out their website to see the status of the trail as well as a map of finished portions. https://www.calsagtrail.org/ We didn’t venture onto the Cal-Sag Trail, but stuck to the trails around the lake. These trails aren’t paved, but the stone dust still makes it stroller friendly. We actually used a stroller when we were last here before the pandemic began.
Due the heat and humidity, we decided to take the trail around the lake and then visit the Nature Center, which is air conditioned, at the end of our mini-adventure. We took the main path into the park, passing a neat looking stone sculpture. Then we turned left onto the trail, and slowly worked our way around the lake. The temps were brutal, but the scenery was gorgeous! We snuck up on a Great Blue Heron, and watched it for a bit. Then the girls found a clump of giant rocks to jump across. We even came across a family of swans lying in the shade, partially along the path. We gave them wide berth as swans are known to be aggressive, and boy are they big birds!
At the far end of the lake, we passed through the old Palos Schoolhouse Arch, and explored the Nature Play Areas and Children’s Forest. There was a story trail here, but none of the girls wanted to stop and read, they just wanted to explore. Stormy was thrilled to discover the giant Adirondack chair from our last visit was still here. By giant, I mean our entire family could fit on it, and there would still be room! Rainbow found a set of mushrooms that she could jump across, and Pebble found a hollowed out tree to climb through. There was also a ginormous boulder that all three had to climb and then pose on top of!
As we followed the trail around the lake, we discovered the other side was mostly shaded with more of a breeze, which was very welcome! By this point, Rainbow’s face had begun to turn very red, a sure sign she was starting to overheat. We’d brought water and snacks, but the sun was brutal. As we traversed the last bit of the loop around Lake Katherine, we stopped along the water to look for turtles and fish. We saw a giant snapping turtle try to take out a smaller red-eared slider turtle, and cheered on the small guy when it eventually made it’s escape. There were several schools of fish, which were seen best with my sunglasses, so all three girls took turns watching the fish through my glasses.
Next to the nature center, we stopped briefly to smell the herbs in the kitchen garden. The girls recognized basil and oregano right away, such a distinctive, wonderful aroma. At the nature center, we masked up and headed into air-conditioned bliss. All three girls went different directions to explore. Stormy used a magnifying glass to check out one display, Pebble and Rainbow looked through the rock collection and checked on the caterpillars, no cocoons yet. There were snakes and turtles to visit with, floor puzzles, tic-tac-toe with giant river rocks, puppets and more. Sadly, there was a program going on so the girls couldn’t explore the lower level of the center where there were larger tanks holding turtles and snakes, as well large hutches for rabbits. Last time we were here, both Stormy and Rainbow had helped a volunteer feed the bunnies. Despite not being able to visit with the animals, the girls had a blast. They enjoyed the air conditioning and all of the exhibits the place had. As a heads up, there is a bathroom at the nature center, but it is the only bathroom I know about. There are probably restrooms in the clubhouse, too, but we never went into that building.
When we had all cooled down, we headed back outside to explore a beautiful man-made waterfall before heading to the car where we cranked the AC. It was a fun, very hot, morning out. Pebble actually climbed into her bed and took a nap when we got back to my in-laws. She was plumb worn out! If you are ever in the area, it is a great park to check out. The views of the lake are stunning, plus there is so much to do, from birdwatching to paddling on the lake to hiking the trails. The park also provides, for a reasonable fee, a whole host of programs and events for all ages. They have after school programs, nature tots and junior explore programs, adult education programs, Monarch butterfly celebrations, hayrides, Halloween nighttime hikes, and so much more! If we lived closer, I’d be doing as many of these programs and events as I can! Happy trails!
https://www.lakekatherine.org/
