Trails & Walks
Lakefront paths, forest preserves and scenic routes for a long walk.
Long walks with a dog in Chicago
The Lakefront Trail, the 606 and the forest preserves inside the city limits — for when a lap of the block isn't enough.
Leashes, everywhere. Dogs must be leashed on all of these. Off-leash is only allowed inside a designated Dog Friendly Area. On the 606 the Park District asks for a short leash: it's narrow and shared with cyclists and runners.
The Lakefront Trail runs 18 miles with separate paths for bikes and pedestrians — stay on the pedestrian side. We've split it into three listings (North, Central and South) to make it useful for "near me"; those segments are ours, not official. The North stretch passes Montrose Beach and Puptown; the South stretch is by far the quietest, which suits dogs that find crowds hard.
Forest preserves inside the city: Dan Ryan Woods on the Southwest Side and LaBagh Woods on the Northwest Side.
No mapped results on this page — listings appear here once their addresses are located.