Be a Trailblazer: Hike Goodenow Grove

^{|  Story by Meghan McMahon |}

^2/24/2025

Editor’s note: We want you to Be a Trailblazer this year, so we will be hiking at various preserves throughout the year and documenting it for you. Journey along with us as we blaze a trail through the preserves and hopefully encourage you to do the same.

Choosing a path for a hike at Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve is difficult because there are so many great trails and routes to explore. The 891-acre preserve has about 6 miles of trail in all, including natural surface, limestone and paved trails. We opted for a hike along the Plum Creek Greenway Trail to the big bridge because the iconic structure is a sight to see in any season. (More on that later.)

We started our hike from the trailhead at Goodenow Grove’s campground. From there, it’s about 1.1 miles to the big bridge. If you’re looking for a longer trek, you could start from the preserve’s Plum Creek Nature Center or you can travel the whole length of the 3.15-mile Plum Creek Greenway Trail by starting from the preserve’s equestrian parking lot and walking past the nature center, over the big bridge and to trail’s turnaround point to make the return trip. (Note: As of February 2025, a wooden footbridge north of the big bridge near Bemis Road is closed because of damage from a falling tree.)

Our walk was on a cold but sunny winter day, and the trail was still covered from recent snows. The temperature was only in the low 20s, but the bright sun overhead made it feel warmer as we got going. We quickly shed our gloves, although we were happy to have them on the return trip, when we were walking into a brisk breeze. We were also happy for our sunglasses, both for the sun protection and the wind protection.

Goodenow Grove is one of the best preserves for birding, and it didn’t disappoint on our winter hike. We saw a few cardinals and dark-eyed juncos, plus a robin, a tufted titmouse and even a red-tailed hawk flying overhead with a small rodent in its talons. We heard plenty more birds than we saw. Blue jays and hairy woodpeckers were among the most vocal birds we heard along the way, but we also heard plenty of tufted titmice, American goldfinches and cardinals, plus an American tree sparrow, a northern flicker and even a horned lark — a first for us.

Pro tip: Download the Merlin Bird ID app to your smartphone so you can learn more about the birds you hear on your hike. The app has a sound recording function that uses your phone’s microphone to record bird calls and songs and identify them in real time. This can help you learn different bird calls and also make you more aware of the different species that are present as you hike.

Beyond the birds, we didn’t see too much wildlife, which wasn’t a surprise given the cold conditions. We saw a few squirrels making their way up and down tree trunks, but that was it on this winter day. We did see evidence of other wildlife, though, in the form of nests high up in the trees, animal tracks crossing and alongside the trail and scat in a few spots.

The path to the big bridge is mostly forested, but there is one open prairie area. The varied habitats make the walk a more interesting one. It was in the open area that we heard and saw more birds, but animal tracks and other signs of animal life were more abundant in the wooded areas.

The big bridge itself is along a forested part of the trail, and that adds to the beauty of the spot. It truly was the highlight of our hike and was a good place to stop for a few minutes to take a closer look at the nature all around us. The 267-foot-long wooden bridge spans a ravine that is 40 feet deep. As you cross the bridge, you feel like you are in the tree canopy, and it gives you an excellent vantage point of the forest and creek below.

The big bridge is a perfect spot for appreciating the season and imagining the other seasons to come. On our walk, the ground below was covered with snow and the creek was partially frozen, but we could imagine verdant green returning to the forest floor and tree canopy and the creek overspilling its banks after spring and summer rains. We could even picture fall color creeping into the canopy many months from now, when the growing season begins to wind down yet again.

Both a bench and a picnic table are situated at the southern end of the big bridge, making it the perfect spot for a picnic lunch, a water break or simply a place to enjoy some solitude. The Plum Creek Greenway Trail isn’t as well-traveled as some other Forest Preserve trails (we only saw one other hiker on our walk), so you shouldn’t have any trouble enjoying the peace and quiet while sitting for a spell.

Generally, we prefer looped trails to out-and-back hikes because you don’t have to retrace your steps on a looped trail, meaning you don’t see the same sights twice. That brings us to our second pro tip, courtesy of some of the Forest Preserve’s top-notch interpretive naturalists: When you are hiking an out-and-back trail, try to limit yourself to looking to one side of the trail on your way to your destination. On your return trip, look at the other side of the trail. We tried this on our hike, and although we did sneak some peaks to the other side, it genuinely did make the return trip more interesting and enjoyable.

We also made a point on the return trip to experience the season with all our senses. Sounds were all around us, from the birds singing to the sound of snow crunching underfoot. We also appreciated the sound of the wind rustling the leaves that never fell off the young oak trees and planes big and small flying overhead. We took notice of all the different textures on the tree trunks, some rough, some smooth, and took care to note pops of color other than the monochrome tones of brown.

Our hike took just over an hour, but we could easily have spent more time exploring Goodenow Grove. There are several more trails across the preserve, plus the preserve’s Plum Creek Nature Center is worth a visit at any time of year. The nature center includes seasonal interactive nature exhibits, an area where you can watch birds come and go from the always stocked bird feeders and some resident reptiles to help visitors young and old learn about and appreciate wildlife. If you don’t pass it on your hike, Snapper Pond is a short walk from the nature center, and it’s a different experience in each season.

Winter is a particularly great season at Goodenow Grove — especially if it’s cold or snowy because the preserve is one of only two preserves where sledding is permitted and the only Will County preserve where ice skating is allowed.

Ice skating is permitted at Snapper Pond when conditions allow. Ice skating is at your own risk, but Forest Preserve staff checks the pond’s ice thickness daily once the pond opens for skating.

The 40-foot sled hill opens for the season on Dec. 1, and sledding is permitted when conditions allow. Sledders can bring their own sleds and tubes, and tubes are also available for rental at the nature center. You can also rent snowshoes at the nature center.

Plum Creek Nature Center is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays to Sundays. To check on skating or sledding conditions, you can call the nature center at 708-946-2216.