North Shore Channel Trail is a 13 mile lightly trafficked out and back trail located near Skokie, Illinois that features a river and is good for all skill levels. The trail is primarily used for walking, running, bird watching, and road biking and is best used from May until October. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
Accessibility: This asphalt and cement trail is estimated to typically be at least 7 feet wide. The slope is estimated to range from flat to moderately steep. There are 2 designated handicapped-accessible spaces with access aisles at the small paved trailhead lot.
The trails don’t go too far in any direction which was a bummer. Kept having to turn around because we would hit the highway.
Nice scenic trail with many artwork monuments to see along the way. It wasn’t crowded, but these are covid times. The road is all paved but a bit on the bumpy side for all you bicyclists. It extends a bit longer than from where AllTrails guide suggests.
paved the whole way, and interacts with major roads in several places. granted, that’s about as woodsy as it gets this deep into the suburbs. can be somewhat busy but never too crowded. excellent for biking. can also be supplemented by the very pretty trail around the lagoon, which also passes by the botanic gardens if you want to make a day trip out of it
This is wonderful kayaking loop. We put in at the North Shore Channel boat launch in Skokie at Oakton. We paddled North to the Wilmette Locks, right before the Lake Michigan harbor. There's very little current. The Chicago river is dammed on all sides so the water is still -- and sometimes stagnent. We had really good water quality because we've had lots of rain in the last two weeks. There's lots of wildlife on this trail. For us, we saw many Great Blue Heron, Black-Crown Night Heron (including several juveniles), turtles, ducks, Kingfisher, woodpecker, and featuring a rare sighting of deer and mink. Really cool. The waterway is undeveloped on both sides. Very over run with thick trees and ground cover. It is like a mini nature reserve in the middle of a dense urban area.
The 2 mile portion we walked was just that "a walk" - not a hike. The description says it follows the river but it doesn't mention it also follows the constant traffic in McCormick Rd. We were looking for a hike in a more woodsy area. The path does share a nice bike trail.