Fox River Bluff East, Meadow Trail, is a community-driven Forest Preserve. The neighborhood and the park seemed to be almost as one. Several houses butt up to the trail, with their backyards, having pathways leading into the park. The head trail from the parking lot seemed to lack amenities, with no restroom or even a trail map. However, the woods were nice, and you could catch glimpses of the Fox River.
Overall Thoughts on Fox River Bluff East
Difficulty (Lower is Easier)
Amenities
Transportation & Accessibility:
Crowding:
Views & Wildlife:
Overall Rating:
Difficulty
When it comes to difficulty, the trail is friendly for hikers of all experience levels. This is mostly because the trail is a short, .61-mile, mowed loop. One thing to note is that there are no park benches along the route, however, with the short distance and ease of the trail, it is unlikely you will miss that amenity.
Getting to Fox River Bluff East
Fox River Bluff is located about an hour’s drive away from Chicago. Unfortunately, driving is the best and only way to get to this Kane County Forest Preserve. There is a parking lot, however, this park has no amenities! You will not find a restroom here.
The parking lot is located off of Weber Drive in St Charles Illinois.
Beauty & Wildlife
When it comes to the views you can expect, the name Meadow Trail is a bit of a misnomer as you will not see a single meadow on your walk! However you will see woods and tucked behind the trees and power lines, at parts, is the Fox River. Even though we went in November when the trees were mostly bare we still only caught glimpses of the Fox River. In the spring or summer, the Fox River would be even more out of sight. With this said, the woods are beautiful in their own right.
Another thing to note here is the path felt as if you were walking through the neighborhood. Houses were visible from the trail. There seemed to be no separation between the two, and some houses even had a backyard path leading to the Meadow Trail. And sometimes on the trail, there were backyard items that seemed to have ‘escaped’ or been strategically placed into the park area from a surrounding house.
Personally, it reminded me of my neighborhood. We have community paths that connect to people’s backyards. It’s these community spaces that for us growing up tied us to the neighborhood and helped us meet and make friends with neighbors. However, the ‘community feel’ felt unique for a forest preserve. Don’t get me wrong, I love neighborhood connections to the outdoors, but I almost felt like I was intruding, almost walking through people’s backyards.
After our hike, we had a run-in with a local cat who was super-human friendly and wanted to say “hello.” As for wildlife, you might see your backyard Illinois wildlife like squirrels, chipmunks, and perhaps even deer.
Know Before you go Fox River Bluff East :
There is no map for this area at the Trailhead or signs on the path. However, we found the loop to be pretty straightforward with only one or two forks with unmarked paths connecting to neighborhoods or the surrounding area.
With this said, there were indicators that you chose the correct path. It is a loop, so you just keep following the trail in a circular motion.
Also, a perk of being in a community area, was there was strong cell service, so at the forks, Google (my best friend!) can help keep you on track.
The last thing to note is that the trail is also dog-friendly!
Amenities
When it comes to amenities, there really are none. There is no bathroom, map at the trailhead, or park benches/picnic areas. Of these, we definitely missed the lack of a bathroom the most! Especially since most county preserves feature at least a port-a-potty.
