Running trails in Northbrook, IL
Northbrook has 10 trails in the directory — 3 paved and 3 on crushed gravel or dirt, 1 loop that returns to the trailhead, and 1 shaded. 7 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 2,226 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Wood Oaks Green Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 611 reviews
Public park with picnic areas, a playground, tennis courts, a pond, and walking paths.
Potawatomi Woods
4.7 ★★★★★ 581 reviews
This grassy & wooded area provides trails, a picnic area & water access for fishing.
Allison Woods
4.7 ★★★★★ 330 reviews
One of many forest preserves within Cook County featuring a canoe launch & hiking & biking trails.
River Trail Nature Center
4.6 ★★★★★ 279 reviews
Children's park with exhibits for seeing live rescue animals like snakes, turtles, birds, owls and bald eagles.
Lake Avenue Woods-East
4.7 ★★★★★ 242 reviews
Picturesque park offering wooded paths, a stream, picnic tables & a modest nature center.
Somme Prairie Grove
4.5 ★★★★★ 89 reviews
Forest & savanna ecological management area, linked by a trail, with picnic tables & shelters.
Greenview Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 38 reviews
Sunset Ridge Woods
4.4 ★★★★☆ 27 reviews
Unspoilt forest preserve on the river with a hiking trail & resident deer.
Des Plaines River View Point
4.9 ★★★★★ 7 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Northbrook
- Match the surface to your legs. Northbrook gives you a choice: 3 paved, 2 natural surface, and 1 crushed gravel. Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More paved trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 1 trail here is a loop, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. Plenty of trails sit inside parks that gate at dusk and don't unlock until well after sunrise, so a trail that's perfect at lunchtime can be locked at 6am. 7 of the 10 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 6 have trailhead parking, 6 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Northbrook. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 1 shaded, 2 that runners describe as quiet, 5 dog-friendly, and 4 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse Northbrook trails by type
Running trails near Northbrook
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.