Recently, we were looking for a halfway point between our home in far northern Lake County and my sister’s house, who lives in the western suburbs. I just learned about Horizon Park, brand-new in Wheeling, and figured on a beautiful day, this would be a perfect meeting point to catch up and let the kids burn off some steam. It did not disappoint.
There is a nice parking lot you can pull into right off the road, but my GPS went a little wonky and I ended up parking in the lot right behind the Indian Trails Public Library. However, this seeming mistake actually had me parking significantly closer to the playground area than the main lot. For the win.
This park has a lot of neat features that appeal to all ages. First of note is the turf ground. It is eco-friendly, doesn’t get messed up if wet, and is soft and easy to run and to fall on. However, it could get a little scratchy for crawlers.
Another great feature is this zip line, which is a lot of fun for your adventurous little ones. I couldn’t get my two- or five-year-old on board. One thing, though, to watch for is kids running through the path of the zip line. There were many near misses.
The park features two main playground areas. One is for older kids with higher slides and challenging rock formations and ladders to climb upon. That did not deter my two-year-old. However, she also enjoyed the smaller tot playground that featured more simple, natural elements to climb like logs, mushrooms and a smaller slide.
Both of my kids enjoyed the teeter totter, or seesaw.
Other great features to this park include new bathrooms and a vending machine in case you forget your water bottle. There are a lot of benches for parents to relax on, as well as a covered picnic area. One of my personal favorites, as an active mom, is the nice paved path that goes around the greater parts of the park. The path connects to a larger running trail in the area, and there are fields for soccer and other sports. Bring out your running stroller.
There are both challenging and easy ways to navigate all of the equipment, and enough items to engage all skill and interest levels.
We really enjoyed our trip to Horizon Park in Wheeling. I can see this being a regular meeting spot for us for friends and family in the western suburbs, as it is easy access from the highways and it is close to many great restaurants. We enjoyed dinner at D’Agostino’s afterwards, which in case you haven’t tried it, was VERY family friendly.
Horizon Park
350 Northgate Parkway, Wheeling
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