We’ve previously shared how incorporating a 30-minute walk into your daily routine brings with it a surprising array of health benefits. While you enjoy those healthful benefits on your walk, why not enjoy a good view too? Some days it’ll be easier to take a walk around the block, but for those days where you want to elevate “taking a walk” into a special occasion: here is Sage Collective’s guide to the best scenic walks on Chicago’s South Side.

Jackson Park – Woodlawn

Jackson Park is a sprawling 551-acre park on Chicago’s South Side with an impressive history. Designed by the same names behind New York’s Central Park, and once home to the World’s Columbian Exposition, Jackson Park continues to bring exciting seasonal events and features to the Woodlawn community. Just this spring, the park’s 160-tree grove of cherry blossoms bloomed for the first time ever, attracting locals and tourists alike to see the beautiful display. 

The park is the perfect place for a short jaunt or longer “hike,” with landmarks like the lushly landscaped Japanese Garden and winding Bobolink Meadows lagoon-side trail serving as your backdrop.

31st Street Beach – Bronzeville

While most people know it as 31st Street Beach, the beach’s formal name became Margaret T. Burroughs Beach in 2015. Named for the accomplished artist, arts advocate, poet, teacher, civic leader, historian, and founder of the DuSable Museum of African American History, the beach’s official name serves as an homage to the history and vibrancy of both Burroughs herself, and the Bronzeville neighborhood overall.

The beach, which is nestled next to 31st Street Harbor, boasts sweeping views of Chicago’s city skyline, and invites swimmers, joggers and walkers alike to enjoy the beautiful scenery.  

When it comes time to plan your next weekend excursion, we hope these parks provide some inspiration and an exciting backdrop. After all, nothing makes a regular, leisurely workout more vibrant like a little bit of good scenery. 

Burnham Nature Sanctuary – Kenwood

Located at 1600 E 47th Street, Burnham Nature Sanctuary is just one serene pocket of a larger stretch known as the Burnham Wildlife Corridor. The corridor is a 100-acre ribbon of urban wilderness running through Burnham Park.

The sanctuary itself is the perfect location for novice and expert birdwatchers alike as they meander through the woodlands. These woodlands, full of native plants, attract many forms of wildlife for visitors to enjoy, from birds, to caterpillars, to butterflies. Beyond the woodland path, there’s also a boardwalk that winds through a hill and swale grassland. Overall, Burnham Nature Sanctuary is the perfect way to reconvene with nature all while remaining in the close confines of the city.