If you live in the Chicago suburbs, you’ve probably seen the signs for Ned Brown Preserve Busse Woods while stuck in traffic on I-290. Most people just call it Busse Woods. It’s that massive green blur near Woodfield Mall that seems to go on forever. But honestly, calling it a "park" is kinda like calling Lake Michigan a swimming pool. It’s 3,700 acres of strange, beautiful, and sometimes crowded land that manages to feel like the middle of nowhere while being surrounded by some of the busiest asphalt in the Midwest.
Busse Woods is weird. Where else can you find a herd of elk living next to a major interstate?
Most weekend warriors head there for the 11.2-mile paved loop. It’s legendary. Or maybe infamous, depending on how much you hate navigating around rogue toddlers on tricycles and serious cyclists who think they’re in the Tour de France. But if you look past the paved paths, there’s a much deeper story involving Ice Age geology, 19th-century German farmers, and a massive engineering project that basically saved the neighboring towns from drowning every time it rained.
The Elk in the Room: Busse Woods' Most Famous Residents
Let’s talk about the elk first. It’s usually the first thing people ask about. Why are there elk in Elk Grove Village? Well, the village is named after them, but by the time the town was actually growing, the wild elk were long gone. The herd you see today at the Ned Brown Preserve Busse Woods isn't exactly "wild" in the sense that they migrated there.
They were brought in from Yellowstone National Park back in 1925.
Initially, the herd was part of a larger effort to bring back native wildlife, but now they live in a dedicated 17-acre enclosed pasture. You can see them right off Arlington Heights Road. If you go during the "rut" in the fall, the bulls get loud. It’s a haunting, bugling sound that feels totally out of place when you can literally see the skyline of Rolling Meadows in the distance.
Is it a zoo? Not really. It’s more of a living museum. The Cook County Forest Preserve biologists manage the herd, ensuring the genetics stay healthy. Pro tip: if you want to see them active, go at dawn. By midday, they’re usually just brown lumps laying in the tall grass, ignoring the photographers with giant lenses.
Why the Water Matters: More Than Just a Lake
The heart of the preserve is the Busse Reservoir. It’s actually three separate pools—the main pool, the south pool, and the fishing waters.
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Before the 1970s, this area was a mess of floodplains. Salt Creek, which snakes through the preserve, used to wreak havoc on nearby suburbs. Every time a heavy storm hit, basements in Elk Grove and Des Plaines turned into indoor pools. The creation of the reservoir was a massive undertaking by the Soil Conservation Service and the Forest Preserve District. They basically sculpted the landscape to hold billions of gallons of storm runoff.
Today, it’s a fishing mecca.
You’ve got northern pike, largemouth bass, and walleye in there. Because the lake is relatively shallow (mostly under 15 feet), it warms up fast in the summer. This makes for some great weed growth, which the fish love but kayakers sometimes hate. If you’re paddling out there, you’ll notice the stumps. Those are the remnants of trees that were cleared or drowned when the valley was flooded to create the lake. It gives the water a slightly eerie, swampy vibe that’s perfect for photography but brutal on boat propellers.
The 11-Mile Grind: Navigating the Loop
The red-paved trail is the main artery of Ned Brown Preserve Busse Woods.
It’s roughly 11.2 miles of undulating pavement. If you’re a runner, it’s a dream because it’s mostly flat with just enough "rollers" to keep your calves screaming. But Saturday at 2:00 PM? It’s a literal zoo. You’ve got rollerbladers, families with three-wide strollers, and those guys on $10,000 carbon fiber bikes screaming "on your left!" every five seconds.
If you want peace, you have to find the "unpaved" sections.
Most people don't realize there are miles of dirt trails that branch off into the deeper woods. This is where the real ecology happens. We’re talking about the Busse Forest Nature Preserve, which is a dedicated Illinois Nature Preserve. This 440-acre chunk is some of the best remaining upland forest in the state. We’re talking ancient white oaks and swamp white oaks that have been standing since before Illinois was a state.
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When you step off the pavement and into the dirt trails, the sound of I-290 starts to fade. It never truly disappears—Chicago’s noise floor is high—but it softens. You start to notice the "spring ephemerals." These are tiny wildflowers like bloodroot and Dutchman's breeches that bloom for about two weeks in April before the tree canopy fills in and steals all the sunlight.
A Legacy of Names: Who was Ned Brown?
Hardly anyone calls it "Ned Brown Preserve." We just say Busse Woods.
But the name honors Edward "Ned" Brown, a long-time Cook County Commissioner who was instrumental in the mid-20th century expansion of the forest preserves. He was a guy who understood that as the suburbs exploded outward in the 1950s, we were going to lose every bit of green space if we didn't lock it down legally.
The "Busse" part comes from the Busse family, German immigrants who settled the area in the 1800s. They were farmers. They cleared the land, raised cattle, and lived through the brutal Chicago winters. When you walk the grounds today, you're walking over what used to be tidy rows of crops and grazing pastures. The Forest Preserve District began buying this land piecemeal, starting back in the 1920s, to create what is now one of the most visited outdoor sites in Illinois.
The Surprising Biodiversity of an Urban Island
You might think a place surrounded by malls and highways would be a biological desert.
You’d be wrong.
Busse Woods is a critical stopover for migratory birds. Because it’s a massive "green island" in a sea of concrete, birds see it from miles up and drop in to rest. I’ve seen Great Blue Herons standing like statues in the shallows and even the occasional Bald Eagle perched high in the oaks near the reservoir.
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The preserve also deals with the classic Midwestern struggle: invasive species. If you see groups of volunteers hacking away at thorny bushes, they’re probably fighting European Buckthorn. It’s a nasty, non-native plant that chokes out everything else. The fact that the preserve still has a healthy understory of native plants is a testament to decades of back-breaking restoration work by local "Friends of the Forest" groups and staff.
Getting the Most Out of Your Visit
If you’re planning to head out to Ned Brown Preserve Busse Woods, don’t just wing it.
First, decide which entrance you need. The Higgins Road entrance is the "main" one and usually gets packed. If you want to see the elk, park at the lot off Arlington Heights Road, just south of Landmeier Road. If you’re there to boat, the Boating Center on the south side of Higgins is your spot. They rent kayaks and rowboats, but honestly, bring your own if you have one. The rental line on a holiday weekend is soul-crushing.
Also, watch the weather. Because the preserve is essentially a giant bowl designed to hold water, the trails can get slick or even flooded in lower sections after a massive downpour.
Actionable Insights for Your Next Trip:
- Go Early or Late: The "Golden Hour" (an hour after sunrise or before sunset) is when the light hits the water perfectly and the crowds are thinnest.
- Fish the "Shelves": If you’re angling, look for the drop-offs near the bridges. The current from Salt Creek moving into the reservoir creates oxygen-rich spots where the big ones hide.
- The Hidden Groves: Park at the smaller, less popular lots like the ones off Golf Road (the north side). You’ll find quieter picnic spots and easier access to the unpaved nature preserve.
- Respect the Elk: It sounds obvious, but don't feed them. They have a very specific diet managed by vets, and human food can actually make them sick or encourage aggressive behavior toward the fences.
- Pack it Out: Busse Woods gets heavy foot traffic. The trash cans fill up fast. If you bring it in, take it home. Keeping this place clean is a collective suburban duty.
The reality of Ned Brown Preserve Busse Woods is that it’s a hard-working landscape. It manages floods, preserves ancient trees, protects a weird herd of Montana-native elk, and provides a mental health escape for millions of people. It’s not a pristine wilderness—you’ll always hear the hum of a jet or the roar of a semi—but it’s a vital piece of the Illinois landscape that reminds us what this land looked like before the skyscrapers took over.
Next time you’re driving past on the highway, take the exit. Even twenty minutes by the water changes your whole perspective on the day.