The sun was shining, the temperature perfect and all in all a great day to go for a walk down memory lane in Arlington Heights this morning. When my family arrived in the USA back in 1996 we came on a visa and needed a home to rent for the first 2 years. We found the perfect home for our family in Creekside Arlington Heights, a subdivision close to Nichol Knoll Park and 9 hole golf course.

entrance to nickol knoll park and golf course

We lived on Nichols Road directly in front of the golf course and every now and then a ball used to pop over the fence and land in our yard. My kids were young and for them it was fun. However it did represent a danger to drivers so after a while the park district installed a high netting fence where most of the balls came over to prevent any accidents. I loved Nickol Knoll, not because I played golf but it has a fabulous walking path around the park. Nickol Knoll is very hilly. Believe me if you want a leg work out try walking around the park on the walking path a couple of times, you’ll get leg burn the first few times you try it.  Walter Payton who used to live in Arlington Heights often used the pathway for training, the park district have even named a part of the hill after him and there is a plaque at the top with his name on.

Here is a view of  Arlington Heights homes taken from the top, it’s a fall day but a lot of the trees are still mostly green.

views of Westridge from the top of Nickol knoll

On a clear day like today you can just see the skyline of Chicago. It would not show very well in a photo and was a little hazy today. It’s also a great place to view July 4th firework displays from and I remember taking the boys up to do that a few times, even when we moved areas, we still went back there. Nickol Knoll is best known as a nine hole golf course. While I am not an expert it looks like it could be quite a challenge. On this hilly terrain it must be hard just standing straight let alone hitting and not losing your ball over a precipice. I expect the players have a fun time here.

golf green at nickol knoll

For almost 2 years I walked my dog around the walking path, you would think it was ingrained into my head. Today I drove to the top, not being lazy, just had lots to get done..but I could not find the path. Either it was just too long ago or they might have changed the path a little. Anyway I found it after a few minutes and got that leg burn as I walked to the very top to get my photos.

walking path at nickol knoll park and views across the golf course

Arlington Heights has a lot of choice in real estate. You can find homes for sale in Arlington Heights and read more on Creekside, Terramere and Westridge at our Arlington Heights community information center.