Excellent hiking trail. We came here because starved rock was closed due to tornado and storms. The trails are simple enough for a family but offer a great view of the river. They also have a few buffalos that school children bought. Really adds to the buffalo name, which was was originally created because of the look of the rocks from the river.

Nice little park close to Matthiessen and Starved Rock. Only a fraction of the size. Good for an hour or two. They have picnic areas with a pavilion and flushing toilets. Also has a playground for children and a baseball field. The shorter trails make it good for children also. There’s a couple inclines on the river trail but the prairie path is flat. And I can’t forget they have three live bison. A mother, father, and baby.

We had such a lovely day there! It was nice when no one was there. Its really sad that they cut down that beautiful tree, among many others. I wish more people would wear masks.

Waterfront trails are a must see! They have a little family of buffalo that live here. They are caged up (with plenty of room) so theres no need to worry about wild buffalo. There are picnic tables galore and a ton of places to park. There are a few different areas to explore and its usually not very busy.

This park only has a single main trail, and it isnt that long. It also lacks the variety and views youd get at neighboring Starved Rock. The park appears to have some history, which would make it more interesting. But unfortunately, there are numerous informational sites with missing signage. Almost every informational site was missing its sign, so one has no idea what significance the marked locations have.

Less crowded than Starved Rock and beautiful overlook of the Illinois River from 60 feet up. 3 Buffalo includes baby. Clean bathrooms and picnic tables. Short walk to scenic overlooks. Good stop for children and dogs.

Loved seeing the live buffalo. A great place for a walk. Great place for a picnic. Look up, you might see Bald Eagles.

The poor buffalo in the fencing do not look like they have enough room to roam nor enough grass to eat :( the hike is pretty uneventful and the main overlook is shut down.

Nice park, more open with less trees than places like starved rock so it’s really not good for a hot day but it’s a nice prairie type walk. I’d say 4 stars but the bison on site look sad and like they don’t have that much room. Kinda a bummer to think they just sit there alone in the heat all day while people stare at them.

We did not visit any of the trails, the sole purpose of our visit was to see the bisons and we were lucky enough to spot the family of bisons near the fence. It was a great experience for the kids.

Great trails. Lots of parking. Great views. The buffalo were nice to see. The young one looked happy and content.

The flat trail are rate for just about any person (wheel chairs may not be able to go far on gravel). There off limit trails with steep short descent/climbs.Dont let a child get close to an off limit cliff. Follow the signs posted

Very nice park. short trails with great scenery

I will not return! What a bizarre place. Firstly, the random real buffalo are kept behind a chain link fence in a decidedly uncelebrated way, very much an afterthought. All of the pictures you see online of people near the pretty rock formation are technically not supposed to be there, there’s a large sign that says “RESTRICTED ZONE” right before you can reach that spot. Finally, the park is way too close to a gun range, you can hear the loud and steady popcorn POP pop POP of gunshots the entire time you’re anywhere on the trail. Not at all relaxing, there’s no way to feel like you’re in nature when you’re preoccupied by the sound of patriotic ‘mericans exercising their rights or whatever. The only reason I’m giving it two stars instead of one is that the buffalo didn’t look unhealthy and we were there in the afternoon on Labor Day and it wasn’t crowded. All in all we weren’t having it and neither was this chihuahua.

We havent visited in years but we were so glad we went!! We got to see the baby buffalo named Hope with her momma and papa. It was so cool. We were a little disappointed to find the lookout part closed that we always walked down but still definitely worth going!!!

Amazing view from where I sat, look this place up and visit while is warm if you ever around the area. I don’t recommend visiting while it’s cold due to slippery surfaces lol.

Easy access to the rim views of the Illinois river. Spent an enjoyable hour taking in the sites

They have two adult Buffalo and one calf fenced in. A little league baseball field, plenty of open space to hang out including a large shelter with picnic tables and a fireplace. A short hike to a deck that overlooks the Illinois River very beautiful to watch the sunset.

Beautiful large park with hiking trails and 3 Buffalo. Great place for a picnic and scenic views

The Fall colors did not disappoint! Much better than the 3 grumpy Bison

Nice place but very noisy from the gun firing at the near by gun range.Very loud gunfire on sunday.

It was fun me and a friend miles went there and we walked around the scenery was nice and so colorful

Small park nice trail. Well maintained. They have a couple of buffalo that were neat to see. Great view of the river.

Better than most think. Some pretty good trials and a good area to have a party during the day.

Nice place to bring family have a picnic and hang. Trails are decent

I forgot how nice this place was, and the park was not overcrowded.

This was a great alternative to Starved Rock and Mathiessen which had closed due to storms. Easy trails and not too crowded at 9:30 am.

Trails are well maintained but not as picturesque views as Starved Rock or Matthiessen. Large portions of the trails are not shaded, so plan accordingly.

Beautiful smaller park that is less crowded than the bigger ones.

Gorgeous walk and scenery. Pretty hot being out in the open but lovely experience with the grasslands.

Love Buffalo Rock my absolute favorite State Park to go! They have lotsof great views of the river, plenty of picnic space, playground for the children and even have Buffalos for everyone to look at.

Nice state park!

Its okay. Trails are decent. Loud fireworks-like noise can be heard while walking at the trail. Have a lot of open space for picnic and playing games.

Nice place lots of great views.

Nice quiet area picnic area for bringing our fast food lunch to eat. Be sure to visit the scenic overlook.

A lot of walking but not a lot of things to see. Most trails are in the open with little shade. Nice gravel trails.

Its nice although there are some steps.

Beautiful views of the Illinois River valley and historical.

Clean well maintained park. Live Buffalo are well cared for and the park is easy to get to

Beautiful place! Entrance is hidden, must slow down to see it. Camp site is across from the mountain. Must park and walk. Only $6.00 per site! Bisons are up in the mountain. Trails were closed due to recent tornados. Richard was very helpful and pleasant.

Stopped to see the Buffalo and ended up going on a hike. This place was so serene that I didnt notice I was walking until we were halfway down the path. The grounds reminded me of when I was a kid and fields of open grass still existed. Peaceful

Stopped by traveling between Starved Rock & Ottawa. Admittedly, we were all hiked out, having spent the morning and early afternoon hiking 10+ miles at Starved Rock, so we didnt do a whole lot more than mosey from the parking lot to the closest river overlook. Also, the bison werent out of their shelter, so that was a bit of a bummer, but not totally unexpected.

Not only is there nothing to do here but look at some buffalo in a small enclosure, but we cant hear any birds over all the gunfire at a nearby range, which sounds pretty similar to the finale of a firework show, and didnt cease at all the entire time we were here.

Decent trail, theres a park for the children and they can see some live Buffalo.

Not worth my drive just a lot of fields to look at mabey one nice overlook of river, and the baby baffalo were nice to see.

Nice park cant wait till later this spring.

Nice sites and trail. Kind of run down, looks forgotten

Home of a pair of American Bisons...Great creatures....And a little find...

No views here to capture really. Also its a hunting season in November so can hear a gun shoots a lot. Be careful walking on the hiking trail... there is nothing to see or photograph on this location.

Great, underrated park to visit. Starved Rock gets the name recognition, but Buffalo Rock is a very nice park as well. No crowds and short, easy trail loops. Perfect for a quick stop.

Great get away for the day!

I actually saw two Buffalo. It is the first time Ive seen buffalo in a park setting.

Go down the trail that says not a hiking trail.

Buffalo are well cared for.. beautiful!!

It was ok. Not much to look at

Paths are wide, not to long, the Buffalo are easy to see ..

Nice easy trails.

Good for seeing buffalo and going on a hike. Buffalo are seen well, what can I say? We saw what we came to see!

Take the river walk. This park is great for beginner and young hikers or hikers looking for safer trails than Starved Rock and Matthiessen park.

Perfect park--great hiking trails, and no crowds. We had the entire park to ourselves so we could really appreciate the beauty without bumping into someone every few minutes.

The BISON were super chill. Cool shaded area for viewing. Saw no buffaloes however.

No stairs like Starved Rock has. Much easier hike.

This is an ok trail. It is all prairie and on a hot summer day is no fun to walk. The prettiest part of this place is the drive in. Very beautiful. If you want a little walk with kids that maybe in a stroller good option. The I&M canal trail is just down the road. Totally recommend. Good for a walk, bike or baby stroller.

Close to Starved Rock, but not as crowded. Benches along easy trails. Nice overlooks of the river. Picnic area with grills. Clean washrooms. 2 buffaloes in a pasture!

Clean, peaceful, lovely buffalo family here

Great park, and we got to see two Buffaloes right up front at the parking lot!

Great time with the family. Plenty of picnic tables, grills, pavilion with a fire place. Playground for kids. Very quiet. Was the perfect 4th of July Park to spend with my family. Glory be to God.

Nice picnic area and cleaner than Starved Rock. Does not have many miles of trails but good for picnicking and bring the family.

The trail was really nice, we took a double stroller and made it most of the way with no problems. I wouldnt recommend a wheelchair, because most of the path is gravel.

Interesting

Great to take a group for a picnic or for the kids to play on a playground. I felt sorry for the poor buffalo, while we were there, a group of kids kept shooting nerfed guns at him. :(

This is a clean park with well groomed, scenic trails and two well kept bison. Unfortunately, the trails need maps, and informational markers or signage. Luckily, I had obtained a park brochure from another park.

Quiet place to relax

10/10 got lost in woods, would go again

Love the place where you can enjoy been outdoors and see buffalos right next to you.The place its just great for time of relaxation.

Beautiful place to stay around

Beautiful scenery!

Very quiet and beautiful!

Nice relaxing walk

Great place to sit outside for lunch

Beautiful place

Perfect place

Only saw it from trolly tour.

Live buffalo. They stink when its hot out. I live near so I enjoy going up to check on them.Great river views up there. Hopefully they open up some more of the trails soon. Lots closed recently but still plenty to see. Picnic tables and grills. Big open grassy area. Great for wandering around and sunsets.

It feels like a whole different state, like Wisconsin.

Nice spot for vacations with family and friends. Nice play ground for children

This is a quaint little place for a quick hike or some views. The paths are not very well marked but if you look you will find them. Bathrooms werent too shabby, which I was surprised for a place like this.

Nice state park

The bison just had a calf

Lota of open space, multiple trails, picnic areas, huge pavilion; nice and peaceful place.

Neat rock formation, neat forest, parks, shelters, pretty cool!

We were looking forward to seeing the bluffs that are on many pictures on the website.... but no rocky areas/bluffs to see. Im thinking they may have closed a few trails? There were prairie trails.... and they were nice. However our nature walk was interrupted with a lot of gunfire from a nearby outdoor shooting range.Effigies? None were marked or obvious, except on the paper map and website. This is also advertised, but there was nothing to really see. Placed that used to hold signs were blank. I know the state has financial issues, but this park needs some new signage and tlc. We enjoyed our walk, but missed seeing the bluffs. There were a few areas where we could see the river, but that was all.The drive into the park is really nice and the bathroom facilities are bigger than many parks.

Was unaware they have Bison there. Pretty cool to see them. The trails were very simple and easy, could be a great place for a beginner or just a quick stroll outdoors.

Lots of family fun!!

This is always a nice place to spend the day or end your long day in the area.

Love going here on my camping trips to starved rock. Brought my Alaskan malamute with this year. She seemed upset the buffalo didnt want to play. Kind of glad they didnt lol.

Its an awesome place and the Buffalo are amazing

Nice trails, especially for younger kids. Good views of the river. Has a small playground and pavilion with bathrooms and running water.

Been there many times from my childhood era to present day nice place to picnic at at a flushing restrooms kept clean and grounds also a hiking trail keep kids close by.

This place was a really cool find. The park is at the top of a hill overlooking the Illinois River. Lo and behold, they have buffalos! Note the banner makes a lot more sense. Two beautiful buffalos, a play gym for kids, nice bungalows for picnics and nice trails. Highly recommend for an easy quick hike.