I'm currently living in Dupage county, due to personal reasons I'll be relocating soon. I have an opportunity to get a decent place in Coal City for a ridiculously low rent. I'll be commuting back to this area for work. I'm going to check it out in the next few weeks. Anything I should know?

I'm in Coal City every two weeks. I think it is a nice little community. For a small community, it seems to be very active. They have a couple decent Italian and Mexican restaurants and there is a bar named Babes that has good burgers. If you are in to grilling, check out Berkots, the grocery store. They make their own sausage and brats that are good. Hope this helps.

Quiet town.  Not much going on.  Pretty close to the ISRA range so that is worth joining

if you need a place to shoot.  We have a lot of hill jacks around here.  Not exactly the

same culture as DuPage.  Just depends on how much you like the bigger suburban amenities

I guess.  If you can deal with a 1/2 hour drive to get anything but the basics it won't be a bad

place to live.


Seems like there's an awful lot of heroin and drugs in the area anymore.  Compared to 20 years

ago anyway.  Doesn't seem to have created any major crime waves that I've noticed though,

just a few things here and there.

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like exactly what I'm looking for. I've been itching to get the hell out of here and begin to live a quieter, simpler life. I enjoy kayaking, biking, hiking and fishing. The range time I get now is an hour north of where I'm at now, a buddy's farm that he's got set up for 500 yards. Those visits will probably be cut down, so the fact that there's a range that I can join is a plus.

The Kankakee River has both kayaking and good smallmouth fishing from Kankakee to Wilmington.

Just don't go over the dam at Wilmington and kill yourself.  You can launch a boat at Des Plaines Conservation Area

and from there down to the Des Plaines river any size boat is fine.  Upstream is rapids and the dam,

kayak/canoe only for the most part with some pool areas excepted.  I believe you can put in a canoe

at Kankakee State Park and take out at Rivals Park at the old RXR bridge (also a biking trail on the old

RXR grade - goes all the way to Mokena?)


Tons of other fishing spots.  Large number of private clubs that own the old strip mine pits (access

to memberships is usually limited with a waiting list).  The clubs all have camping too.

Public fishing also at Mazonia, Heidecke, Braidwood Lake.


Free public trap range at Des Plaines Conservation area.  They used to have camping, but don't

know if they still do.


Biking/Hiking - check out Midwein National Tallgrass Prairie (Wilmington), I&M Canal Trail (Channahon

to Morris), or Kankakee River State Park (1/2 way between Wilmington and Kankakee).


ISRA range is 20 miles away.  Rt. 113 to Warner Bridge Rd. then south on Warner Bridge.  About 6miles?

on your left.  Go to IRSA website for member info.

Wow, thanks for such a thorough reply, sounds like there's plenty to keep us busy. We'll be visiting the house in the next few weeks, if it checks out should be moved in sometime in May. Sounds like we'll be in for a great summer!

Nice town.  I live in Morris.  Which is probably where you will end up doing most of your shopping.

So you may want to,check out what that commute will actually be like.

55 north can be hellish between 7am and 9.  South is just as bad for the afternoon.

59 is very heavy traffic with lots of lights.

Now if your travel is off hours it can be a breeze.  I'm in Essex which is the other side of the Braidwood cooling lake from Coal City.  I can normally make it to the O'Hare remote lots in about a 1:20.  On bad days it can be over two hours.  

Welcome!

Thanks for the heads up, I'll be commuting during off hours, but the commute has been a factor, been having second thoughts