A beautiful, hilly area of Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota that will have you saying, “Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in the flat Midwest anymore.” A story about a company that puts its employees and protecting the environment ahead of profit 40-foot limestone cliffs, a stream, beautiful waterfalls, and a pond–all in Chicago's Bridgeport … Continue reading The 8 Most-Popular Stories at Nature in Chicagoland in November 2019
North Park Village Nature Center, Chicago, Illinois (copyright Andrew Morkes) UPDATED NOVEMBER 2024 For the 10 straight year, outdoor gear and sporting goods retailer REI has announced that it will close its 181 stores in the United States on Black Friday (November 29, the biggest shopping day of the year), process no online sales, and … Continue reading Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of REI’s #OptOutside Movement and 10+ Chicagoland Nature Spots to Visit on Black Friday and Beyond
UPDATED AUGUST 2025 Flat. Boring. These are two common words that come to mind when people think of much of the Midwest. But there's a special place in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin that features limestone bluffs, rolling hills, wooded valleys, waterfalls, creeks, wetlands, rivers, caves, Native American Effigy Mounds, and rare ecosystems and plant … Continue reading Author and Professor Discusses the Magical Driftless Area
Ghost stories of Chicago’s southwest suburbs and my own ghost story The wildest nature destination in Cook County The story of a 100-year-old home gobbled up by developers The only open-water quaking bog in Illinois 2,500 acres of rolling hills and towering cliffs above the confluence of the great Mississippi and Apple Rivers 8 places to … Continue reading THE 10 MOST-POPULAR STORIES AT NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND IN OCTOBER 2019
Sagawau Environmental Learning Center (12545 West 111th Street, Lemont, IL 60439, 630/257-2045, Facebook) is a perfect destination in all seasons. In the spring and summer, visit it for wildflower viewing, birdwatching (more than 100 species of migrant and resident birds are found at the center), a diverse range of hiking trails (there are 2.6 miles … Continue reading Sagawau Environmental Learning Center: The Only Canyon in Cook County, Great Hiking and Cross-Country Skiing, and Much More
The story of a 100-year-old home gobbled up by developers Ghost stories of Chicago's southwest suburbs and my own ghost story Hawks and hills, sloughs and snakes, and buried nuclear waste, oh my! 8 places to see bison in Chicagoland and the Midwest A beautiful and tranquil nature center on Chicago’s Southwest Side Beautiful, secluded … Continue reading The 10 Most-Popular Stories at Nature in Chicagoland in September 2019
Congress finally did something right! Earlier this year, Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore (IDNL) became Indiana Dunes National Park (IDNP), making it the country's 61st national park and the first in Indiana. The debate continues on whether Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore deserved national park status (a category that offers far more protections than other National Park … Continue reading Indiana Dunes National Park: Our Nation’s Newest National Park
40-foot limestone cliffs, a stream, beautiful waterfalls, and a pond--all on Chicago's South Side Troll-hunting at Morton Arboretum (act fast; they're going away next spring) Beautiful, secluded beaches, towering sand dunes, and top-notch hiking trails just 50 miles from Chicago Secluded beaches, towering cliffs, great camping, shipwrecks, and lighthouses Great hiking and fantastic views of … Continue reading The 10 Most-Popular Stories at Nature in Chicagoland in August 2019
BY ANDREW MORKES, FOUNDER & AUTHOR OF NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND Looking for something to do this Labor Day weekend beyond? If so, check out these 16 great places on Chicago's South Side and in its south and southwest suburbs. I've also included Indiana Dunes National Park, our nation's newest national park, and it's just as … Continue reading 16 South Chicagoland Nature Wonders: Great Destinations on the South Side and in the South Suburbs to Check Out This Weekend and Beyond
BY ANDREW MORKES, FOUNDER AND AUTHOR OF NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND UPDATED 2023 If I had a second wife, she would be Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, which is located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan about 425 miles from Chicago. I have hiked its beautiful trails, hunted agates and fossils and collected driftwood on its rocky … Continue reading Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore: Wilderness, Waterfalls, Great Hiking and Camping, and Much More