BY ANDREW MORKES, FOUNDER AND AUTHOR OF THE NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND BLOG UPDATED JUNE 2025 Spending outdoors is great unless the weather is life-threatingly cold or hot or other conditions (e.g., wildfire smoke) exist that make it unsafe. But on some days, we just need to stay safe. The good news: there are many nature … Continue reading More Than 20 Indoor Places to Visit in the Chicago Area on a Freezing or Boiling Hot Day
BY ANDREW MORKES, FOUNDER AND AUTHOR OF NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND Many forests in Canada are on fire due to global warming and other factors, which has currrently made Chicago and other Midwestern cities very smoky. This smoke is hazardous to our health and today is not a good day to take a long hike or … Continue reading 23 Indoor Places to Visit in Chicagoland on a Canadian-Wildfire, Smoke-Filled Day or Just a Rainy or Wintry One
BY ANDREW MORKES, FOUNDER & AUTHOR OF NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND 2023: Check out 20 Indoor Places to Visit in Chicagoland on a Canadian-Wildfire-Apocalyptic, Smoke-Filled Day or Just a Rainy or Wintry One for an updated and expanded version of this article. This weekend in Chicagoland is expected to be rainy. While you may not be … Continue reading 8 Indoor Places to Visit in Chicagoland During a Rainy, Fall Weekend
Chicagoland is baking in a 90+ degree heat wave. Heat indexes are expected to exceed 105 degrees during the next few days. A hike, horseback ride, or run in the forest preserves are probably not on your list of must-do activities during this extended summer scorcher, but there are many indoor nature- or history-oriented spots … Continue reading More Than 10 Nature Centers and Other Destinations to Visit to Beat the Heat
BY ANDREW MORKES, FOUNDER AND AUTHOR OF NATURE IN CHICAGOLAND UPDATED AUGUST 2023 Massive bugs are everywhere at Fullersburg Woods Nature Education Center (3609 Spring Road, Oak Brook, IL 60523, 630/850-8110), which is located in Fullersburg Woods Forest Preserve. A five-foot-long praying mantis perches atop the entrance to the center, a large grasshopper peers down … Continue reading Fullersburg Woods Nature Education Center: Big Bugs, Tons of Fun Activities for Kids, and Great Hiking Trails
BY ANDREW MORKES (updated July 2021) Breaking News: There’s a wormhole near Ogden Avenue and I-294. When my 8-year-old son and I were pulled into it on Tuesday, we were transported back to 1852. In this year: Millard Fillmore was president of the United States. Chicago was not even 20 years old. Levi Strauss had … Continue reading Graue Mill and Museum: Learn About Life in Illinois in the 1800s, the Underground Railroad, and Much More