Today, I will be your maple syrup guide as you hike up your sweatpants in your seat. Here we go! First question:Which is more expensive? Pancake syrup or pure maple syrup? Next:Which takes more time and energy to produce? Same choices. Finally:Which tastes better? Scroll down to see more photos and read more about Maple … Continue reading Maple Syrup Hikes at Ryerson Woods
We piled into our seats, and paused before we got going. Our journey was about to begin. The destination was River Trail Nature Center. That was decades ago. That was my first visit to River Trail Nature Center for an elementary school field trip. I vividly remember our school bus pulling up to the front … Continue reading River Trail Nature Center
What is human nature? Is it base? Or something greater? Are we apart from nature or a part of it? We ask the questions for which we seek the answers. It’s human nature. Scroll down to see more photos and read more about Human + Nature at The Morton Arboretum. “I am amazed by the … Continue reading Human + Nature
Welcome to The Simple Luxuries. Thank you for visiting my WordPress blog. That was my introduction on April 1, 2019. Fifty-two posts later, we are moving forward into our third year. Although the current availability of places to visit and things to try have been limited, we hope to join everyone soon like a wave … Continue reading Year Two: Review
Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, IL 60022 “Whose woods these are I think I know.His house is in the village though;He will not see me stopping hereTo watch his woods fill up with snow.” Robert Frost (aptly named) wrote my favorite poem of all time, “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” … Continue reading Self-Guided Woods Walk at Chicago Botanic Garden
Van Patten Woods, 15838 West Route 173, Wadsworth, IL 60083 It’s late summer: the chorus of crickets chirping, the distant note of a fire pit, and the mellow tones of glorious sunsets. Pumpkins can wait. I want to hold on tight to the light. I want to embrace the warmth in a long hug. It’s … Continue reading 22nd Annual Hike Lake County
The “Patron” of the peloton, he knows the rules. His nickname shows he is loved. Weighed down with expectation, he is the nearly man, The “Eternal Second.” Still he battles on against them all, against history. A part of the landscape that formed him. …The Frenchman —Rapha Racing Ltd.; Inside Stories: A Collection of Rapha … Continue reading Virtual Tour de France on Zwift
117 Sheridan Road, Lake Forest, IL 60045 Fort Sheridan. For many years this was a U.S. Army base not open to the public. Now everyone can enjoy the site’s natural beauty and historic artifacts with everything so well preserved! Scroll down to see more photos and read more about Walk with a Naturalist: Fort Sheridan. … Continue reading Walk with a Naturalist: Fort Sheridan
900 West Belvidere Road, Round Lake, IL 60073 Did you ever feel like you got a raw deal from Punxsutawney Phil? Did you ever wish they would just let him be? Did you ever wonder how close we were to spring actually arriving? We have arrived for a Sunrise Stroll at Nippersink Forest Preserve in … Continue reading Sunrise Stroll: Nippersink
1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, IL 60022 In October of last year, Lisa and I received an invitation in the mail from Chicago Botanic Garden to purchase advance tickets for Night of 1,000 Jack-o’-Lanterns. We were members and so were afforded this choice opportunity. Never having heard of this event, on a whim, we decided … Continue reading Night of 1,000 Jack-o’-Lanterns
The Simple Luxuries 