The soft dirt path below stretches for miles; around me are a dizzying number of sun-dappled shades of green, with bright blue sky and dark-as-night trees poking through. Around a bend, yellow wildflowers pop out of the underbrush, where curious deer and rustling ground squirrels (squinnies to this Iowan) startle. Overhead, a shadow passes. I grab my camera to catch it-not a hawk or an owl, but a plane coming in to land at the airport less than 5 miles away. The juxtaposition of scenes feels surreal until I remember: I'm in Chicago.
Mid-pandemic and filled with wanderlust, my husband, Tom, and I bought a condo in the city for long getaways and more time with our two adult kids who live there. Keeping our home base in Des Moines, we toggle between two very different living styles in neighboring states. We're equally happy hiking and exploring rural Iowa as we are hustling through busy streets to catch the L train for a night of live music. So when I heard about the Chicago Outerbelt, a 210mile trail that encircles the entirety of the city, I was intrigued. I set a summer goal: Complete as many miles as I could and learn more about our new part-time home.
The trail is the brainchild of outdoors enthusiast Jay Readey, who cofounded the Outerbelt Alliance with Benjamin Cox, Emily Leu and Molly Fitzgibbon. The nonprofit's mission is to promote eco-recreation in metro environments and engage diverse communities in outdoor experiences. Chicago has an astounding network of rec trails and green space, many found along rivers and lakes. (There are 70,000 acres of preserves in Cook County alone!) The Alliance mapped one big, grand loop by charting connector routes between existing trails. "The waterways did the work for us," Readey says. "We just needed to connect them."
Denne historien er fra Spring 2024-utgaven av Midwest Living.
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Denne historien er fra Spring 2024-utgaven av Midwest Living.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
At Long Last - At sunny meadows flower farm in Columbus, Ohio, the same cutting beds that feed summer's fresh bouquets also provide bunches of everlastings for use in dried arrangements
At sunny meadows flower farm in Columbus, Ohio, the same cutting beds that feed summer's fresh bouquets also provide bunches of everlastings for use in dried arrangements and wreaths-both their own creations and yours. color us inspired.
NATURAL FIT
WITH LANDSCAPES NEAR AND FAR AS THEIR GUIDE, A MINNEAPOLIS COUPLE BUILT A NEW HOME THAT COMPLEMENTS ITS ESTABLISHED NEIGHBORHOOD AND SOFTENS THE LINE BETWEEN INDOORS AND OUT.
COLOR SHOW
FALL IS A BIT LIKE THE HOLIDAYS, WITH SPECTACULAR DISPLAYS OF COLOR AND LIGHT EVERYWHERE-EXCEPT NATURE DOES THE DECORATING. TREAT YOURSELF TO THE SEASON'S SIGHTS AND SOUNDS ON A VISIT TO ONE OF THESE DAZZLING PARKS.
IT'S CHILI TIME
AT A TAILGATE, A CAMPOUT OR JUST BECAUSE IT'S FALL, NOTHING HITS LIKE CHILI. AND FEW MEALS STOKE MORE REGIONAL PRIDE AND DEBATE. (TEXANS, WE SEE YOU. WE RESPECT YOU. BUT WE LIKE BEANS.) SO WE'RE GIVING YOU FIVE NEW CHILI RECIPES INCLUDING ONE FOR LEGIT CINCINNATI CHILI-PLUS CHEESY SCALLION CORNBREAD AND AN ODE TO CINNAMON ROLLS. (DON'T ASK. JUST READ ON.)
The GREAT ESCAPES
IN WISCONSIN AND MINNESOTA, HISTORIC LAKESIDE RESORTS KEEP ALIVE A CENTURY OF TRADITION. GENERATION AFTER GENERATION, THEY HAVE YET TO GO OUT OF STYLE.
TWO FOR ONE
PLAN A FALL WEEKEND TO BENTON HARBOR AND ST. JOSEPH, MICHIGAN, AND YOU'LL HAVE DOUBLE THE FUN.
DAY OF THE DEAD
DURING DÍA DE MUERTOS (NOVEMBER 1-2), TRADITION HOLDS THAT THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE SPIRIT AND LIVING WORLDS WEAKENS, ALLOWING A REUNION WITH PASSED LOVED ONES. HERE ARE SIX PLACES TO CELEBRATE.
MAIN ATTRACTION
FRESH LOCAL FARE AND SLEEK COFFEE SHOPS RUB SHOULDERS WITH STYLISH BOUTIQUES AND VINTAGE MARKETS IN MOUNT VERNON, IOWA.
A CHANGING LANDSCAPE
GLACIERS ONCE SHAPED THE TERRAIN OF SIOUX FALLS, SOUTH DAKOTA. TODAY, PEOPLE DO. THEIR IMPRINT SHOWS EVERYWHERE IN A LIVELY FOOD AND COCKTAIL SCENE, THROUGH A KALEIDOSCOPE OF OUTDOOR ART, AND AT A WATERFALL PARK THAT LOOKS BETTER THAN EVER.
PEAR HUGS
AS COMFORTING AS A LIFELONG FRIENDSHIP (AND AS SPECIAL TOO), THESE PEARS COME WRAPPED IN PASTRY, DRIZZLED WITH CARAMEL AND INFUSED WITH GOOD FEELS.
