Happy Winter from the Lake County Forest Preserves!
Video by Brett Peto
Whether venturing outside for fresh air and exercise, or finding a gorgeous spot to sit quietly and reflect on the past year, we find great peace in the Lake County Forest Preserves.
Thank you all for following along on our adventures this year. We encourage you to find a quiet spot to just breathe—perhaps the still woodlands of Captain Daniel Wright Woods:
Cheers to a new winter and peaceful new year!
Post by Jen Berlinghof
This winter’s lack of snow has made enjoying the winter woods a little more difficult for me. So, when a scant few inches of snow fell last week I made my way to Old School Forest Preserve at dusk to explore one of the Lake County Forest Preserves solar-lit trails.
Inky black branches of old oaks played in contrast to the white-washed sky before the blush of an orange sherbet sunset took over. The woods were still and quiet as I searched for any signs of crepuscular creatures that capitalize on the twilight. Continue reading
Post by Allison
The wooded habitats along the Des Plaines River in southern Lake County, Illinois are changing. Last winter, the Lake County Forest Preserves completed 194 acres of canopy and understory thinning in woodland communities at MacArthur Woods and Grainger Woods Forest Preserves. This winter, woodland habitat restoration has begun at Captain Daniel Wright Woods and Ryerson Conservation Area, in addition to continuing at MacArthur Woods.
The restoration and species monitoring that will continue within these natural areas for the next 20 years will help ensure the sustainability of oak woodlands and the wildlife they support for many generations to come.
Winter visitors to these preserves, or vehicular passersby, will notice the use of heavy equipment, burning piles of brush, and an already visible difference in the openness of the woodland landscape. A number of canopy trees are being removed to increase the amount of sunlight reaching the ground. Visit these areas again when the leaves return, and early results of the Woodland Habitat Restoration Project will be obvious. Continue reading
This time of the year brings dazzling firework shows high in the sky. But, look closer to the ground in grassy yards and woodlands, and you will catch that same sense of awe as a myriad of lights burst, creating nature’s very own fireworks display. Watching and catching fireflies is one of the most quintessential summer experiences in the Midwest. There is a giddiness in holding a creature in your hand and watching it glow before it flies away to join the show. Continue reading
When the first days of March roll around in northern Illinois, many of us search desperately for the first signs of spring. For some, it may be the green “sprouttles” of spring beauties thrusting themselves out of the leaf-matted soil. For others, it might be hearing the two-toned territorial call of a chickadee or the pungent smell of skunk cabbage. For many, it may just be the feel of mud squashing under their boots on the hike to find any and all signs of early spring.
For me, the first sign of spring is not something you can see, hear, smell or feel. It is what is happening in silent mystery beneath the bark of the sugar maple trees—the first run of sap. This typically occurs in Lake County around Valentine’s Day, far before anyone is thinking about spring.
Lake County Nature 