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Tag Archives: Forest Preserve District of Will County

Backyard games

words and images Posted on March 18, 2023 by dlschirfSeptember 17, 2023

On August 12, 2021, the United States Postal Service issued “Backyard Games,” sure to appeal to the nostalgic baby boomer like me.

481204-Z0
Backyard Games stamps
“Backyard Games” issued by the United States Postal Service August 12, 2021 (usps.com)

Per USPS:

The stamp pane features eight unique designs illustrating eight backyard games:

  • badminton
  • bocce
  • cornhole
  • croquet
  • flying disc
  • horseshoes
  • tetherball
  • variation on pick-up baseball

Each design emphasizes the movement of the game pieces, giving a dynamic quality to the artwork, with a simplified style that evokes the nostalgic feeling of playing backyard games as a child.

Later my brother scanned some old slides, likely taken when he was home from the Army. They included photos of two of my aunts and me playing Pop-A-Lot, a backyard game from Tupperware I’d half forgotten.

Our trailer was at the end of a row, with a field beyond. My dad and the trailer park owner had an understanding. We could use the field next to the trailer rent free if we were willing to mow and maintain it. Our yard on the other side was small and shrank more when my dad planted a shed in the middle of it, so this was a great perk.

field
Part of the trailer park’s field

The field offered us two to three times the space, up to the point it turned into an uneven, weedy, wet depression. My dad had borrowed a glider, which he put on that side of the trailer along with a table and umbrella. (Later he moved them behind the shed for shade. Your choices were roast in the sun all afternoon on one side, or get eaten alive in the evening shade by mosquitoes on the other.)

Dad put up a trellis or two for morning glories and, later, a wild rose he dug out of the wet depression. He got enormous tires to use as raised flowerbeds. He planted a rectangular garden with flowers like zinnias and vegetables like bell peppers, anchored by Virgil’s Arbor Day ash tree at the southwest corner.

Family
Dad’s garden with fence and a piece of the orange-painted metal table; this was around the time of the Pop-A-Lot games (I’m wearing the same shirt)
Frontier graduation 6-24-1979
1979 high school graduation photo shows horseshoes, garden minus fence, and trellis. The glider and table had been moved to the other side

A light pole next to the trailer sported a board with horseshoes tacked to it. I have no idea where they came from. We may have used them once or twice. I loved the idea of having horseshoes, once associated with luck, and wondered if ours had been worn by a horse.

Of course we tossed a flying disc around (maybe a Frisbee). We played badminton; I remember I hit the birdie too hard like it was a tennis ball. Virgil and his friends played a few games of pick-up baseball and even flag football. They were surprised that I could sometimes hit the ball almost as far as the woods. Not bad for a girl eight years younger than her brother and his friends. The trailer park also had a basketball hoop stuck to a light pole in the field. The last time the basket went missing it wasn’t replaced. By then, most of the people who would have used it were gone.

The backyard games we played that aren’t on the list: Jarts and Pop-A-Lot.

The last (and possibly first) time we broke out Jarts, my brother (if I recall correctly) speared the top of his friend’s foot. It was quite gory.

Pop-A-Lot’s packaging said:

  • Fun
  • Safe
  • Develops coordination

Could “safe” has been in response to Jarts, which were as unsafe as anything could get?

I recall it was fun. It looks like my dad’s sisters liked it too (as long as it didn’t muss their hairdos).

IMAG0246-4
Aunt Marietta playing Pop-A-Lot by the driveway
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Aunt Thelma playing Pop-A-Lot in the field (I recognize the sumac behind her)
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Me playing Pop-A-Lot in the field with woods behind me

Although it wasn’t a game, the other backyard activity we indulged in involved water. For a while I had a wading pool — two, actually, one boat shaped and the next round. I outgrew both quickly. We also had a sprinkler attachment for the hose that spun around — it was great fun. The only reason I can think of for not using it more was not wanting to waste too much water.

Diane Virgil sprinkler
I’d forgotten about this sprinkler attachment
pool
The boat wading pool

Sadly, by the time I was old enough to play some of these games, my brother had left for the Army, and his friends had dispersed to begin their own futures. The demographic of the trailer park changed, too, with the families moving out and retirees trying to stretch their pensions moving in.

The Forest Preserve District of Will County’s “Winter Wonderland” at Messenger Woods reminded me of Pop-A-Lot and backyard games, even if they weren’t all “real” games. I could see myself working to consistently get a plushie snowman’s head into a basket on my head. After all, it’s fun, safe, and develops coordination.

Basket toss game
No backyard game is too silly . . .
Posted in Blog, Reminiscence | Tagged family, Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, Illinois, New York, nostalgia, photo, vintage family photos | 1 Reply

Winter Wonderland at Messenger Woods Nature Preserve

words and images Posted on December 10, 2022 by dlschirfMarch 20, 2023
December 4, 2022

While it didn’t snow, this Forest Preserve District of Will County event had a lot to recommend it:

  • Campfires with fixings for smores, plus hot chocolate and doughnuts
  • Bubble machine and music
  • A dancing Bumble
  • Games, including giant Jenga
  • Crafts
  • Tchotchkes
  • Crafts
  • Photo “booth” with the Bumble
  • Enthusiastic Forest Preserve employees and volunteers

And probably more I’m not thinking of. Afterwards, J. and I went to La Crepe Bistro in Homer Glen, then stopped near Swallow Cliff Woods, where the structure befuddled me. I suppose it’s a blind of some kind.

Winter Wonderland at Messenger Woods
Winter Wonderland at Messenger Woods
8 photos
Humble Bumble
Diane at Messenger Woods with basket toss game
Winter Wonderland "snowman"
Snowman heads
La Crepe Bistro
La Crepe Bistro
?
?
Posted in Adventure, Blog | Tagged Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, Forest Preserves of Cook County, photo, Will County | Leave a reply

Rock Run Rookery

words and images Posted on February 9, 2021 by dlschirfSeptember 17, 2023
January 24, 2021

I kept seeing so many references to several bald eagles at Rock Run Rookery that J. and I decided to return.

Alas, except for a possible eagle flying in the distance that J missed, we saw only the usual suspects, which are worth the visit — Canada geese, several species of ducks, gulls, and great blue herons that in this cold snap may be regretting their decision not to migrate. Plus tundra geese! I’ve always wanted to see tundra geese. I didn’t realize what they were until I looked at the photos.

I managed to navigate the slick black ice on the path without falling. Accomplishments.

If the birds weren’t enough there were the views of the setting sun and rising moon to end the foray into the great outdoors. Plus a towboat pushing cargo down the Des Plaines River. I wonder if it made it to Starved Rock Lock and Dam, even if I can’t?

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Camera is not getting much use these days
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Interesting how the geese and ducks formed rows, with a few gulls sneaking in
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Chilly great blue asking resident gulls for fishing advice?
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Tundra swans
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These open patches of water no doubt attract the eagles
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Rising moon
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Setting sun
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End of the trail
Posted in Adventure, Blog, Photography | Tagged Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, photo, wildlife, Will County | Leave a reply

Great blue heron at Rock Run Rookery

Great blue heron at Rock Run Rookery
Great blue heron or Pterodactyl Express?
February 29, 2020 by dlschirf Posted in Blog, Photography Tagged birds, Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, photo, wildlife, Will County Reply

Dragonflies and ice cream

Blue dasher
Blue dasher

I told J this Will County Forest Preserve District program at Monee Reservoir sounded crunchy; I don’t think he quite got it.

I met him at the University Park Metra station, which is not that far north from Monee. For me, it was brutally sunny and hot, but at least I made it through the first part of the program. I had to pass on the second half, a jaunt to another bridge that wasn’t even that far away. At the first, the kids found enough dragonfly and damselfly larvae and other pond critters to keep them engaged for an hour or more, and I wandered off to see what was on the other side (dragonflies, damselflies, butterflies, one elusive Hemaris thysbe moth).

Despite my dropping out partway through, the leader was kind enough to give us ice cream sandwiches. He spent a lot of time answering my questions and showing me illustrative photos. By the time we left the building, where the air conditioning had failed a couple of days earlier, clouds had gathered and the temperature had dropped.

Monee’s not a big town but we found a great cheese and fruit plate, beer, and a light dinner at Labas Latte & Vino. And so back to reality . . . but at least I don’t have to live on 300 mosquitoes an hour.

July 14, 2019 by dlschirf Posted in Blog, Photography Tagged Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, insect, nature, photo, wildlife, Will County Reply

Owl Prowl at Thorn Creek Woods Nature Preserve

words and images Posted on September 17, 2011 by dlschirfSeptember 17, 2023

Last Friday a Thorn Creek Woods Nature Center volunteer left me a voicemail that that evening’s Owl Prowl was off due to rain, postponed to the 16th. As we talked to our guide and others, we learned it wasn’t the rain so much as the result of it — muddy, slippery trail conditions, especially as part of the trail passes through a floodplain.

The volunteers had quite a spread of materials, from handouts to illustrated bird books open to pages about the species we were to hope to hear and/or see — the eastern screech owl, the barred owl, and the great horned owl.

We waited a while for latecomers and no shows. As we were about to set off, a couple with a teenage daughter said she wasn’t feeling well and they’d have to drop out. From the look of her, either she had cramps (I know the feeling), or she’d watched one too many gory horror movies set in the woods and didn’t think setting out on a hike at twilight with a bunch of strangers was a good idea. With our leader and trailer, there were about 14 of us. Surely only the most observant of owls would notice us!

It was past sunset when we did set out. Our guide tried to teach us to use our peripheral vision to look ahead, yet spot trail obstacles like tree roots, fallen trunks or branches, and steps, as well as to look beyond the most prominent foreground objects in the waning light, to use three-dimensional vision to see in the distance in the growing darkness. That I could do, but I couldn’t keep my head and my eyes directed up. Even with looking down in daylight and seeing everything clearly, I tend to walk trippingly — and I’m still plagued by a fear of falling while walking. I did try, though.

At a second stop, our guide tried to show us how to walk more quietly {“stalk” Native American style) by putting the outside ball of the foot down first rather than the heel and rolling the foot in. I tried this, too, slightly more successfully if not consistently. It’s tiring if you’re not used to it, as she pointed out. I also found it’s hard to coordinate all these different ways of doing things — stalking with head up, using peripheral vision, looking into the distance while being aware of the immediate surroundings and obstacles. I’m afraid I lapsed quickly into my usual head-down shuffle. No matter — neither the owls nor anyone else in the woods was fooled.

At one point, most of us heard a branch snap to the right, which we agreed must have been a deer. J. began whispering that there’d been news about eight escaped convicted killers — as though that would make me nervous.

At one point, J. and I are certain we heard a “hoo hoo” or something similar in the distance, although our leader had not. I looked up and around and took in the tangle of branches, leaves, and mysterious shapes against the sky, which seemed brighter than I would have expected, but didn’t see any owl shapes or movements. When we stopped, our leader would do a fair impression of owl calls, but if any owls were about they weren’t fooled into giving up what they were doing to return the calls. I was reminded of a visit to Starved Rock State Park earlier this year. While I was waiting along the trail for J., out of the near silence a great horned owl (I think) began to call from a spot not far off. After several calls, spaced widely apart, they ended as abruptly as they’d begun. I couldn’t have told you the distance or direction; they seemed to be disembodied in the stillness.

As we walked I noticed my night vision is not as good as I remember — but then my memory could be faulty. At a few points, not always in the thickest or darkest patches of woods, I began to be overcome by a feeling of panic because I couldn’t see anything and of vertigo, that the world was tilting and that I was going to lose my balance. Blind and unbalanced — just what you want to be when walking in the woods and over narrow boardwalks and bridges in the dark.

We had been asked not to bring flashlights, which would disrupt our night vision. Our leader and trailer each carried one for emergency use only. That’s why I was surprised when now and then I seemed to see a bit of light coming from behind me, just a flash, enough to help me get or keep my bearings or to see the person in front of me. At times these flashes or hints of light seemed like the disorienting visual tricks that sometimes accompany a migraine, and they made me feel almost queasy.

We walked back relatively quickly and noisily, with many calls of “step!” and “tree root!” for the benefit of those behind. Despite the difficulty I had seeing at times and the resulting disorientation, I was amazed by how bright the sky remained nearly two hours after sunset but before moonrise, which would have been obscured by the cloud cover anyway.

After coffee and cookies and just as we were about to leave, we learned what had really happened to the preserve’s north bridge, which is out and is being rebuilt. I’d assumed that it had become rickety and precarious with time and weather; even now, the remaining south bridge exhibits unevenness and a disturbing tilt. It came up in conversation that the north bridge had been in better shape than its sibling and was being replaced only because someone using tools had systematically dismantled it. One young woman with blue-streaked hair exclaimed grimly, “They’re lucky I didn’t see them because I’d have killed them.” That seemed to be the universal sentiment. I’m trying to imagine what nasty impulse could have prompted such a destructive outburst of energy, which had to have been carefully planned, coordinated, and executed. The perpetrators haven’t been identified.

If only the owls, deer, coyotes, and other animals could talk. I assume they can’t use tools.

After running a quick errand in Park Forest, we settled down to a late dinner at the Chicago Dough Company — not pizza this time, just sandwiches. What a relief. I’m ashamed to say I could not have taken one more step.

Posted in Adventure, Blog | Tagged Chicago, Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, nature, wildlife | Leave a reply

Thorn Creek Woods Nature Center and Preserve, Will County, Illinois

words and images Posted on April 11, 2011 by dlschirfJanuary 7, 2023

Ah, spring. It’s almost in the air. When I noticed trees starting to bud, I checked on my favorite horse chestnut, which last year had turned brown in early August as the result of a fungal infection that plagues its kind. It lives, or at least buds.

On Saturday, the 9th, the weather promised to be spring-like, with a high in the 70s. It didn’t start out very promising, though, being chilly and gray for much of the morning. I decided to trust the forecast.

I took the train, but this time didn’t get off at the Homewood station. I stayed on until the end of the line, University Park. Long ago I somehow associated the “University” part with the University of Chicago — I didn’t get out enough, clearly — but on this day realized that the town and station are named for the nearby Governors State University campus.

After passing through a number of urbanized suburbs (the type that don’t look much different from a city neighborhood), I wasn’t expecting University Park, although I should have. It’s at about this point south where one can still find remnants of farms and swatches of open space. The University Park Metra station is hedged only by its parking lots, roads, and fields.

J. met me at the station, and we did a quick driving tour of Governors State. I wondered if there were any coffee shops on campus because there weren’t any anywhere else nearby. Like most suburban campuses, Governors State was designed for driving, not walking or cycling. On our way in, a giant Paul Bunyan dominated the otherwise empty field to our left. At one juncture, a sprawling metal thing perched atop an elevation, less impressive for its form than for its size and positioning.

Our destination was Thorn Creek Woods Nature Center and Preserve, probably the first Will County forest preserve I’ve been to (J. had walked around it one summer evening some time ago). The center is in a Lutheran church build in 1862. Aside from plain white partitions that form a hallway square around the central area where the congregation would have sat, the missing pews, and a brighter color scheme, it’s supposed to be well preserved. It’s authentic enough to lack indoor plumbing; the chatty volunteer pointed me to the portable toilet in the parking lot that everyone, including staff, uses.

The most striking features are the elevated pulpit in the wall and the rounded ceiling. She explained that the stairs were hidden, which I suspect created the effect of the minister appearing mysteriously from nowhere. Even a 19th-century rural minister can have a touch of the conjurer about him.

We bought T-shirts and walking sticks, and J. entered a raffle for gift baskets in addition to making a donation. The volunteer seemed surprised and pleased by his generosity.

As she told us before and after our walk, it was a perfect day for it. While it was 48º F in Hyde Park, it was 67º F and sunny in Matteson. I’d overdressed.

The terrain here is uneven, with the creek cutting through, and trees grow in odd shapes at odd angles to the ground, or so they appear to when denuded of their foliage. Woodpeckers and other birds flitted about elusively. I can imagine how lovely this place must be in the early summer, when the leaves and the air are still fresh, and the biting insects haven’t quite hit their peak.

Partway along, the trail splits a stand of stately pines, looking like a religious-themed greeting card in the mid- to late afternoon sun. I think I’d read that they had been planted by a farmer.

All around the pine stand and what the volunteer called the salamander pond was the sound of what she’d said are chorus frogs. While prominent, the sound wasn’t deafening or even very loud, making me think of dozens rather than of hundreds or thousands. Often I wonder what these areas were like 500, 400, 300, 200 years ago, before farms and Lutheran churches.

Beyond the pines and pond is a larger body, Owl Lake, which also would be even more beautiful on a summer’s day or early evening.

I’d read in 60 Hikes within 60 Miles of Chicago that Thorn Creek doesn’t get a lot of traffic, which doesn’t surprise me as the population density is low, and the preserve doesn’t offer the the unique features and marvels that make destinations of Starved Rock and Matthiessen State Parks in LaSalle County. We encountered a handful of people on the trail, and a young couple parked and walked in as we were getting ready to leave. They’re regulars; the volunteer, also departing, waved to them and mentioned she knew them.

The best character, however was the man, in his thirties, who was heading out as we were heading in. He was walking quickly and joylessly, ear buds planted in his ears with raucous, percussive noise blasting loud enough for me to hear it from 10 or more feet away. There, I thought, goes a man who knows how to appreciate the peace of Thorn Creek — or a busy construction site.

I hadn’t eaten much, so pizza at Chicago Dough Company sounded especially good, as did the pizza-dough appetizers and the pizza-dough cinnamon stick desserts. Who knew that pizza dough could be so versatile!

Posted in Adventure, Blog, Photography | Tagged Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, nature, photo, weather, Will County | Leave a reply

Thorn Creek Nature Preserve

Thorn Creek
Thorn Creek south of Chicago
April 9, 2011 by dlschirf Posted in Adventure, Blog Tagged Forest Preserve District of Will County, forest preserves, nature, photo Reply

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