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."
Esta historia es de la edición Spring 2024 de Midwest Living.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
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Esta historia es de la edición Spring 2024 de Midwest Living.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
summer sequel
A MINNESOTA COUPLE'S NEW LAKE HOME PRESERVES THE SOUL AND CONTINUES THE TRADITIONS OF THEIR FAMILY'S CABIN THAT STOOD ON THE SAME SITE FOR DECADES.
STAYING AFLOAT
CENTURIES AGO, FRENCH CANADIAN FUR TRAPPERS DRAGGED HEAVY CANOES OVER THE LAND AND LAKES OF PRESENT-DAY VOYAGEURS NATIONAL PARK. ON A FIRST-TIME HOUSEBOAT JOURNEY, THE MOST WE LUGGED WAS A COOLER BUT WE SNARED A WEALTH OF SOLITUDE, SUNSETS AND LAUGHS.
A FIRST-TIME HOUSEBOATER
Consult a map when choosing a rental company.
AGRI(CULTURED)
FOR OUR EIGHTH ANNUAL ROAD RALLY, WE DELVED INTO OUTDOOR ADVENTURE, FARM-FRESH FOOD, AND A THRIVING ARTS AND CULTURE SCENE IN IOWA.
NEIGHBORHOOD - STRAWBERRY HILL FOREVER
WITH ARTIST LAEDAN GALICIA, AKA DINKC, AS YOUR GUIDE, EXPLORE THE COFFEE SHOPS, DIVE BARS AND DIVERSE EATS OF THIS HISTORIC POCKET OF KANSAS CITY, KANSAS.
JOURNEY - RAPID STRIDES
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN, HAS HAD A HOPPING BEER SCENE FOR YEARS. BUT TODAY, THE CITY'S CULINARY LANDSCAPE IS MORE THAN JUST ITS GREAT BREWS MORE DIVERSE, MORE FRESH, MORE DELICIOUS.
SWEET LIFE HERE COMES THE SUNDAE
MOVING TO A NEW CITY BRINGS UPS AND DOWNS EVEN WHEN IT'S REALLY YOUR OLD CITY. THANK GOODNESS FOR ICE CREAM.
LIVE WELL - VEG OUT
EATING A GREATER VARIETY OF PLANTS HELPS YOUR HEALTH AND THE PLANET'S. HERE ARE SIX TASTY WAYS TO GET IT DONE.
STUDIO SESSION - IN VIVID COLOR
CHICAGOAN EMILY VAN HOFF PIECES TOGETHER FABULOUSLY SATURATED, INTENTIONALLY HAPPY WORKS OF QUILTED ART.
SPACES - HOUSE OF BLUES
RHYTHMIC PATTERNS AND A NAUTICAL PALETTE HIT ALL THE RIGHT NOTES AT A WATERSIDE HOME IN WISCONSIN.