Horse Program, Shawnee National Forest, Illinois

After I finished my whirlwind trip to the Pacific Northwest, I continued on to Shawnee National Forest located in southeastern Illinois for an All About Horses Program which was sponsored by Road Scholar, a non-profit organization that focuses on travel and education.  It was all I had hoped it would be and more, since it took place during the most picturesque time of the fall and the weather was absolutely perfect the entire time.

Camp Ondessonk was our home base for the week and for a retreat/summer camp it was downright comfortable with large rooms, private bathrooms and beautiful views of the surrounding forest from every room you found yourself sitting.  They prepared very interesting meals for us and we even had a campfire sing-along that lasted a lot longer than I thought it would.  We were all having too much fun to leave.

There were two programs that week; one for horses and one for hiking and both groups seemed happy to share their day over the joint evening meal.  We each tried to bring folks from the other group to our activities, but there were no takers.

 We learned a lot about horses from grooming, to feeding, saddling and bridling, using curry combs, riding, walking and turning, cantering and trotting. Then we found out just how delicate these animals are and for those who might have be harboring thoughts of actually owning one, the time, money and effort far outweighs the ability of most to even consider it.

Here we are preparing for a lesson of the day in the fenced area.  A safety check is made before we proceed to more complicated maneuvers.  That is me on my horse Smokey.

 We took a two hour ride through the forest on day two; a preparation for the all-day ride later in the week to the waterfalls...

 The retreat grounds have lots of interesting attractions including zip lines, tree houses, many open air bunkhouses, several lakes and loads of trails.  This covered bridge looked so nice on that beautiful day

The hikers were looking forward to the long hike to the tallest free-falling waterfall in the state of Illinois and the riders were anticipating the ride to the same place, but on different days.  As luck would have it, the hikers went the day before the rain, so there was no waterfall to view.  The riders went the day after the nighttime storm so not only did we get water, but there was also a rainbow.  Perfectly fitting for my birthday, I thought.

This was a most enjoyable way to wrap up my Pacific Northwest trip.  Now I guess I better start thinking about what I will do next year.  So many places, so little time!

Snowshoeing

Friday we finally got the opportunity to get out and try my new snow shoes. I got them in October for my birthday and just opened them up Friday morning. I suspected that we would be getting enough snow when I was out running errands on Thursday and so...picked up some thermal underwear. The weather is SO cold here; my thighs have been getting freezer burn lately!

So what do you think...are they color coordinated enough? I could not find red to match the shoes so got the next best thing




We met with Len and Marlene as well as Patti and Dave and got out there in the woods and snow-shoed. You may think we are crazy, but I tell you no fewer than two separate individuals we met along the way told us (and I quote) "Now that is the way to go!"

Here is Chuck enjoying the wooded area...See the new blue scarf that I made him?
Everybody got ahead of me so I thought I would get their pictures

Here I am christening my new snow shoes

Apple Crisp

Yesterday we had a meeting at Patti and Dave's along with Marlene and Len for the sole purpose of showing our respective recent trip pictures. Places visited were China, various state and federal park lands of Oregon, the Green River, Utah and Canyon De Chelly, Arizona.

We all got to relive our 2008 trips and discuss some of the more interesting events that you just can't see in photos. But the best part was the food afterwards. Patti served Italian Beef sandwiches, great tacos, fresh fruit salad, pumpkin cookies, holiday cookies and finally apple crisp made from freshly picked apples.

Hands down the BEST apple anything I ever ate! Thanks Patti and Dave!

Anticipation

Sometime ago, at years' end, I started the ritual of writing down all the new and different things that happened to me or that I did during that year. You know all the new stuff. I guess it started because I always found the New Year's holiday depressing; sort of a let down after all the 'hoo-haa'. Three years or so into this new habit I looked back over the lists that I made and discovered that I was indeed way more adventurous than I gave myself credit for.

I guess at some point I will go ahead and give you all a separate blog on the highlights of those exceptional activities (when I have the lists with me) but for now suffice to say that looking back on that activity has spurred a new one. Anticipating the new stuff to come. Wow, this is really big for me, because I have pretty much been a 'plodder'. Set a goal and go after it one step at a time.

Before I took the eight week trek to the southwest this year, I found an ad for The Great American Cooking Expo - Chicago. Since food is my passion, I ripped the ad out and slipped it under a fridge magnet. Just in case I forgot about it during the trip; I wanted a reminder that I could still have fun once the trip was over. I had gone to two of these expos in Philadelphia when I lived in New Jersey and enjoyed them very much.

So I returned from the trip and never noticed the ad on the fridge BUT I did notice another ad in Sunday's paper and got excited all over again! I went to the website and found something else that got me as excited as any child could be in anticipation of Christmas.

There on the right side of the Expo homepage was an ad for a passionate non-professional cooks'-- cooking school...YES! This is what I have been searching for - - for a very long time. I actually found one in lower Manhattan just before I moved away, but being a big city driving scaredy-cat, never was able to attend any of their classes.

So now I am looking forward to the EXPO which takes place on November 14, 15, and 16. I think I'll try for the 16th since they have many cooking demos that I would like to see. What I am really looking forward to, is the 3 day basic cooking course that is being held by Viking That of course will take place after the EXPO, on November 18, 19 and 20. I would have done it this weekend, but I have a triple birthday celebration to attend so that, of course, takes precedence!

Chicago Lakefront Bike Trail

We drove in to Chicago and parked on the north end of the Lakefront and biked for a round trip of 30 plus miles. The weather could not have been better at about 75 degrees and an occasional puffy white cloud in the sky for atmosphere. Of course there was a light breeze off the lake keeping us cool and comfortable all day.
In addition to the Lake, we saw almost every beach (15) including the famous Montrose beach which is set aside exclusively for dogs and their owners to have some fun! click the picture to see the dogs having fun...


There is nothing prettier than riding the trail into Chicago and watching the skyscrapers get bigger and bigger, and then of course Navy Pier.
We had lunch there at Forest Gump's, sitting outside watching all the folks walking by and having fun.
Chuck got the grilled Mahi Mahi and Shrimp in a sinfully delicious sauce
I opted for the Mahi Mahi batter fried and chips
Both were great, we inhaled them and continued on our trek...
Here is a shot of Navy Pier, after lunch as we continued our way along to the South side
I thought I had seen every possible mode of transportation today, but these Segways were the most unusual of any mode I had seen except maybe the Smart Car

We passed many many boats some big some small and lots of sailboats, the water seems to be just like the Caribbean....clear and green/blue and mesmerising. You can swim, boat, sail, sunbathe, train for competition, ride walk, roller blade and a bunch of other activities along the 26 mile route, each section is nicer than the last.
If the outside activity is not to your liking there is always the John Shedd Aquarium, the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum and the Field Museum to stimulate your brain buds. Lord, you could spend a week just on lakefront and likely not see and do it all.

The last time I saw boats this big was in Paradise Island at the Atlantis Resort.

Go Cubs Go

The radio station WGN (also known as Chicagos Cubbie station) has made a You Tube Video of the Cubbies win song, using various people from the station. It's pretty good. the people are lip-synching.



I had to post this, 'cause Chuck's site has been blocked for some reason for the next few days.

Wauconda Farmers Market

Today we got out early and biked for 13 miles on the trail behind the condo since the weather guys were threatening that it would be in the 90's and humid. Having finished the ride, I can say that I have completed over 400 miles for the month of July and only a few miles short of 1500 for the year so far.
I only started seriously biking last fall and at that time it was a real effort to get anywhere near 10 miles on any outing. Now I occasionally do 30 or more, quite an improvement. I find this is great exercise and something that I don't tire of, so it should be something that I take with me as I approach those so called golden years.

Then in the afternoon, we went to the Farmers market in town. They had some really nice stuff,



but what caught my eye was this bi-color corn that is claimed to be so good you can eat it raw. Well, indeed you can. It reminded me of some of the sweet white corn I used to get from the farms in New Jersey. That was picked just minutes before they sold it to you and was as sweet as candy. This was as good. See for yourself.

Chicago River Trail and Botanic Gardens

Wow...to celebrate freedom and independence we biked the North Branch of the Chicago River Trail; a full 35 miles. That is 9 miles more than my best prior biking day. As if that was not enough, we rode to the Chicago Botanic Gardens (which is just off the trail) parked our bikes and walked another 4 or so miles through the gorgeous gardens.

There were lots of folks out and about but not enough to make you feel as though the place was crowded; we did have to pay more attention than usual on the bike trail (since there were all levels of bikers there today) and adjust our speed and position accordingly.

The park along the trail was filled with groups of people having cook-outs and picnics, some fishing some just sunning. Clearly, it is a great day to be alive to take advantage of the absolutely perfect weather.

I did not take any pictures while biking but more than made up for it at the Botanic Gardens. I have no idea the names of these flowers so I will simply say, scroll down and enjoy. I don't know how I managed to take better than usual pictures but I did...so enjoy.









Hey, we weren't the only ones who decided to bike here!

Train Garden in North Barrington

As if the WaucondaFest was not enough to satisfy our curiosity...we went to an open house showing, for magnificent indoor and outdoor model railroad set-ups built by Huff n Puff . This goes way beyond the typical train set up you are likely to see at Chirstmas-time.
It was actually a benefit for a gardening conservancy and the trains were a pleasant 'add-on'.

So there is no need to keep yakking about what was there, here's my best shots. Enjoy!


A train going over a bridge by a waterfall in the garden. Doesn't everyone have one?
Here is a shot of the pool area, with a nice little lake in the background. This is more plush than a lot of resorts I have been to.







Here is a commuter train with the Chicago skyline in the background. One of the indoor models.
Here is a scale model of 'the Bean'...I found this to be amazing!
Here is a model of the face fountains that are located not too far from the bean. They have thought of everything.

WaucondaFest Lumberjack Show

We caught the first lumberjack show at the WaucondaFest. Best part...there were very few people siting in either of the two bleacher sections set aside for watching. That means we got a chance to talk to the "Red Team" Jaime Fischer. He explained how the various show components work. We felt like we were getting our own private demonstration! Don't think for a moment that these shows are put on by amateurs...no way! Our guy was professional all the way. So was the Blue Team!

Here he is in the ax throwing contest...the ax has not yet hit the target; look closely!
This is the last time we see him dry while doing the Boom Run.

Chuck was obviously having a great time too!

The 'red team' was Jamie Fischer, you may like to learn a little of his interest in lumberjack sports.

Jamie Fischer
Fisher, attributes his success in the boom run and logrolling to his long family heritage and to his own private boom run set up in the backyard of his Stillwater, MN home. Fisher shattered his previous world record time of: 12.98 in the Men’s Boom Run set in 2004, with a new world record of: 12.49 at the 2005 Championships, which still stands to this day. With his 2007 crown, Fischer is now a holder of 5 continuous Boom Run World Championships. Fischer, who also held the 2003, 2004 and 2006 Men’s Log Rolling crowns, took home second place in last year's Men’s Open Log Rolling. Committed to the sport of log rolling, Fischer is an ardent promoter of the sport and has started several log rolling schools throughout the country.

They also do tree stump art

The front sign says welcome; that is for friends. When others who are not so welcome show up, just turn the sign around it says: Go Away!

WaucondaFest ..MORE!!!

We went again on Friday evening to the 'Fest and I was able to get some much better shots of this ride that has really grabbed my attention. it's called the Cliff Hanger...and it really is!
Anyway here is a better look and the what fun there is to be had! (If you double click the photos they will enlarge and you can see it much better)





Even the mayor of Wauconda gets into it. Here is his wailing out a good one
with the Rockaholics.