12 tips for a winter hike
The wildest place in Cook County
Nearly 10 amazing places to see bison in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Iowa
The story of finding a mysteriously empty picnic grove and nature preserve and wondering who loves it
A great nature center to visit and hike at in the winter–and beyond
A poem about my love for my dad told in 55 questions
A beautiful place to hike, snowshoe, or cross-country ski amidst rolling hills in the Palos Forest Preserves
These were the topics of the seven most-popular articles last month at my blog, Nature in Chicagoland, as selected by my readers. Click the links below to read the articles.
Readers also spent a lot of time checking out my new book, Nature in Chicagoland: More Than 120 Fantastic Nature Destinations That You Must Visit. It’s the perfect guide to planning your winter, spring, and summer adventures. It contains lots of great chapters and essays about exploring Chicagoland with my son. Click the link above to learn more about the book; check out what the Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Southtown, Chicago Tribune, and The Beverly Review had to say about Nature in Chicagoland; and purchase a copy.
1. Twelve Tips for a Successful Winter Hike





2. Cap Sauers Holding Nature Preserve: The Wildest Place in Cook County

3. Nearly 10 Places to See Bison in the Midwest

4. Hidden Pond Woods: What if You Held a Nature Party and No One Came?

5. Visit Sand Ridge Nature Center for a Wonderful Winter Experience



6. The Story of a Father and Son in 55 Questions (poem)

7. Spears Woods: Room to Roam Amidst Rolling Hills, Sloughs, and Oak Woodlands




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Looking for some great nature destinations in Chicagoland? If so, I just published Nature in Chicagoland: More Than 120 Fantastic Nature Destinations That You Must Visit. It features amazing destinations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Click on the title to learn more. The book has 306 pages and 210+ photos and is only $18.99. Click here to purchase the book.

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ABOUT ANDREW MORKES
I have been a writer and editor for more than 25 years. I’m the founder of College & Career Press (2002); the editorial director of the CAM Report career newsletter and College Spotlight newsletter; the author and publisher of “The Morkes Report: College and Career Planning Trends” blog; and the author and publisher of Hot Health Care Careers: 30 Occupations With Fast Growth and Many New Job Openings; Nontraditional Careers for Women and Men: More Than 30 Great Jobs for Women and Men With Apprenticeships Through PhDs; They Teach That in College!?: A Resource Guide to More Than 100 Interesting College Majors, which was selected as one of the best books of the year by the library journal Voice of Youth Advocates; and other titles. They Teach That in College!? provides more information on environmental- and sustainability-related majors such as Ecotourism, Range Management, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Built Environment, Sustainability Studies, and Sustainable Agriculture/Organic Farming. I’m also a member of the parent advisory board at my son’s school. Stories about my work have been published in the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Southtown, Beverly Review, and Practical Homeschooling.
In addition to these publications, I’ve written more than 40 books about careers for other publishing and media companies including Infobase (such as the venerable Encyclopedia of Careers & Vocational Guidance, the Vault Career Guide to Accounting, and many volumes in the Careers in Focus, Discovering Careers, What Can I Do Now?!, and Career Skills Library series) and Mason Crest (including those in the Careers in the Building Trades and Cool Careers in Science series).
My poetry has appeared in Cadence, Wisconsin Review, Poetry Motel, Strong Coffee, and Mid-America Review.
Copyright (text/photos) Andrew Morkes