My name is Andrew Morkes and thanks for checking out my blog, Nature in Chicagoland!
I’m someone just like you (hopefully) who loves the great outdoors. Chicago is not the first place that comes to mind when you think of nature, but Cook County (where Chicago is located) is the most forested urban county in the United States. And there are vast forested areas of Chicagoland (especially the Palos Forest Preserves) where you can walk all day without leaving the forest preserve—and, if you go on the right day, not see another soul. If you head several hours from the Windy City, you’ll encounter the great Mississippi River, Indiana Dunes State Park, and all of the wonderful state parks in Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, and Iowa. In short, nature is here if you look for it—and, occasionally, work for it. And let’s not forget the natural beauty that we encounter in our city parks, our own backyards, or even on our decktop gardens.
In addition to writing about flora and fauna, this blog covers meteorology, astronomy, geology, local history, environmental restoration and protection, local colleges that offer environmental-related programs, the environment as it relates to our current political climate, and any other topics that catch my fancy.
A little about my background. I’m the former assistant editor of Lake & Prairie, a quarterly newsletter of the Illinois Sierra Club (that was years ago, but I still look back fondly on that time). I’m also the author of more than 50 books including They Teach That in College!?: A Resource Guide to More Than 100 Interesting College Majors; The Vault Career Guide to Social Media; Nontraditional Careers for Women and Men: More Than 30 Great Jobs for Women and Men With Apprenticeships Through PhDs; and The Vault Career Guide to Pharmaceuticals & Biotech. I also publish The Morkes Report: College and Career Planning Trends blog. Finally, my poetry has appeared in Cadence, Wisconsin Review, Poetry Motel, Strong Coffee, and Mid-America Review.
Thanks for reading my blog. I’d appreciate it if you could share my blog with anyone who loves nature and is looking for some great destinations in Chicagoland.
A few notes on my photographs: Unless otherwise credited, all the images on Nature in Chicagoland were taken by me, and I hold the copyright to them. I’m also a bit of a purist when it comes to my photographs. I will occasionally crop a photo for better presentation quality, but I do not otherwise alter images using PhotoShop or other image editing software. So, what you see is what I saw out in the wonderful wilds of Chicagoland and beyond.
If you’d like to contact me, I can be reached at amorkes @ chicagopa.com
Nature in Chicagoland 