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Touring Chicago Part 2

June 23, 2015 By Rolf Stengl

Today the sun came out, so I went back for a look at Washington Park, which is huge. Chicago is apparently a model for parks, and has a long history of building them.

Washington Park

Washington Park

The first controlled Nuclear Reaction happened underground at this spot at the U of Chicago, to bring you the bombing of Japan.

Nuclear Energy sculpture – Dec 2,1942

Nuclear Energy sculpture – Dec 2,1942, at this spot

And while the rest of the world was busy beating up on itself, the ivy here kept on growing.

Ivy League, University of Chicago

Ivy League, University of Chicago

I headed east to the Lake again, and found the Science Museum in the sun.

Then it was north on the Lakefront trail.

Lakefront Trail

Lakefront Trail #1

Lakefront Trail

Lakefront Trail #2

There is lots to enjoy in the sun, so I only took a few pictures of things that stood out for me. First up is a fountain that gets your attention by being massive.

Buckingham Fountain

Buckingham Fountain

I found a line-up to get up to the top of the Willis Tower, and I don’t do lines.

Willis Tower

Willis Tower

So I looked at Union Station instead, and came out to look at the South Chicago River.

South Chicago River

South Chicago River

On the bank of the river

On the bank of the river

At the other end of downtown, office workers were in a park, and tourists were swarming everywhere. Chicago is popular, and I can see why.

Office workers lunch in park

Office workers lunch in park

I did all this downtown stuff riding my bike in traffic. Traffic is calmer than Calgary, and there were other cyclists, including couriers, who really move. Nothing you want to do every day, but interesting as a challenge.

I parked the bike and got another picture of the Chicago Theatre sign, because I’m a sucker for these things.

Chicago Theatre landmark

Chicago Theatre landmark

And then I found this cool commercial art exhibit, for which I am also a sucker, and I thought of Suzanne being a romance writer.

IMG_20150623_135214sSo which perfume would you bring home? My guess is it depends on which part of the story she’s at. 🙂
IMG_20150623_135033s

IMG_20150623_135053sBack to Millennium Park to people watch and eat.

Cloud gate, Millennium Park

Cloud gate, Millennium Park (The Bean)

Cooling off, Millennium Park

Cooling off, Millennium Park

I should point out that out of some thirty days of riding on this trip, I’ve had about one day and one hour of tail wind, and the rest of the time the wind has faced me or been a cross wind. Whichever direction I travelled, the wind changed also. So it was to be expected that the north wind of this morning, and a fairly potent one at that, shifted to a south wind this afternoon, giving me the freedom of a wind-in-my-face feeling both ways. 🙂

One more look at one of the beaches.

Call of the beach

Call of the beach

And, since this is a bicycle tour, one more look at Chicago shining in the sun from the Lakefront Trail.

Lakefront Trail beside Shedd Aquarium

Lakefront Trail beside Shedd Aquarium

long distance, self-supported bicycle trips

riding the Mississippi River Trail
from New Orleans to Lake Itasca
. . . and then home to Canada

riding the Lake Michigan Trail, from Chicago around Lake Michigan

along the LMT

Buckingham Fountain Burnham Greenway Trail Chesterton Chicago Chicago Lakefront Trail Duck Lake State Park Erie Lackawanna Trail Gary Indiana Glen Arbor Grand Haven Hart-Montague Trail Holland Jackson Park Kenosha County Path Kohler-Andrae State Park Lake Michigan Little Travers Wheelway Long Beach Ludington Mariners Trail Michigan City Muskegon New Buffalo Nuclear Energy sculpture Oak Leaf Trail Oak Savannah Trail Old Grand Haven Road Ozaukee Interurban Trail Pentwater Petoskey Point Beach State Forest Prairie Duneland Trail Rapid Transit Cycle shop Robert McClory Bike Path Saugatuck Sleeping Bear Dunes Snug Harbor South Chicago River St. Joseph The Bean Three Sisters University of Chicago Washington Park Willis Tower Wrigley Field

Lake Michigan Trail (LMT)

Lake Michigan Trail Summary

July 2, 2015

Touring Chicago Part 2

June 23, 2015

Touring Chicago Part 1

June 22, 2015

Riding into Chicago

June 21, 2015

Riding to Chesterton

June 20, 2015

Good day to St. Joseph

June 19, 2015

Holland

June 18, 2015

Muskegon

June 17, 2015

Ludington, tourist town

June 16, 2015

Fog to Ludington

June 15, 2015

Foggy day to Arcadia

June 14, 2015

Glen Arbor

June 13, 2015

Acme

June 11, 2015

Petoskey

June 10, 2015

Tourist on Mackinaw Island

June 9, 2015

Naubinway & St. Ignace

June 8, 2015

Indian Lake State Park

June 6, 2015

Ford River

June 5, 2015

Good road to Menominee

June 4, 2015

Green Bay

June 3, 2015

Egg Harbor

June 1, 2015

Cold Air

May 31, 2015

Rain

May 30, 2015

North to Point Beach State Forest

May 29, 2015

Milwaukee to Kohler-Andrae State Park

May 28, 2015

Milwaukee

May 27, 2015

Illinois Beach State Park

May 25, 2015

Boating in Chicago

May 24, 2015

Chicago

May 23, 2015

A New Ride Begins

May 22, 2015

Coming soon…

May 6, 2015

Recent Posts

  • Lake Michigan Trail Summary
  • Touring Chicago Part 2
  • Touring Chicago Part 1
  • Riding into Chicago
  • Riding to Chesterton
  • Good day to St. Joseph
  • Holland
  • Muskegon
  • Ludington, tourist town
  • Fog to Ludington
  • Foggy day to Arcadia
  • Glen Arbor
  • Acme
  • Petoskey
  • Tourist on Mackinaw Island
  • Naubinway & St. Ignace
  • Indian Lake State Park
  • Ford River
  • Good road to Menominee
  • Green Bay
  • Egg Harbor
  • Cold Air
  • Rain
  • North to Point Beach State Forest
  • Milwaukee to Kohler-Andrae State Park
  • Milwaukee
  • Illinois Beach State Park
  • Boating in Chicago
  • Chicago
  • A New Ride Begins
  • Coming soon…

Mississippi River Trail (MRT)

Mississippi Slim

July 16, 2014

Dog River, Saskatchewan

July 11, 2014

Into Saskatchewan

July 10, 2014

Leaving nothing behind

July 9, 2014

Wind & rain to Velma

July 7, 2014

Headwind to Harvey

July 6, 2014

The straight & narrow

July 5, 2014

Heading into North Dakota

July 4, 2014

From hills to flat in 30 miles

July 3, 2014

Mississippi Headwaters

July 3, 2014

Update from Suzanne

July 2, 2014

Bemidji in the rain

June 29, 2014

To Bimidji with a tail wind

June 27, 2014

A dam site closer

June 26, 2014

Andy Griffith Kind of Place

June 25, 2014

Simple ride to Crosby MN, 54 miles

June 24, 2014

Bugged in the great outdoors

June 23, 2014

Moving on to St. Cloud

June 23, 2014

Mill City

June 21, 2014

Rain & Shine, to Minneapolis

June 20, 2014

The Jackpot

June 17, 2014

A note on summer

June 16, 2014

Tourist in La Crosse

June 16, 2014

La Crosse with a tailwind

June 15, 2014

Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Campground

June 14, 2014

Town that time forgot

June 13, 2014

Notes on camping

June 13, 2014

Hills & Headwind to Galena, Illinois

June 12, 2014

Liver & onions in Fulton

June 11, 2014

To Rock Island, Illinois

June 10, 2014

To Great River Campground south of Keithsburg

June 9, 2014

Rest in Nauvoo, Illinois

June 8, 2014

Riding in the rain

June 7, 2014

Hannibal, Missouri

June 6, 2014

Pleasant Hill, Illinois

June 5, 2014

“Meet me in St Louis”

June 3, 2014

Chester to St. Louis

June 2, 2014

We are here

June 1, 2014

When you’re hot, the trip is not

May 31, 2014

Riding in the pain

May 30, 2014

Rain

May 29, 2014

to Reelfoot Lake State Park, 80 miles

May 28, 2014

to COVINGTON, 58 miles

May 27, 2014

Takin’ a lickin’ in Memphis

May 25, 2014

To Tunics Resorts, 85 miles

May 23, 2014

I swim in the Mississippi!

May 22, 2014

Tourist Opportunity

May 21, 2014

Roy’s Store is a town

May 21, 2014

To Roy’s Store, 56 miles

May 20, 2014

To Chotard Lake, 48 miles

May 19, 2014

T’Beaux’s

May 18, 2014

To Vicksburg – 60m/100k

May 18, 2014

To Natchez State Park – 44 miles

May 17, 2014

To Red Deer Lake, 62 miles

May 17, 2014

Camping in Morganza

May 16, 2014

To Morganza – 46 miles/76 K

May 15, 2014

Sitting on the levee

May 14, 2014

To Baton Rouge

May 14, 2014

In Paulina

May 12, 2014

On the river

May 11, 2014

Bourbon Street

May 10, 2014

New Orleans

May 10, 2014

Depart Calgary Airport

May 9, 2014

Louisiana

2014-05-15_125927SFW

Mississippi

Mississippi River Trail

Tennessee

Kooky Canuck, Memphis

Kentucky

Mississippi River Trail

Illinois

Mississippi River Trail

Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri arch

Iowa

2014-06-07_182832sfw

Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Minnesota

Minnesota2014-06-19_083135s

North Dakota

North Dakota

Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan

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