Summer is quickly coming to an end. Have you done what you wanted to do this summer? I think Yuriy Ardashnikov and Daniel Sikora have. Mike and I were out of the garden today and I talked to Yuriy and Daniel at Busse Woods in Elk Grove Village. (Note how seamlessly I tied this back to gardening since this is a gardening blog.)
Their kayaks are built for racing, and race they do! I couldn’t help but be curious when they mentioned that. The web is wonderful thing – I came home and learned that Daniel took third place this year for Class 20 in the Des Plaines Marathon. Yuriy didn’t do badly either – he took second place.
Yuriy said today was a perfect day for kayaking, with it being a little cooler. The five mile Busse Lake is a nice size as well.
We’ve also come to Busse to rent a canoe and enjoy the leisurely pace. The boat rental concession is open through October 31st, from sunrise to sunset. That’s about 7AM to 7PM this time of year. Cash only please. Come in the entrance off of Higgins, right by I-290 (53).
Not quite that ambitious? Come sit on a log and watch like some other folks were doing. They told us that DuPage County requires a license for kayaking, and Cook County (which Busse is in) does not.
Even less ambitious than that? Stop in for a breakfast picnic and a nap like we did today. Willow Creek Church has a full food court, and we got ours to go. Then we took our traditional breakfast nap.
There is plenty more to do at Busse. I bike there regularly. I roller blade there as well, but somehow the bike was my chosen method of movement this year. I like that I can do the 7.8 mile loop, leave right from my house, stop to enjoy the beauty, and still be home in less than 2 hours. I tend to avoid Saturday and Sunday mornings, which in turn helps me avoid crowds. Go later in the afternoon and watch the sun sparkling on the water.
You can also hike it, walk it, run it, sail it, fish it. Enjoy that beauty that our natural resources provide. Rest, relax, breathe slowly, be calm, be refreshed. There is still time before the Chicago winter hits.
For more details, go to the Cook County Forest Preserve Website.
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