In honor of Earth Day, over 50 Chicagoans journeyed to the northside on an unforeseen sunny Saturday to clean the Sierra Club’s adopted Montrose beach. The efforts of the green-minded beachcombers resulted in a successful spring cleaning. The Chicago Group of the Sierra Club will be hosting monthly nature tours and bird walks from 7:30-10:00am starting Saturday, May 21, 2011. The designated Illinois natural area is home to migrant and nesting birds, foxes, coyote, beavers, and indigenous plants. To learn more about the Sierra Club outings, visit their website. more ›

Ah, summertime in the City of Chicago. Street fests galore, the Cubs and Sox annual spin into futility, the bouts of heat and humidity, and, of course, trips to the beach. But a hard-hitting report this morning from CBS 2 is targeting one particular group of ne'er-do-wells: those who use the beach and bird sanctuary at Montrose as their own personal Playboy grotto. According to some flustered viewers who hit up the network, there's a lot of cruising going on in the area and bird watchers and beach-goers alike are not happy about it. It's worth noting that the official Park District site refers to the Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary as "The Magic Hedge." Just sayin'. Thankfully, for them and for us, CBS 2 is on the case: more ›

For this year's Fourth of July fireworks display, city officials have announced plans to stage three synchronized events along the lakefront to save money and improve public safety issues. The three events--at Navy Pier, at Foster and Lawrence in the north, and at 59th Street in the south--are set to replace the annual celebration in Grant Park on July 3. Jill Niland, along with other conservationists and nature lovers, is worried that the north and south celebrations will draw huge crowds to the Montrose and 63rd Street beaches, both of which contain "ecologically sensitive nature areas," according to the Chicago Tribune. more ›

We were biking over to Montrose Beach last weekend and crossed under LSD at Lawrence. We saw what seemed to be a new set of struts, supports and ironwork under there and thought, "Good. Someone's doing something about these bridges." (We were in Minneapolis a week before I-35W collapsed last year. Drove right over it. We pay attention to these things now.) more ›

The most popular museum in the world is the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., which sees nearly 9 million visitors come through its doors each year. So it is no surprise that Chicago's Annual Air & Water Show is the largest two-day spectator event in the United States, with audience numbers reaching nearly 2.5 million. The free annual event is back for its 49th edition and has a great line-up ready to... more ›

Your carpet is stained so badly you can't remember its original color. People cross the street when they see you coming. Your furniture is gnawed, pillows shredded, and trash cans constantly disemboweled. You have a bad dog. Sure, he was cute and cuddly when you brought him home from the shelter, but as soon as he got comfortable he started playing you like a fiddle. "No!" and "Bad dog!" mean nothing to your pooch;... more ›