Few People Know There’s An Illinois Island You Can Walk To
By Elizabeth Crozier|Published July 15, 2019
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Elizabeth Crozier
Author
An Illinois transplant who grew up and went to school in Indiana for 22 years, Elizabeth holds a BFA in creative writing and has enjoyed traveling across the country and parts of Europe. She has visited half of the states, as well as parts of Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean, and regularly travels home to the Hoosier State to see friends and family. With more than five years of writing experience, Elizabeth’s articles have been featured on several websites, and her poetry and short stories have been published in multiple literary journals.
Few people know that there is a Lake Michigan island in Illinois. Full of fun things to do and see, this Midwest oasis is a must-visit if you love nature. Check it out:
Encompassing nearly 120 acres, Northerly Island in northern Illinois isn't an actual island at all. This peninsula at the heart of Chicago's Museum Campus juts out into Lake Michigan and is home to several unique features that even locals forget about.
The best part about this Lake Michigan island is that you can walk here. Of course, you can also get here by car or public transportation, but if you're already visiting the museums, it is an easy walk from them.
In fact, the Adler Planetarium is just north of the island. Other attractions found at Museum Campus include the Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, Soldier Field, and McCormick Place.
If you love taking photos, you'll go bonkers for the views here. Nowhere else can you find views of the Chicago skyline as pristine as from Northerly Island.
This hidden attraction also features a fieldhouse that is open select times throughout the year. Here the staff is available to provide tours and answer questions about this Lake Michigan island.
The island is also home to Huntington Bank Pavilion where concerts are occasionally put on in the summer.
Opening in the 1930s, this unique manmade peninsula is one of many of Chicago's green spaces that gives it its nickname "city in a garden." There's much more to the city than architecture, dangerous neighborhoods, and traffic.