Exploring the World with Pokémon Go: MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve
After a long wait due to river flooding, I finally got to go back and explore the Des Plaines River Trail. Or in the case of this post, the MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve that it passes through. Its fall and the leaves are changing. Its been many years since I have gotten the chance to experience a proper fall. Florida doesn’t have more than two seasons after all. Anyway, let’s see what I found now that the cold weather has killed lots of the insects that pestered me during my last few adventures.
Mile Marker 21.75
Starting right where I left off last time, I crossed under St Mary’s a second and final time before making my way into MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve. The trees were a bit thinned out without their leaves, but I would soon learn that there was a second reason that it felt like there was a ton more space just off the trail than usual. Naturally I didn’t stray too far since that is frowned upon. Oh and I would have dealt with ticks and other nasty pests if I went into the grass and brush.
The pictures speak for themselves honestly. The beautiful contrast between the green that remains and the gold browns that tell of impending winter leave an unforgettable image. As I am writing this, I made it through a really tough week. And yet I found peace on the trail. Making my way through the trees and just letting the quiet of the forest take me in was calming.
The first Mile Marker I found was 21.75. I will have to look back to the earlier posts to figure out what the prior mile marker was last. But as I have said time and time again when talking about the Des Plaines River Trail, the mile markers, especially the ones that are not the whole number ones, appear infrequently. That was true even in this post as you will see as you continue reading.
Mile Marker 22
There is a serene beauty to be found in places like MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve during fall. Many animals are already setting up to survive the winter. And the ones that are not will mostly be food for something else before the first snows fall. Yet here I am, an invasive human simply walking through a man made path through these homes. My footsteps likely louder than most things in the forest and a lot clumsier too.
At this point, I saw some low-lying ponds, but none of them were the Des Plaines River itself which I had not seen since the start of my last blog post on the trail. There was a small creek too that I think is connected to the river, but is hardly the real thing. Don’t worry though. Keep reading and you just might see that river again.
What you will see in this section is Mile Marker 22. I have come a long way on this trail haven’t I? When I hiked the Cross Seminole Trail, and the others that connected to it which was one of the longest trails I have ever adventured down, I passed through four different Florida Counties. And I don’t recall any segments of those trails being 30 Miles. I’m curious to see if I’ll hit 30 before I cross into Cook County. That mystery is part of the adventure.
Mile Marker 22.25
I might have lied earlier when I said MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve has inconsistent Mile Markers. This might be the most predictable section of the entire trail thus far. After all, Mile Marker 22.25 is logically the next one to appear and none of those quarter mile segments have been skipped. They are present in the next few sections too.
Now that I have gotten that out of the way, let’s talk about the next section of the trail and forest preserve. I found a sign that explained why I was noticing more and more trees that had been chopped down. Its a shame that the image is too far zoomed out and can’t be read. Because what it described is fascinating. Normally I don’t describe these things because I encourage people to go explore on their own. Just this one time I’ll make an exception.
Essentially, this forest looks healthy, but actually isn’t. Most of the trees are old oaks and new growths are dying because of lack of sunlight. So there is a huge project to let more sunlight into this place to let new plants and trees sprout anew. I feel like there is an interesting analogy here about the old guard blocking the potential of new potential. But that is not something I’ll discuss on this blog. Look at the pictures carefully and you will spot those efforts.
Mile Marker 22.5
Before I reached Mile Marker 22.5, I found another sign talking even more in depth about those restoration efforts. This time though, I’ll not tell you what I read. Can’t be giving everything away now can I? Instead I want to draw attention to another sign. And that one might be the most important piece of information in this post. Because that was how I knew it was finally time to explore MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve.
That sign indicated that the flooding that kept me away from the upcoming bridge was at long last clear. And I found as I ventured ahead why it had taken so long. But I’m getting ahead of myself again. More leaves and golden beauty had me lost in thought. Not enough to forget taking pictures, but plenty to let me think as the silence pushed me towards being calm. I’ll admit that even though I was in my happy place, a panic attack was trying to hijack me the entire hike. It didn’t win. Not this time.
Instead, while my brain tried to be mean, my body enjoyed being outside my house. The crisp fall air was comfort to my lungs too. A good thing my mind is just a small part of my body. The rest of me was quite content to take in everything that MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve had to offer. To my physical form: therapy. To my mind: a chance to lose my worries in the calm wind.
Mile Marker 22.75
While my panic didn’t win out while I hiked MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve, it made its strongest attack on this section of the trail. Hence while I traveled past Mile Marker 22.75, I took very few pictures on this section. One might despair that I missed sights most important. But I see an opportunity instead. For if you worry that I missed anything important, there is only way remedy. And that is to come check out this place yourself. What a terrible problem to have!
Mile Marker 23
Still fighting against my brain, I made it to Mile Marker 23 along MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve. And nearby, Vernon Hill, Illinois sat much the same as it had been in my childhood. My other travel blog has a little section about this village that I spent much of my childhood visiting, but for now, know that this blog won’t take you there. My mind was still recovering from being mean to itself and so I didn’t get too many more photos than in the last section. But the same solution applies here.
Just remember that if you want to explore this trail, make sure to check the conditions. Flooding can ruin your day. And a lot of snow on the ground can make things difficult too. Speaking of flood issues, lets take a look at the final section, where I made it to and past what had stopped me more than any other obstacle when it came to exploring the trail.
Finally Flood Free
Now let’s take a look at that obstacle. I speak of course of the bridge under State Road 60. Not only did I leave MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve once I crossed under, but even after several weeks, it was clear that the river had only recently left this place dry. Oh and speaking of river, yes, that is the Des Plaines River. Its been a bit since it appeared in this blog series. And all despite the fact that the trail is named after it. How disrespectful.
No mile marker to be seen on the final segment. Maybe the pattern ended here. But its also possible the next mile marker was just after I stopped for the day. I covered a bit of ground, and just days after I wasn’t feeling well. It felt good to get out onto the trail. Especially this one. Hiking the full Des Plaines River Trail has been a goal of mine for many years. And every mile I walk is one step closer to accomplishing that.
As I made it to where I was stopping for the day, I found one final sign post. This one warned about the dangers of invasive species. It listed out several and how they might end up in MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve and the surrounding area by accident. Hopefully I didn’t contribute to the problem as I arrived here at the end, not the start. Well, at least I’m only one person. Its my hope that I didn’t cause any harm on the trail. My mind was already playing enough tricks on me as it was.
Pokémon Go
I have talked at length about fall and MacArthur Woods Forest Preserve. Oh and some of my personal mental health problems. But let’s forget about all of that and focus on Pokémon Go for a moment. Anyway this is a trail and not in a park that is explorable outside the path. So want to take a guess what the Pokémon Go experience might be?
If you guessed few Pokestops and gyms with lots of spawns you would be right. That’s a pattern that tends to be true on most trails. There have been a few parts of the Des Plaines River Trail that have bucked the trend, but this was not one of them. Interestingly enough, the gym and Pokestop in the top right corner of that above image are part of another trail. Sounds like I’ll have more reasons to return here and check that one out one day.
Despite my long walk, I only hatched one egg. For some reason, Pokémon Go is doing an event where all eggs are the 10k ones. So perhaps next time I’ll hatch a bunch of rare Pokémon. But not in this post.
Mentally this has been a really tough week for me. This walk thus was a much needed break from what I was and likely still am dealing with when you read this post. Pokémon Go and the walks this game takes me on have often been a way to keep my depression and anxiety at bay. Even on my worst days, there is no time where I am not happy while out on these walks. This is a habit I started years ago and its rarely if ever become a broken one. Hopefully I’ll get to do some more exploring before it gets too cold to go on walks. I know where I intend to explore next time.