Now in Chicago

Weekend Getaway: Galena, IL

I have mentioned on numerous occasions of my need to get fresh air; a cardio massage of sorts. As many of you know Chicago’s air can at times be less than desirable. So, this past weekend I packed up and headed out of the city towards Galena, IL; a small historic town that has this strange affinity with Irish culture...perhaps a later post to further explore this relationship.

Day One
The day started with an interesting breakfast at Orange, on W Harrison in the South Loop. Orange prides itself on creative combinations for its brunch, as well as unique fruit elixirs that quench the thirstiest of patrons. While the service could have been better, I would have to say that Orange is a great spot for those bored with their typical brunch choice.

Belly’s full, off to the ‘burbs (Galena is a 3-hour trek from Chicago). Along the way to Galena there is a discount shopping area (Prime Outlets) in Huntley. This is a key stop, as I was able to walk away with some nice digs for an even nicer price. This is a must-stop on your westward treks.

During my drives outside of the city, it is always interesting to create a broader view of the landscape. Not so far outside of Chicago corn fields encompass either side of the highway. I used to think that Indiana and Iowa were the corn capitals of the world, but I would wager to say that Illinois is right up there. Being a country boy, I can appreciate the farm land, and soaked in the grassy mural.

We’re getting close to our B&B and suddenly we discover that we are way, way out in the boonies. Neither of us had been to Galena before; our quest came from the suggestion of others; so like the great the discoverers’ of the past we decided to examine this land for ourselves, and land there was, lots of it.

Following the simple directions, we soon found ourselves on a dirt road, looked at each other, and laughed out loud as we realized this was going to be an interesting weekend. As dust flew on either side of the Rebecca (E’s car) and pebbles bounced against her undercarriage, we soon realized just how country the weekend was going to be. With farm animals and cornstalks abound, we soon found our destination, The Inn at Irish Hollow, a historic B&B 15 minutes outside of downtown.

The Inn was quite unique, but the inn keeper was even more rare. I have always been curious about the lives of inn keepers. They are consistently at the beck-and-call of strangers, and they never crack, always smiling. Matthew Carroll of Irish Hollow was no different. His hospitable nature kept us captivated during check-in, as he delivered his spiel. God love him, he continued and continued, and my anxiousness started to plume…all I wanted was to move onto the next thing, which for me was to chill out in the room, shower, and then head to town for a bite. But, Matthew provided us with some great insider info and some history about the inn as well; ghosts and all, so I concede to his disertation.

Finally pulling away from the diatribe, we headed up to the room, very quaint, old English-like. We soon discovered we were absent of television and Internet. At first this was an intimidating fact, but we soon relinquished ourselves to the reality of the situation and accepted that this would be a great opportunity to unplug from the constant media transfusion.

Unpacked, showered and ready to hit the town, we started Rebecca and ventured off to see what all the Galena-hubbub was all about.

The downtown area reminded me of New England, lots of brick, narrow streets, and boutique shops left and right. Let’s not forget the plethora of restaurants scattered throughout; our intention was to hit Fried Green Tomatoes, but when our request for an earlier reservation was failed, we resigned to hit a Durty Gurt’s, a local favorite know for its delicious burgers. Durty Gurt’s stood by its reputation and delivered a satisfying meal. Tired from the journey to, we decided to call it a night and venture home.

One thing about the country is that there are few street lights, so the blackness of night covers everything like a heavy blanket, and meandering our way back home proved to be quite the task, as we soon realized that we were driving in a circle. Seems Galena likes to get the most out of its roads; not only are they windy, they actually take 90 degrees turns, leaving us to decide whether left or right is the correct choice. Just when our return to the inn seemed bleak, we found a street that would get us back on track and headed towards our cozy inn. Funny enough, the name of the street was Cemetery and was not the most pleasant of streets to roll through, but alas, it got us to our desired road and on our way back at the inn and soon fast asleep…DAY TWO

Weekend Getaway: Galena, IL: Day Two, Damn Birds

After guiding our way back home the night previous, and muscling through the throngs of insects that infest every available inch of terrain; I swear, out in the country once night falls, a mass influx of the insects come out to dance and sing and there is nothing worse than hearing the pounding hymns of insects while you are trying to escape their flutter. But, we made it unscathed and enjoyed a restful night, until…

…Damn birds was the first thing I heard when I awoke. I had to chuckle, because where I live, instead of melody of birds and bugs during the night and early morning, it is the roar of sirens, motorcycles, and horns that lull me to sleep, or wake me too early. “Damn birds” became the theme for the weekend, as it was an interesting adjustment from city to the boonies.

After adjusting to the natural alarm clock, we cleaned up and ventured downstairs for what we thought would be a country breakfast. To our great surprise, the breakfast was least country and more metropolitan. I have yet to experience a three-course breakfast, but Matthew went all out with his menu of choice for this Sunday morning, and we left the quaint dining area more than satisfied and pleasantly surprised that such a breakfast could be manifested from a country inn, and happy for the nourishment for the day ahead.

Before our trip, we had delusions of packing in all kinds of fun country stuff, but soon realized that time would be an issue and seceded to a nature walk and horseback riding, with hopes of hitting the winery if time allotted.

Nature Walk
Smothered in bug spray and sun block, we ventured out into the great wilderness. Behind the inn were two cottages nestled on the back 40 of the 500 acre property with a long winding (or so we heard) nature trail that pressed through the wooden barrens. After a number of stops for photo opps and bug swatting, we hit the trail, walked through cob webs, listened to the wild ditty, and suddenly, poof, a fox jumped out into the trail and scurried quickly out of site. I have seen many a fox, and other wild animals, but E was fully dumbfounded about our vision, and soon leery of moving forward. With a little nudging I was able to assure her safety and we forged ahead. But, after a few more cob webs, many more insects, and the daunting heat, we decided to end our expedition and head back to more familiar territory.

Along the way back to civilization (if you can call it that) I could not help but attempt to startle my novice travel partner with sudden queries of auspicious sounds of lurking dangers; she is a tough one though and was soon able to see through my opaque ploy. My goal of instilling fear failed.

Back on the main property, the backside of the inn was enveloped by scores of wild flowers, and adjacent to the land was a field of sunflowers; a photogs dream. After a dozen or so camera clicks and a quick jaunt down the street (where only one car passed by), we soon returned to the inn to prepare for our next adventure, horseback riding.

Horseback Riding
Getting to Shenandoah Horseback Riding Center proved to be another difficult task. One thing about the city, you pampered by the grid; it is quite easy to find anything. Out in the country, it is much different, and easy to get lost. I am confident that there was no venture in the car that did not render us lost for a minute or two. After calling Shenandoah because we knew we missed the turn, we were told to turn right at whatever street and then we would see the place. “How far along,” E asked, “Just a bit,” was the reply. No one knows mileage in the country…turn right at the tractor and then you will see scarecrow with its hat tilted, we are just 50 horse trots from there…what?

We made it, and with a few minutes to spare we signed our lives away and stepped out to the stables to meet our horses. E on Sassy (match made in heaven) and me on Colonel (again, quite suitable), we galloped off into the wild yonder. Horseback riding was a blast! As you are riding there is a humble feeling that rests upon your vital. To know that the horse, at any moment, can buck you off and potentially trample you is both frightening and invigorating at the same time. All the while, it is comforting knowing that these horses also have great potential of being protectors and just need to be led. Colonel and I started off a little rocky (he did not want me to lead him), but ended our journey with a common respect for each other, as you can see in the photo. E and Sassy had a similar experience and Sassy was a great ambassador for E, as this was her first time and she rode like a champion equestrian.

Sore from trotting, we ventured back to the inn through the country roads of Galena to get ready for our custom picnic put together by inn keeper extraordinaire, Matthew. He suggested a spot overlooking the Mississippi river on a ski resort. Ski resort in Illinois? Is that an oxymoron? Being from Maine and living in Colorado for a season, I had a hard time believing that there could be a “ski resort” in Galena, I was right…it was a hill with a chair lift. Nonetheless, it was a great spot and we enjoyed an amazingly prepared picnic while the sun set over the river. The picnic was a great way to end the weekend, but we still had to make our way back in the dark, but we were on a mission, and were destined to return to the inn safely, fight through the army of noise-making bugs and dive into our room, sleep one last night and Galena, and venture off in the morning after an amazing breakfast.

In the end, Galena was a great trip. It is always good medicine to venture off into the ‘burbs from time to time, keeps you honest. You can get easily spoiled when living in a big city, as well, you can forget about the little gems that are scattered across the U.S., and it is those gems that encapsulate the American idea. Check out the photo album.