The following article is courtesy of The Real Chicago magazine. For more like it, visit www.TheRealChicago.com
The question: When the weather is nice, where is your favorite place to take a stroll in Chicago?
You can’t go wrong walking around the Lincoln Park Zoo. If you’re lucky, there might be a street festival, concert or farmers’ market just around the corner.
— Mary McCahill
Any one of Chicago’s great neighborhoods to check out all the new shops and restaurants that opened while you hibernated all winter.
— Carrie Steffes
In Andersonville, starting at the Gethemane Nursery and working your way down Clark towards Hopleaf. Tons of cute shops, restaurants and bars to pop into for a quick day drink, and everyone is so happy to be outside without four layers on!
— Kathryn Doi
During the summer months, it’s perfect timing to walk through one of the many farmers markets in the city. It doesn’t even have to be a big one. A perfect Sunday morning would be to walk to the farmers’ market in Wicker Park, then wander through the neighborhoods down south to stop at Old Oak Tap’s outdoor terrace, then find yourself at Black Dog Gelato before settling in for a lazy day.
— Jason Flores
Up Lincoln Avenue to the Paulina Meat Market to pick up delicious steaks, then to Pelly’s liquor store across the street for some libations and a cigar before returning home to grill.
— Lou O’Donnell
On a beautiful day in Chicago, if you happen to find yourself in the Edgewater/Andersonville neighborhood, go for a walk in the Lakewood/Balmoral area. Quiet, tree-lined streets and beautiful, historic homes make for quite the lovely stroll.
— Jerry Galante
South of Addison on the Lakefront Trail, right along the water. Cutting over to Fullerton, walking through Lincoln Park and landing on top of the Hotel Lincoln rooftop (J. Parker) for a cold beer is one of my favorite little excursions, and after that, it’s nice to take your time making the circle back north up Clark Street.
— Anne Delaney
One of my favorite strolls when the weather gets warm is to head into Graceland Cemetery at Clark and Irving Park. While it sounds a little strange, the cemetery is like a little quiet island in the middle of the city with tons of interconnected paths snaking throughout the beautifully manicured lawns. A final resting place for many of Chicago’s founding citizens, the cemetery is full of history, not to mention some amazing headstones, monuments and landscaping.
— Eric Johnson
I like to walk around my neighborhood in Albany Park. There are some great parks, and the path from River Park north to Peterson is a nice walk.
— Adam Schueller