Paintbrush Prairie Nature Walks - Summer 2024 - Limited Enrollment!

The Sauk-Calumet Group is hosting 3 nature walks this summer at Paintbrush Prairie in Markham, IL.  The dates are as follows: 

Saturday, June 22nd from 8:30 - 11:30 am,
Saturday, July 27th from 8:30 - 11:30 am, and
Saturday, August 24th from 8:30 - 11:30 am.

Paintbrush Prairie is one of the Markham Prairies, also called Indian Boundary Prairies, a collection of 5-6 original, high quality prairies in Markham, IL.  The Markham Prairies are some of the highest quality prairies in the state of IL.  They have never been plowed.  We will be visiting 3 times over the summer once in each month of June, July and August.  This will give us an opportunity to see how the prairie changes over the growing season.  To sign up for all 3 walks you must sign up for each of the 3 walks individually.  Limit of 12 persons per walk.  The nature walks will be led by steward, Shane Tripp, and other Nature Conservancy staff.  You will learn not only about the nature of these sites but also about the conservation work that has been accomplished in the past and is ongoing.  Bring questions if you wish.

This announcement has everything you should need to attend the nature walk.  If you need further information, contact Patrick Coffey at patrick.coffey@illinois.sierraclub.org.  If the walk needs to be canceled due to rain, I will email you at the email you have provided.  My cell phone number will be provided a couple of days before the event.

If you sign up, and later determine you can’t make it, please let me know by phone or email as soon as possible, so we can give your place to someone else.  These walks all have limited attendance.

To sign up, go to the Illinois Sierra Club’s calendar at - https://www.sierraclub.org/illinois/events-calendar  - and look for the hikes in the calendar.  Click on the title of each walk you wish to attend.  Please RSVP and sign the online waiver there.  Youths under 18 must have an adult sign for them.  When you arrive at the prairie, you will sign an attendance sheet which will also include a waiver.  Because this is an official Sierra Club outing you must sign the waivers.
What to bring:  Bring water, sunscreen, and insect repellent which contains the active ingredient, deet.  You can bring a camera if you wish, and binoculars to spot birds with.  If you are attending all 3 walks we encourage you to take photos on each walk to compare how the prairie changes over time.

Ticks: I'm sure there will be ticks on these hikes. Ticks carry Lyme disease, so we'll need to take as many precautions as is reasonable. Wear light colored clothing. Be sure to wear long pants, and socks that are long enough to tuck the bottoms of your pants into. This is one way of keeping the ticks out. Also, we will be using insect repellent. Any insect repellent with the active ingredient of 'deet' will repel ticks the same way it repels mosquitoes. I use “Off, Deep Woods.”  I will try to bring some extra repellent. Please dont wear shorts and sandals.  Thats the worst thing you can do.  

Heat, sun and rain: Prairies are hot places - so wear a broad-brimmed hat, if you wish to avoid the sun. Sunscreen is a necessity. We won’t be walking far, but we will be in the sun for 2-3 hours.  Bring plenty of water, especially if it's hot. If it's just drizzling, we'll probably still hike (if we wish), but not if it's a downpour or if there's thunder and lightning. Bring a rain parka or rain resistant jacket (or an umbrella), if you think it looks like rain.  

Health:  Please email me or let me know before the walk if you have any health conditions that may affect you on the walks.  It’s better to be prepared.  

Also: Dogs are not allowed on this site.  There is no port-a-potty on site, but the office is there, so they may let you use the office bathroom.

Directions and Parking:  The building address is - 3454 W. 155th St., Markham, IL 60428.  Make sure you look for 155th St. on the west side of I-57.  Take 159th St. to Crawford/Pulaski Rd. a little west of I-57.  Go north 2 blocks on Pulaski.  Not all of these streets have identifying street signs, so you may have to count the streets.  Double back and go east on 155th St. You’ll go through the neighborhood.  Look for the house (office) and the prairie.  They will be on the north side of the street.  There will be parking along the fence and overflow parking east of the building.