Volo Bog State Natural Area to host annual WinterFest

INGLESIDE – Need a cure for cabin fever? The Volo Bog State Natural Area’s annual WinterFest is the perfect blend of indoor and outdoor activities to remedy those midwinter doldrums.

The event will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. Jan. 14.

Indoors, there will be live music, photo contest awards, kids’ crafts and snacks. Outdoors, there will be bog tours, a snow-sculpting contest, cross country skiing, snowshoeing and hiking.

Live music: Harper’s Back Porch Revue, an eclectic ensemble of performers, will fill Volo Bog State Natural Area’s Visitor Center with the energy of almost 20 musicians. Friends of Volo Bog and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources welcome this dynamic musical group back for an encore performance. The ensemble explores Americana music from the late 19th to the mid-20th centuries: blues and country, old-time music, folk, gospel and more. They perform on all sorts of string instruments: guitars, banjos, fiddles, ukuleles, etc., as well as hand drumming and singing. The ever-evolving group, led by Scott Cashman and Bekr Ali, brings a variety of backgrounds and experiences together for a one-of-a-kind experience with each performance.

Photo contest awards: Between music sets, photo contest awards will be presented to first, second and third place in 10 categories in Volo Bog’s 37th annual Nature Photo Contest.

Winter crafts: Upstairs in the Visitor Center will be materials for creating fun take-home treasures. Friends of Volo Bog will have hot cocoa, coffee, soda and cookies for sale.

Bog tours: Volo Bog is beautiful any time of year. Join a 45-minute tour to learn about the bogs and their winter secrets. There are eight start times between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Snow-sculpting contest: Children and adults are invited to enter the snow-sculpting contest. There will be prizes in four categories – Youth, Teen, Family/Group and Adult. For rules and an entry form, email dnr.volobog@illinois.gov.

Snowshoeing, skiing and hiking: Cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and hiking can be enjoyed on five miles of trails over rolling hills through woodland, wetland and prairie. Bring your own skis or snowshoes.

Friends of Volo Bog, a 501(c)(3) organization, accept donations to support this event and other programs at Volo Bog State Natural Area. There is a suggested cover charge of $10 for adults. There is no charge for children.

Volo Bog State Natural Area is an Illinois Department of Natural Resources site located at 28478 W. Brandenburg Road, Ingleside. Contact the site at dnr.volobog@illinois.gov or 815-344-1294.