RETURN TO SWALLOW CLIFF TOBOGGAN RUN

Back on  June 12th I visited the Swallow Cliff Toboggan Run stairs for the first time.  I trekked up and down the stairs 12 times...125 steps up, 125 steps down, repeated 12 times.  During this initial visit I did not venture out onto any of the adjacent trails.  One thing that I have never done in my 20+ years of living in Chicago was visit a Forest Preserve to simply take a hike.  Yesterday I enlisted a companion for my first hike.  My 13 year old daughter accompanied me on the trails at Swallow Cliff.  We did go up and down the stairs one time - but my daughter was more interested in hiking - and less interested in stair climbing.  I recently found a great book at a local thrift store that highlights 60 different trails within 60 miles of Chicago.  I expect to make good use of this book, 60 HIKES WITHIN 60 MILES. Yesterday, I gave my new hiking boots (purchased for the upcoming Half Dome Hike) their first workout 'in the field.'

There are times when my daughter is hesitant to pose for a 'selfie' in public.   On the trail we had plenty of solitude so there were no issues there... The biggest issue was that we needed to be back in Chicago in time for the Season 6 finale of 'Pretty Little Liars.' (Something about 'A' being revealed...don't ask)

Two novice hikers on their first hike together.  On the trail, my daughter challenged me to  two races.  Although I have been exercising on the elliptical machine - I still thought that I could not jog or run.  I was victorious in both races (and it felt good) My daughter should have been challenging me to races last December - that is when she would have had a far better chance at victory.

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 Tuesday MENU

breakfast   Steel Cut Oatmeal, three poached eggs, center cut bacon   550 calories
lunch         baby spinach, hearts of palm, corn thins, pink lady apples 490 calories
dinner        baby spinach, hearts of palm, date pieces, clam chowder   802 calories

total calories consumed 1842 calories

calories burned

elliptical machine, level 20, 92 minutes                        2267

CALORIES BURNED 2267 CALORIES

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Tuesday net calories negative 425 calories

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The following is lifted from a Chicago Tribune Article dated January 12, 2015.   byline: Lauren Zumbach

The sledding hill at Swallow Cliff Woods is closed while the Forest Preserve District of Cook County makes changes that include a new warming hut, second set of stairs and regrading work that will tame the hill's steep incline. (Lauren Zumbach, Chicago Tribune)

Sledding enthusiasts won't be able to zoom down the 100-foot slope at Swallow Cliff Woods near Palos Park this winter, but officials of the Forest Preserve District of Cook County Said they're working to build a "new and improved" recretion are there.  "It's a site that's being heavily used for recreation an fitness, so we're trying to enhance that an keep it on of of premier recreation sites, " said Chris Slattery, the forest preserves director of planning and development.  Changes will include making the sledding area less steep, adding another set of stairs and constructing a new warming shelter.  The new shelter is under construction and should be completed by June, Slattery said.  At about 3,000 square feet, it will be larger than the old shelter with a fireplace, concessions, meeting room, bathrooms and an outdoor patio and fire pit, he said.

For the fitness enthusiasts who climb the preserve's 125 stairs year-round, district officials plan to add a second set of stairs on the right side of the hill, creating a loop that should eliminate some of the up-and-down traffic, Slattery said. 

"Especially on the weekends during the summer, it's so packed it's ridiculous," said Kevin McGreal, of Orland Park, who was finishing a 45-minute stair session Monday evening and said he hits the Swallow Cliff stairs a couple times a week, often with family. "I think it's a great idea."

But some of the changes will tame the thrills of Swallow Cliff, which currently has a steeper grade than other forest preserve sledding hills, and may disappoint sledding enthusiasts with a need for speed.

Swallow Cliff Woods, at 11918 S. La Grange Rd., used to feature toboggan runs that ran from the bluff's peak to base, but they were "a bit of a hazard" and closed in 2004, at least in part due to safety concerns, Slattery said. Until this winter, people could still sled on the hill, though only from a little more than halfway up. But once the toboggan chutes and their supports were removed, the hill began eroding, Slattery said. To stabilize it, the district needs to regrade the slope to a gentler incline, Slattery said. The district also will add a platform marking the official starting line, still midway up the hill. The hill likely will be closed for sledding next winter too. "I know that's part of the thrill, but since the chutes were removed, it just isn't stable. Making it a little less steep will help keep it from eroding," Slattery said, explaining the changes weren't just about safety. The hill is in bad enough shape that the district closed it to sledding this winter, even though construction on the hill and new stairs likely won't start until spring, Slattery said. When the district sought input on the upgrades in 2013, there was talk of eventually adding an alpine slide that would allow year-round riding. Slattery said they've put that idea — floated after a few mild winters when there was rarely enough snow for sledding — on hold because it would require getting rid of the sledding hill. "We want to see how popular the renovated hill is before we go there and see what happens to the climate," he said. All of the preserves features, including the new stairs and sledding hill, should be ready to open in 2016, Slattery said.