Chicago outdoors: Yellow lady slippers, new boat owners, holiday boating advice, monarch eggs

Notes come from around Chicago outdoors and beyond.

WILD OF THE WEEK

Robert Kuta emailed, “I’m not a hunter or angler but LOVE the outdoors and hiking. My son and I was at Matthiessen Park last Tuesday and caught these lovely lady’s slippers in full bloom.” It’s been a very odd spring for wild flowers, well, wild plants in general.

WOTW, the celebration of wild stories and photos around Chicago outdoors, runs most weeks in the special two-page outdoors section in the Sun-Times Sports Saturday. To make submissions, email BowmanOutside@gmail.com or contact me on Facebook (Dale Bowman), Twitter (@BowmanOutside) or Instagram (@BowmanOutside).

DALE’S MAILBAG

“I didn’t see the mama, but found 10 monarch eggs on milkweed in my yard in Munster!” Tom Jurich, on Tuesday [photo below].

A: That beats me or my wife seeing any on our milkweed yet. I’m also very pleased with how milkweed has entered the general consciousness.

BIG NUMBER

415,000: New boaters taking to the waterways since 2020, according to the Water Sports Foundation.

LAST WORD

“ `The ‘Wear It!’ message is a simple and easy message to understand. Wearing a life jacket isn’t just a reminder for everyone on a motorboat; it’s also important for everyone who enjoys paddle sports, such as kayaks, canoes, and stand-up paddleboards.”

Illinois Conservation Police Lt. Curt Lewis, the state’s boating law administrator, before the Memorial Day weekend

WILD TIMES

WINGSHOOTING CLINICS

Saturday, June 4: Des Plaines State Fish and Wildlife Area, (815) 423-5326

June 25-26: St. Charles Sportsmen’s Club, Elburn, scscwingshooting@gmail.com or (847)309-1093

DUCKS UNLIMITED

Next Saturday, June 4: Lake Forest Area Fishing Derby, Kenosha Harbor

U.S. COAST GUARD AUXILIARY

Saturday, June 4: Weekend Navigator, Waukegan, Curt Schumacher, curts402@aol.com

ILLINOIS PERMITS/SEASONS

Wednesday, June 1: Woodchuck season opens