Midwest travel: Skate with Duncan Keith, Ronald McDonald in Rosemont
Chicago
Snapshots and slap shots
MB Financial Park at Rosemont partners with the Chicago Blackhawk Alumni Association to present the fifth annual "Skate With the Greats." Hockey fans can meet current Chicago Blackhawk player Duncan Keith as well as alumni including Tony Esposito, who will be signing autographs. You can also meet and skate with Chicago Blackhawk alumni including Murray Bannerman, Daniel Carcillo, Eric Daze, Ben Eager, Cliff Koroll, Reggie Kerr, Steve Konroyd, Peter Marsh, Grant Mulvey, Troy Murray, Jack O'Callahan, Phil Russell and Brent Sopel. Proceeds from the event will benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana. Each ticket includes a 30-minute skating session on the MB Financial Park ice rink and access to a 30-minute autograph session. 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 14, at MB Financial Park, 5501 Park Place, Rosemont. Tickets cost $125 for adults and $75 for kids 12 and younger. A special family four-pack of tickets is available for $350, with each additional ticket available for $100. When ordering tickets at rmhccni.org/skatewiththegreats/, indicate preferred time for skating and autographs by selecting a session number.
Take a free ride
Now that the holidays have ravaged the budget, take advantage of Free Days at the Museum of Science and Industry. Just show an Illinois ID to gain free entry to see exhibits such as "Brick by Brick," which features spectacular Lego-built constructions including a 60-foot Golden Gate Bridge, the International Space Station and the Roman Colosseum. Explore 50 original artworks by Maurice Sendak, author and illustrator of the beloved children's book "Where the Wild Things Are" and don't miss the beloved baby chicks hatchery. 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Jan. 10-12, 16-19, 24-26 and 31 at the Museum of Science & Industry, 5700 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago. (773) 684-1414 or msichicago.org/.
Capture this
Chicago's Newberry Library presents "Photographing Freetowns," a new acquisition of documentary photography from the 1930s and '40s. The poignant photographs of African-American life in Depression-era Kentucky are the work of photographer Helen Balfour Morrison, who traveled from her home in Evanston to photograph life in the Freetowns, also known as hamlets, which were communities originally settled by freed slaves after the Civil War. The images, nearly 80 of Morrison's original prints, chart the daily lives of the inhabitants picturing their work, domestic and social life. You can also see Morrison's original home movie of her 1935 trip, plus a slideshow of all of her almost 500 images from Kentucky. 8:15 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Friday and Saturday and 8:15 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, Jan. 20 to April 15, at the Newberry Library, 60 W. Walton St., Chicago. Free. newberry.org/.
Midwest
Give into the cold side
The fourth annual Checkpoint MN scavenger hunt offers travelers more than $40,000 in prizes, including winter gear, KEEN Footwear, The North Face, Minnesota getaway packages, grand prize ski, snowboard and fat bike packages from The-House.com and more. There are 10 checkpoint signs at well-known destinations around Minnesota and participants can earn prizes by traveling to checkpoints, taking a photo of themselves with the sign and uploading it. Minnesota is the only state to host a winter tourism-themed scavenger hunt that encompasses a variety of destinations and attractions statewide. Now through Feb. 12. See checkpointmn.com/ to find a map of the checkpoints, prize descriptions, rules, participant photos and travel resources.
Bald is beautiful
The Quad Cities area plays host to a large number of bald eagles making their annual southern migration from Canada to the unfrozen waters of the Mississippi River. Attend the largest event in the Midwest dedicated to our national symbol of freedom during Bald Eagle Days at the Quad Cities CA Expo Center. Thousands turn out for the annual event, which includes live eagle programs, live birds of prey demonstrations, an environmental fair, a wildlife art show and sale, as well as spotting scopes set up and hu-manned by the Quad City Audubon Society at Sunset Marina in Rock Island for eagle-watching opportunities. 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 6; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7; and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 8, at 2621 4th Ave., Rock Island, Illinois. Tickets are $6 for adults, $1 for kids 6-15 and free for kids 5 and younger. Find details at qccaexpocenter.com/.
Pumped up kicks
Enjoys loads of exhilarating winter activities like sledding, skiing, archery, snow sculpture, ice cave hikes, chain-saw carving, wildlife talks, horse-drawn bobsled rides, frozen turkey bowling, a snowshoe exhibit, Tri-state Malamute Club Sled Dog Race and weight pull, Fat Tire Bike Demonstrations and more during the Kickapoo Valley Winter Festival. A local Lions Club hosts an annual chili and bread contest for the public, and there's a Kickapoo Live Auction of goods and services produced in the Kickapoo Valley. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7, at Kickapoo Valley Reserve, S3661 State Highway 131, La Farge, Wisconsin. Free. (608) 625-2960 or kvr.state.wi.us/Events/Annual-Events/Winterfest.