On the road: Polar Adventure Days returns to Northerly Island
Chicago
Cold play
Northerly Island is the perfect place for a day of outdoor winter activities courtesy of Polar Adventure Days. The sixth annual indoor-outdoor winter celebration features enough action to warm the body and the brain. On hand will be Siberian huskies and birds of prey; ice-sculpture carvings; a chance to create nature-inspired crafts; winter storytelling; live music from the Old Town School of Folk Music; and snowshoe rentals. The first 500 visitors receive a complimentary mug filled with hot chocolate.
Noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26, at Northerly Island, 1400 S. Lynn White Drive, Chicago. Call (312) 742-7529 or visit chicagoparkdistrict.com.
Do-tell hotel
If you save your trips into the city strictly for shopping, expand your scope with a visit that mixes history with dining. The Palmer House Hilton launches an interactive luncheon and tour series that begins with lunch inside the Lockwood restaurant. Executive chef Greg Elliott prepares a prix-fixe menu featuring a salad and entree along with a brownie and a glass of wine “to go” with the tour. On the tour, visitors will learn about the art-deco lobby, grand ballrooms, guest rooms and vintage artifacts showcased throughout the hotel and sites that aren't typically open to the public. Participants also receive a commemorate gift.
12:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday beginning Tuesday, March 1, at 17 E. Monroe St. Chicago. Reservations are $50 per person and need to be made 24 hours in advance. Call (312) 917-3404 or visit lockwoodrestaurant.com.
Midwest
Tap into syrup season
If it's the Festival of the Sugar Maples, spring is right around the corner. Join the McHenry County Conservation District's fun and educational program to discover how syrup is made from the sap of maple trees. A one-hour tour features the cultural history of the maple grove, different collection techniques, a look at how maple syrup is made at the evaporator house and finish with a taste of fresh maple syrup.
10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 26-27, and March 5-6, at Coral Woods Conservation Area, 7400 Somerset, Marengo. Tours leave every 15 minutes. Call (815) 338-6223 or visit mccdistrict.org.
This suds for you
A ballpark full of beer — have you died and arrived at your version of heaven? The 2011 Michigan Winter Beer Festival, sponsored by the Michigan Brewers Guild, in Grand Rapids, Mich., will feature 250 craft beers from more than 45 Michigan microbreweries and brewpubs. There also will be food and live music.
1 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26, at Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park, Grand Rapids, Mich. Tickets, which include admission and 15 tasting tokens, cost $35 each in advance and are available online at michiganbrewersguild.org. If the event sells out, there my be some remaining tickets available at the gate on event day for $40 each.
Old fool festival
Wabasha, Minn., the oldest city on the upper Mississippi River, is the ideal spot for a Grumpy Old Men Festival held on the last Saturday of February each year. Count on an ice-fishing tournament, minnow races, polar plunge, stretch raffle, pet parade, free viewings of the film, lots of entertainment and a Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau look-alike contest based on the movie, “Grumpy Old Men.” Wabasha's historic district has more than 50 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, so be sure to take a historic walking tour while in town. Book a hotel package that includes a night of lodging, two $15 restaurant gift certificates, a gift basket and specials at participating merchants.
Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 26-27, in Wabasha, Minn. Call (800) 565-4158 or visit wabashamn.org.
Worth the trip
Your body may not believe that we'll break from our winter cocoons, but your mind can get in gear by snagging early savings with Rail Europe's exclusive Eurostar High Speed Deal. The deal provides early bookers with 20 percent off on Eurostar Standard Premier tickets for high-speed rail travel from Paris or Brussels to London when booking now and using the discounted tickets on travel all summer long.
Book through March 31 and use the discounted tickets from March 1 through Aug. 25. Fares begin at $142 for one way and $250 for round trip. Book at raileurope.com/train-faq/european-trains/eurostar/index.html.