Good wine, food, music and more in the heart of Shawnee Trail Wine Country
Many do not know that there are two main wine trails in Southern Illinois, the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail east of I-57 in the southwestern region of Illinois and the Southern Illinois Wine Trail, east of I-57. Hogg Hollow Winery belongs to the latter and there is a great opportunity to explore the eastern side of Southern Illinois wine country this weekend. Hogg Hollow Winery, whichs is smack in the middle of the Shawnee National Forest and the Shawnee Hills American Viticultural Area also known as the Shawnee Hills AVA, will be hosting it’s 6th Annual “Spring Thing” Saturday, May 19, 2012.

This being a six-year old event suggest you should be prepared for fun! Not only do you get to explore Pope County’s oldest winery, but there will be local artists, musicians, food and of course, wine! Even better this “Spring Thing” is an awesome value as winery events go. The $5 gate fee covers entrance, wine tasting, music and your wine glass! The festivities start at 1PM, so you have plenty of time to get there after registering with your lodging or setting up camp. There are plenty of cool resources to explore nearby including Lake Glendale and what many consider the best slices of nature in Southern Illinois, Garden of the Gods Wilderness Area, about 20 miles to the northeast.

As with any activity that includes wine, beer or other alcohol-infused beverage, have a designated driver in your party. You can always buy your wine to enjoy later at your lodging or camp. Southern Illinois is always more fun accident and DUI-free!

Getting there…(Corrected Google Map)
You may want to ignore your GPS as they tend to map you to Lake Glendale Rd, NOT E. Glendale Rd.
Hogg Hollow Winery is actually closer to Glendale than Golconda. From the north on Rte 145, after you pass Rte 145,  Rte 145 curves to continue south. About 500 feet after the curve straightens out, turn left onto E Glendale Rd and follow the signs. If you are coming north on Rte 145 from Dixon Springs, you simply turn right about 500 feet from the church and cemetery onto E. Glendale Rd and follow the signs!

Google Map

View Hogg Hollow Winery, Golconda, IL in a larger map

Science demonstrations and other kid’s activities Saturday, April 28, 2012
Where: Illinois Star Centre Mall
Address: 3000 DeYoung Maion, IL 62959

Indoor, family fun activities in Marion, Illinois. All age fun mall-wide from 10MA to 4PM. “Hooked On Science” shows at 11:00AM and 1:PM at the Center Court.
There will be activities, games, giveaways, entertainment and fun for the whole family. Illinois Star Centre Mall will be collection monetary donations on behalf of Harrisburg Church of Christs to go towards Tornado relief.

Sponsors include:
AMC Center 8
Boyton Street Community Center
The Country Porch
Fox’s Flowers & Gifts/ Jeff’s Magic Shop
Hooked on Science
Incredible Cookie
Inflatable Fun
The Learning Zone
Marion Carnegie Library
Monster Radio
Pirate Pete’s
S.I. Bowl Sou
thern Illinois Miners

Take your date out for a seafood dinner!
I seldom focus on chain retailers here, but what the heck, a deal is a deal. If you a not adverse to fat, sodium, carbohydrates or unidentified fish, this is bound to be a tasty, budget treat. The link goes to Arby’s corporate site and you must print a coupon. They do ask for your name, but surely you can be creative! In any case, the deal is for a fish sandwich and curly fries for $2.99. I figure that is about $1 off of the combo they usually sell with a drink for $5. Fill your water bottle up before leaving home and you a cool.

The Prize
Arby’s $2.99 Fish & Curly Fries Coupon Link Good until end of business on 2/14/12 at participating locations.

…not a town past dying
I am posting this as one way to increase the visibility to the plight of Cairo, IL. If you are from Southern Illinois or Northern Kentucky, you know what has happened in Cairo. Any other place in the country and this would be national news. Yet for some reason, Cairo, which sits ideally on the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers is a town way past dying.

I see towns all over this country rehabilitated through creative financing. They issue bonds and create TIF districts in areas that are thriving to create business opportunities, but Cairo rots into the rivers. This is a national disgrace, but the real shame is in Springfield and Chicago. If anyone every needs to see a definition of “blight”, go to Cairo.

If I may be so bold to suggest a course of action to raise awareness on this issue. Follow the links to: http://betweentworivers.net. “Like” their page on Facebook and spread the link to anyone, especially your local and regional elected officials. As long as Cairo is allowed to rot, Illinois will rot. Unfortunately the rot that is entrenched in Cairo, won’t just jump to Chicago or Springfield, it will spread slowly up through Southern Illinois, infecting this wonderful area.
John “Wudman” Wood
Editor
ThisIsFun.Com

On the other side of this gate is fun for all near Rend Lake!

A Hidden Jewel in Southern Illinois
In the heart of Southern Illinois, Camp Manitowa and the Rend Lake Recreation Area offer the region’s best mix of easily accessible and affordable family recreation choices. Camp Manitowa’s location near Rend Lake offers outstanding access to camping, fishing, swimming, boating, sports, and wildlife watching! There is nearly every kind of all-season outdoor and challenge activities for every age!

Unique accommodations for any size group!
Camp Manitowa also offers a variety of accommodations on site. The lodgings available include cabins, and for group accommodations, unique 700 square foot. There are ten Yurts that offer a comfortable, rustic and unique overnight experience for any group.

Camp Manitowa Challenge & Recreation Activities
Our High Ropes challenge course consists of 8 elements, stands 50 feet in the air, and is highlighted by a 375 foot Zip line. We also offer a high school grade baseball field, a large; six hoop outdoor basketball court, outdoor pool, recreation hall and dining hall. Also available for use is the historic Twin Oaks Lodge! Other Camp Manitowa facilities available are a commercial kitchen, chapel, sand volleyball court, arts and crafts lodge, team challenge course, and a 5-circuit Chartres replica labyrinth! 40 acre Lake Hamilton is ready for your canoes, kayaks and as well as our popular water trampoline. Water Skiing, Wakeboarding and Tubing using our Bayliner ski boat is also available.

A Splash Away From Rend Lake
Sand Beach as well as other recreation assets at Rend Lake are within minutes of Camp Manitowa. Rend Lake offers 19,000 acres of water and 20,000 acres of land waiting for you to explore. In addition, golf, trap shooting, sporting clays and tennis, Rend Lake offers an awesome bike trail within minutes of the camp.

Camp Manitowa Yurt Rustic Group Lodging Near Rend Lake

Camp Manitowa & Rend Lake State Park – A Fun Pair!
Other activities include the Rend Lake Visitor Center, Ranger-led programs, educational programs, environmental education, the Rend Lake Wildlife Refuge, Rend Lake Artisan Center, picnic areas, and water sports. Pontoon boat and Paddle Boat rentals are available at the Rend Lake Marina and Rend Lake Resort. Auto touring and wildlife viewing opportunities abound at the lake. Did you know that Rend Lake is one of the best areas in the Midwest for birding and fishing? Horseback riding and scenic trail rides are available at adjacent Wayne Fitzgerrell State Park.

Camp Manitowa, Southern Illinois and the magnificent Rend Lake Recreation area are the perfect setting for any group outing. The facilities are ready for any school,  Scout, church, youth, or family reunion group! Whether you are looking for the perfect place for a church fish fry, team building or sports team retreats, consider Camp Manitowa!

Camp Manitowa is ready with whatever your need and will work with you to put together the perfect resources to suit your organization’s event!

Call 314-375-6766 for more info on holding your next retreat at Camp Manitowa in Beautiful Rend Lake Illinois.

To learn more about Camp Manitowa, visit: http://campminatowa.com

While The Husbands Are Away, The Wives Will Play!
Hog Hollow Winery is hosting an event dedicated to spoil you and help you relax while your husbands are off freezing in a deer stand somewhere! A variety of products, services and even a special guest author will be at Hog Hollow on Saturday, November 19, 2011 from 10AM to 7PM. This will be a fine time for ladies to get together, get spoiled, enjoy some fine wine or the Fiesta Sangria that will be on sale.
Don’t let your husbands have all the fun and be looking as well as feeling your best after a day at Hog Hollow Winery’s “Deer Ladies Day”!
Details below!

Then I remembered that the lodge at Giant City State Park has a diverse range of cabin accommodations if you are inclined to not sleep in a tent or “camp”  in an RV among the rocks that define this wonderful state park. Double occupancy for the “Historic Cabins” starts as low as $69 from Sunday through Thursday and $10 more on Friday and Saturday. That gets you one of the smaller cabins near the lodge. Not only do these cabin sleep four with their double bed set up, but they have full bathrooms. There are other, larger cabins as well, but the focus here was on the “best” deal!

The smaller cabins dot slope on the left side of the lodge at Giant City Park. There are larger cabins, “Prairie” & “Bluff” with separate sleeping areas, scenic views, decks and fireplaces, that are also outstanding values.

Beyond the affordable cabins, the parking lot around lunch and dinner suggest there is treasure in the Giant City Lodge restaurant. Exploring there on Sunday afternoon around 3PM, I was amazed to find the parking lot at the base of the observation water tower full! It wasn’t folks coming for cabins or a view from the water tower, they were coming for “the chicken”!

The chicken is a distraction the minute you get near the lodge. The smell of fried chicken smacks your nose into attention. As you climb the narrow stairs to the observation deck on the water tower, you want to look towards the lodge.

view from Giant City State Park Makanda Illinois water tower looking towards Bald Knob

As you enjoy the splendid, 360 view from the deck, you think even more about “the chicken”! Locals appear to know this as the parking lot continued to fill with people of all ages heading to the lodge for “the chicken”! While registering from the cabin, all you could here from folks waiting for their reservation to be called, “have you tried the chicken?” or “I love eating here”. You can’t escape “the chicken”. After eating it, you understand why “the chicken” is famous!

The lodge serves up this chicken in a dangerous way! “All you can eat” appears to be the favorite whether it is the $7.99 lunch special** or the regular, $10.99, “all you can stand” dinner and weekend offer. Sure, the Giant City Lodge Restaurant serves more than fried chicken, but why swim against the tide?

On Thursday you can have “all you can eat” bbq chicken and Friday night, fish is the focus! The menu extends beyond “all you can eat” with a diverse selection of breakfast, lunch and dinner selections. Despite the offerings of steak, seafood, salads, and home-style dinners, most of what I saw was chicken! The chicken comes with homemade everything. Mashed potatoes with country milk gravy, creamy coleslaw, green beans, scratch dumplins, and buttered corn round out the home-style golden friend chicken. Don’t forget the homemade biscuits! Figure on about $15 during dinner with beverage and tax.

**The  $7.99 “All You Can Eat” lunch special runs from 11 AM to 4PM Monday through Thursday! 

A note on the historic cabins that would improve one’s experience, you might want to bring your own portable heater. A small one would be fine. The reason is that each cabin is apparently heated by heat pumps. Two downsides on these devices, they can be loud and they also blow cold for the first few minutes when they kick on.  A small heater in the “Historic”, one room cabins would be quieter and probably enough in the evening. Just set the cabin heat to get the space warmed up and when time to hit the sack, kick on your small heater. I do not know if the larger cabins suffer the noisy heat pump issue since they do have dedicated bedrooms. Fortunately the heat pump is over- sized for the small cabins and never ran too long. The noise did not diminish the value of staying at Giant City State Park when exploring the Shawnee Wine Trail or Southern Illinois in general.

A bonus is that one of the closest wineries to the Giant City State Park is the wonderful, Blue Sky Winery! May I suggest you try the Gold Chardonnay if you happen to appreciate wineries. Get a side of bread and the unique Blue Sky dipping oil. That will wait for another blog!

Giant City State Park is about 15 minutes south of SIUE in Makanda, IL. Make reservations to guarantee your cabin as many know this park offers a nice value when exploring the Shawnee Forest, wine trail or Giant City State Park itself. Colors are peaking now!

Fall is here but the fun continues “down South”

Mt. Vernon, IL – Heritage Festival, October 1 & 2 10 AM To 4PM
The Jefferson County Historica Societ invites all to attend a celebration of the regions past at the Historical Village. 1411 N. 27th St.
Crafters, exhibits, demostrations, entertment, food and for those needing some early Halloween spirit, a cemetary walk! Don’t worry, the Union Cemetery walk is at 1 PM on Saturday, there should be no ghosts haunting the event.

New Baden, IL – Lions Club Amazing Race
Registration 10:30 AM Event Start 11:30 AM
The Lions Club with the help of  New Baden will bring back the Amazing Race to support the Chakota Therapeutic Riding Center. The Amazing Race is formatted much like the famous one on TV. Teams of two to six people will compete in ten challenges to win a prize of $100. Event scheduled for 5 hours. Each team’s driver must be at least 18.

The Chakota Theraputic Center’s mission is to provide people with disabilities an opportunity for theraputic interaction with horses. Center is 100% funded by grants and donations.

Breese, IL – Homecoming Weekend
Football against Red Bud on Friday, Homecoming dance on Saturday.

Praire du Rocher – Fete at the Fort Brew Fest
Sample fine beers on the grounds of Historic Fort de Chartres! The 2nd annual Fete at the Fort Brew Fest will be held on Saturday, October 1st, 2011 from 11 am to 4 pm at Historic Fort de Chartres in Prairie du Rocher, IL. The first 1500 attendees will receive a commemorative Fort de Chartres sampling glass!  The participating breweries will have their own booth.

What: Golconda Shrimp Festival
Where: Golconda, IL | Downtown and All Around
When: September 17, 2011 | From 10AM-10PM

Many people do not attribute much significance to the relationship between the state of Illinois and the Ohio River. The focus on Illinois waterways is stuck on the Mississippi River or Lake Michigan, depending on if you are from the State of Illinois or the City of Chicago.

Well a visit to Golconda, IL will help you understand that there is another mighty river that plays a significant part in Illinois history and future and that is the Ohio River.

This week you have a great reason to visit Golconda and suck in some of that Ohio River history with the tenth annual Shrimp Festival. Visiting this family-friendly Shrimp Fest, held in downtown Golconda will afford all your senses to be amused and most likely leaven them quite satisfied.

Golconda Shrimp Festival was created to support southern Illinois prawn growers. Their will be many delicious concoctions made of these local prawns available. To wash them down, a few local wineries like Hogg Hollow, will be set up in the various tents.  Be sure to ask the Hogg Hollow crew about their “Cyrus Sangria”.

This is a one day event, so plan to get their early and stay late. If you bring a folding chair, you can spend time watching the world go by in a cool little Ohio River town where folks are celebrating good things happening.

Shrimp,  three live bands, helicopter, boat and buggy rides, more shrimp, what else do you need? Even the weather is supposed to be very nice!

Tell ‘em ThisIsFun.com sent ya!

The Jimenez family is the real secret ingredient behind Union County’s Southern Illinois Pepperfest. The family which grows a diverse selection pesticied-free peppers at their farm, Ranch Belle Vista, will be sharing some of the secrets to growing, cooking, canning, and otherwise turning the heat of chilis into delicious foods.

The Pepperfest runs from 11MA to 5PM at Rancho Bella Vista at 827 Vines Rd, Cobden, IL This is a family-friendly food and fun event. There will be jellies, jams, recipes, salsas, music, cooking classes, walking tours, and more. The Jimenez clan will also show you how to string up your peppers, (ristras), so you can preserve those in your garden!

Expectations are that this years attendance will be around 500!

Admission:
$5.00
Music Scheduled:
Carter and Connelley
Will Maring

PDF Flyer

Directions:

From Carbondale:
Follow Hwy 51 south, continue past Makanda for 6.5 miles, look for the blue “Tourist Activities” sign , TURN RIGHT immediately after (this is Vines Road); we are about ½ mile in on the right hand side (north).
From Anna:
From Rte. 146 TURN North onto Hwy 51, go 5.5 miles; find Vines Rd. Where you see an older vegetable stand (Schweitzer); TURN left onto Vines Road and go about ½ mile (we are on the north side