Johnson's Shut-Ins reopens this weekend

Originally scheduled to reopen Memorial Day weekend, but pushed back thanks to damage from the "Inland Hurricane", Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park will open daily starting Saturday. It's been a long time coming since the Taum Sauk Reservoir collapse.

I'm looking forward to trying out the new trail overlooking the scour channel from the reservoir collapse. This trail has its own parking lot on Route N away from the main park.

In other news:

Folk music concert

Trail of Tears State Park and Bollinger Mill State Historic Site will host their annual Spring Folk Music Concert this weekend. This year's free event features Rick Thum performing "traditional, old-time and gospel tunes."

Fort de Chartres rendezvous

The annual Fort de Chartres Rendezvous, one of the largest in the country, is scheduled for this weekend. With the Illinois budget crisis, it wasn't entirely certain if the event would be held this year, but everything is set. Hopefully the weather won't be quite as hot as previous years.

East St. Louis as a tourist attraction?

A new park along the East St. Louis riverfront opens this weekend. The centerpiece is a peculiar-looking overlook of the river and the Gateway Arch. I'm not holding my breath, but perhaps this could be the beginning of a new era where East St. Louis is no longer the laughingstock of the Midwest.