Tag Archives: riverwalk

Photographs: Chicago, Photographs: Urban/Street

Morning, Riverwalk

Leave a comment
Morning, Riverwalk
Morning, Riverwalk

Morning, Riverwalk. Chicago, Illinois. August 2, 2014. © Copyright 2014 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Two men on the Chicago Riverwalk in the early morning

Let me begin by telling a story on myself. The last time I was in Chicago, which was some years back, I was there for a conference related to my work as a college faculty member. I flew in to town, went straight downtown, and spent three or four days engaged almost entirely in conference stuff at the hotel, mostly eating there with the exception of one dinner out in a place I’m sure I could not find my way back to. It was November, and at one point I thought I would go out for a walk. Silly California boy! I believe that I walked out one hotel doorway and made it as far as the next one before the cold and wind convinced me to think of a different activity. The point of all of this is that I really did not see the city and, in fact, I was so unaware that I managed to get my directions off by about 90 degrees.

This has happened to me elsewhere, most notably in Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park. I normally have a very good sense of direction, but when I arrive at Tuolumne, to this day my world rotates (incorrectly) by 90 degrees. In the case of Chicago, the problem for me was that I got the idea that the Chicago River headed through town in a southerly direction — and, as any Chicagoan knows, that is absurd… it goes east. Perhaps if I had actually gone out and walked the Chicago Riverwalk, like these two guys, on that earlier visit I would not have spent the first day or so of this visit trying to rotate my mental map by 90 degrees!

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Chicago, Photographs: Urban/Street

North Chicago River

Leave a comment
North Chicago River
North Chicago River

North Chicago River. Chicago, Illinois. August 2, 2014. © Copyright 2014 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The North Chicago River and downtown area buildings

Early in the morning we took what I believe was the first boat on the Chicago River Tour, the (deservedly) popular way to see and learn about the architecture of Chicago that lines the river and its branches. Despite the peaceful and bucolic scene along the banks of this section of the river, the waterway has a bit of a troubled past and still has a quite a way to go before its water quality is sufficiently restored. (One memorable line from the tour narrator pointed out that only in Chicago would it be regarded as environmental progress when a river’s status “rose” from “toxic” to “polluted. ;-)

In any case, there is a lot to see from the river since much of the downtown is very close to its banks, and many additional things that you wouldn’t notice from the sidewalk or road are visible from down on the water. There is a lot of redevelopment work going on, and areas that were apparently once industrial are now being converted to residential and related use. It is possible to walk many sections of the river, and kayakers are a frequent sight. This photograph looks back toward central Chicago from the north branch of the river and past sections where trees line portions of the bank.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.