Elevate Energy Walks in the Prairie
Today a few of us took a brief pause to enjoy a walk in the beautiful Elmhurst Great Western Prairie, a six-acre prairie remnant in eastern DuPage County. The prairie was saved from development because of a unique location: it’s sandwiched between two abandoned railroads.
The Elmhurst Great Western Prairie is the largest piece of untilled, undeveloped, nearly pristine prairie in the area, and the oldest living environment in Elmhurst. It’s also vitally important to other prairies in the area – both restorations and remnants – because seeds from the existing native plants can be shared with other local conservation projects to help maintain the genetic legacy of northeastern Illinois.
On top of all that, it’s beautiful. On our short walk, we saw goldfinches, blooming wildflowers, monarch butterflies, and plenty of other folks out enjoying the sunshine. A few members of our staff regularly volunteer at the prairie. One Elevate volunteer has even been at it since the 1970s! Call the Elmhurst Park District at (630) 993-8924 or visit their website to see how you can get involved, too: http://www.epd.org/parks/elmhurst-great-western-prairie
