u/Baroness210

Yesterday, I took advantage of the 80+-degree temperatures by paying a brief visit to 31st Street Beach via Route 35. The beach was busy. Traffic around it was a slow-go. That made for a slow ride getting there and coming from. It took the bus I boarded (seen in the photo) more than 5 minutes to get to this spot from 33rd Street/Rhodes.

It was the final weekend of bus service to the beaches before Memorial Day weekend. Memorial Day is the first day of Chicago beach season. Beginning Memorial Day, routes 35, 72, 78 and 63 will serve the beaches daily until mid August.

Have you ever looked to the east of Michigan Avenue while riding the 34, 111, 103, 106, and 119 and wondered why the ground goes down? When you do, you’re looking at geological history. This is a ridge formed by glacial Lake Chicago, which receded and became Lake Michigan. Here are three photos of buses seen yesterday on Michigan Avenue in the Roseland neighborhood on the far south side of the city. They could've been better but they'll suffice for now.

1st photo: northbound 34

2nd photo: northbound 119 with northbound 111 in the distance

3rd photo: southbound 34.

The slope is seen in all three photos. Next time, I want to get a photo of a bus for 111 going over or down Blue Island Ridge (which is near the Rock Island Beverly Sub Metra stations). It's stuff like this that shows that riding CTA can be very educational.

Earlier today, I paid a quick visit to Eggers Grove on the far southeast side of Chicago in order to get in as much trailwalking as I could before the rain came. That task failed but at least I got some nice photos of a bus running along CTA Route 100.

The first three photos show a bus at the stop at 112th St and Avenue B. 4th photo: the bus stop is seen from across the state line in Hammond, Indiana (it's the black box in the distance on the far rright-hand side of the photo). The 5th and 6th photos also show more of the closeness. In the 6th photo, the reddish sign seen in the distance is that for Horseshoe Casino Hammond.​ On the other side of the Indiana Toll Road is a strip mall with stores and restaurants such as Walmart and IHOP.

The last three photos were taken during my ride on a bus heading to 95th Red Line from 112th St and Avenue B. Seen are a rainbow, the result of a two-car pileup on 106th St. Bridge, and the view of the Calumet River from 106th Street. The raindrops spoil the views unfortunately, but they're better than nothing at all.

To take advantage of Monday's mild weather before the storms rolled in, I rode Route 75 to the north end of Rainbow Beach in the South Shore neighborhood just to spend some time by the lake. This is one of the few CTA bus routes that will take you to a beach year round, not just during the summer. The photos show how close the route ending/starting point is to the lakeshore. Sand everywhere, including in the bus stop and turnaround. I love that!

Speaking of, in the 3rd photo, I stuck my bare feet in the sand at the bus stop while waiting for the next westbound bus after stepping in the cold water of the lake. Stepping into the water alleviated some minor foot pain I was experiencing. Two buses arrived to head west. The bus monitor had me and three other people board the New Flyer bus. Enjoyable times were certainly had via Route 75.

EDIT: After reviewing bus stops near the lakefront on Google Maps, I have determined that this is the closest bus stop to the lake when judging by distance. 67, 146, 130, 66, 65, and 29 all require a little bit of walking. Hey, the amount of sand everywhere is a giveaway.

I had to delete the first post with these photos because one did not show up for some reason.

The 1st-3rd photos were taken during my ride on the J14 on my way to Lincolnwood Town Center.

The 4th photo shows a meet between two Yellow Line trains near Oakton Street from the Pace 210 bus I was on.

In the 5th-7th photos, I'm heading to downtown Chicago via the 147 after buying some grocery items for dinner.

Overall, it was a very fun day despite the lowly feeling surrounding the sudden closure of the mall.

* It may not be the best flair but meh *

Today was the very last day of operations for the remaining stores at Lincolnwood Town Center. I didn't receive word about it until a few days ago. Because I have some fond memories of the mall and I use to joyride Pace 210 for round trips from/to there, I decided to pay my last visit and get photos of the mall, along with the buses that serve it. For some reason, my phone camera hates the destination sign of the newer Novas (last three photos).

I could just sense the "down" feeling in the place. I felt bad for the owners of the remaining independent stores and wished them well in the future. Speaking of the future, what does the future hold for CTA and Pace buses that served the mall? Demolition will begin some time in May. Where will they go in the meantime, and will they continue to serve this spot after the new construction is complete?

This photo was taken Monday evening on a westbound no. 95 bus. I was heading to a Subway restaurant to pick up an online order. This is how my introverted little self loves bus rides. It's just me and the driver, rolling along.