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Regional Summer Calendar of Special Events
Through September 2003
By Cara Jepsen
Michigan
Illinois | Wisconsin | Indiana
August 7-10
Humongous Fungus Fest
Various locations | Crystal Falls | 4:30-8 Thursday, 9-9 Friday, 10-6:30 Saturday, 7-3 Sunday | free | 906-875-3212 | www.crystalfalls.org
In 1988 two scientists from the University of Toronto discovered a 38-acre, 100-ton Armillaria bulbosa fungus outside of Crystal Falls, near the Wisconsin border. You can't really see it, and the only edibles it produces are tiny honey mushroom shoots that occasionally poke their heads out. But the giant mass -- which is perhaps the largest and oldest living organism in the world -- also cleans up the environment, feeding on decayed wood and producing oxygen. Today's festival doesn't feature mushrooms as much as humongous rummage and sidewalk sales, races, a parade, a pony pull, a tube float, an auto show, a picnic, and lots of games. (Many events have individual registration fees that range from $1 to $25.)
Illinois | Wisconsin | Indiana
For more information on Chicago festivals, try the Mayor's Office of Special Events.
Visiting from out of town? Here's a hotel guide from our friends at chicago.citysearch.com.
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