Go out, explore, see what you find and enjoy what you see in Champaign-Urbana (and beyond)
Decorating for fall is a fundamentally optimistic act. Whether you are celebrating a bountiful harvest, anticipating spooky Halloween hijinks, or simply defying the disappearing daylight, we can all unite behind the fantasy that winter will never actually arrive.
Combine our friends’ and neighbors’ creativity with Central Illinois’s gorgeous autumn sunshine, and you just may find yourself spending an entire afternoon driving aimlessly around and stopping to take pictures whenever the inspiration hits. When you happen upon a Little Free Library sprouting seasonal decor, you know that Fall has officially arrived in Champaign-Urbana.
Of course, we have a variety of articles highlighting more permanent and predictably photogenic aspects of our area:
- Where to Instagram in Champaign-Urbana
- 10+ Places to See Fall Colors in Champaign-Urbana
- Where to Take Fall Family Photos in Champaign-Urbana
This post, however, is a little different — it’s about the ephemeral, the unexpected, the temporary.
Even if a business has set up a fall photo backdrop for its customers to use, it’s somehow… extra. Will it still be there if you go back? Will the light be as perfect as it is right now?
It’s about the serendipity of stumbling upon something photogenic while you’re already out — maybe you’ll bring your kids back for a picture, maybe you’ll take a picture of someone else’s family because they’re Just. So. Cute.
This season we have found at least three other pumpkin-related places that cry out to you to stop and take a family photo:
Speaking of pumpkins, did you know that there’s a block of W. Washington St. in Champaign (between New and Harris) that turns its streetlights into jack-o-lanterns for Halloween? Each face on each light is different.
Heading over toward downtown Champaign, have you looked up recently when crossing the street at Church and State?
How do you feel about spiders? Giant spiders?
After fleeing from this spider, we found a few more suspicious looking characters down the street…
… who chased us all the way down to Urbana’s Trails Drive.
We then took a long and meandering journey back home through the streets of Champaign; enjoy just a taste of the fall scenery found on our scaaaary streets. We have to say, the skeletons and spiderwebs are clearly winning 2020.
We hope these photos have given you the itch to Go Out and Look at Things.
Because winter is coming.
Know of a place we should add to this list? Send info/pics to editor@chambanamoms.com
More fall fun:
Where to Take Fall Family Photos in Champaign-Urbana | Halloween Events in and around Champaign-Urbana | Drive Thru Halloween Events | Trick or Treating Safety Guidelines | Pumpkin Patches, Corn Mazes and Apple Picking |