Explore your own neighborhood or seek out an unfamiliar destination, keep your camera handy, and enjoy the journey
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.
Or we can pretend that skeletons are smiling because they are happy to see us. (Right?)
Combine our friends’ and neighbors’ creativity with Central Illinois’s fickle autumn sunshine (or changeable clouds), 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 and Halloween can’t be far away.
Of course, we have a variety of articles highlighting more permanent or more 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 is a little different — it’s about the ephemeral, the temporary, the unexpected.
The spiders?
Even when a business sets up a Halloween display, it’s somehow … extra. Questions flood your mind: Did the skeleton take that cape from a vampire? Why is there an empty space on the bench? Will you be late for your dentist appointment if you stop to take a selfie?
Honestly, we couldn’t help but notice that the skeletons are out and about in our yards living their best lives (?) this fall:
Maybe they’re keeping an eye out (?!?) for more unsavory characters, such as these lurkers just a couple of houses down the street:
Have you experienced the serendipity of stumbling upon something photogenic when you visit a new-to-you neighborhood — such as Lake Falls in Savoy, where the witches are well dressed and the inflatables are almost as tall as the trees?
Did someone say tall? Tall seems to be popular this year.
Tall or short or in between, there’s nothing like a good Halloween inflatable (or two, or many) to dress up the neighborhood. Especially if you live on West Healey Avenue:
Halloween decor does seem peculiarly suited to our older neighborhoods, maybe thanks to the larger trees and greater resulting evidence of decay.
As the sun begins to set, the lights come on. Especially the spooky lights.
We leave you back where we started, in old Champaign where the trees hang low over the streets, the crows are gathering, and Halloween is almost here.
We hope these photos have given you the itch to Go Out and Look at Things, whether during the day or after dark.
Because winter is coming.
Know a Champaign-Urbana area house we should add to this post? Send info/pics to editor@chambanamoms.com
More information on Halloween in Champaign-Urbana
Halloween Events and Activities | Haunted Houses and Where to Get Scared | Where to Trunk or Treat | Champaign-Urbana Area Trick-or-Treat Hours | Halloween at Zoos near Champaign-Urbana