174. “Ignite the Night” Fall Bonfire Festival & Cookout

There’s a super cool fall festival happening in Barrington Hills this weekend, so I wanted to give you the scoop and make sure you have plenty of notice.  It’s the 4th Annual “Ignite the Night” bonfire festival hosted by the Friends of the Forest Preserves in Cook County.

The nighttime festival will take place this Saturday, September 25th, between 5 and 10PM within the Barrington Countryside Park District at the Spring Creek Forest Preserve in Barrington Hills.

There will be a gigantic bonfire, a performance by a band called The I-Lites, dancing under the stars, giant telescopes to check out the full moon, a great cookout, dinner, beer, wine, raffles, prizes, narrated horse-drawn wagon rides, live native animals and flashlight tours in the woods for kids. It’s a cool lineup of fun for the whole family and a great way to celebrate the start of the fall season while helping protect Cook County’s forest preserves at the same time.

The money raised from ticket sales will go to Friends of the Forest Preserves, the Chicago-based group devoted to programs that restore native habitats and protect the ecosystems of Cook County’s 68,000 acres of forest preserves. They host their annual Fall Bonfire Festival in Barrington Hills each year because the Spring Creek Forest Preserve is one of the county’s largest. There are also indoor facilities so the “Ignite the Night” festival will go on, rain or shine.

If you purchase them in advance, tickets are $45 for adults, $25 for teens and $5 for kids under 12. Tickets at the gate are $60. You can purchase tickets online or make a donation by clicking HERE and you can learn more about Friends of the Forest Preserves on their website at FOTFP.org. Saturday night’s festival will take place at the Barrington Countryside Park District Riding Center at 361 Bateman Road in Barrington Hills.