McHenry's Light the Night 2025, which happens Saturday, Sept. 27, includes fireworks and grand opening for the McHenry Riverwalk's last two sections.

But while water parks are fun, they don’t offer the thrills of rollercoasters and other rides that people travel some fair distances to enjoy. At the turn of the century, though, Kendall County residents didn’t have to drive for hours to enjoy amusement rides.

McHenry will host its first chalk art festival Sunday, called Chalkwalk, at Miller Point Park and the Riverwalk.

The City of Geneva’s Natural Resources Committee is seeking volunteers for its annual Fox River Clean Up Day from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Sept. 20.

A former teacher, Susan Kelly of Crystal Lake recalls how magical books were for her growing up. She hopes to pass along the same feeling in her newly opened, independent Magical Forest Bookstore in Fox River Grove.

Little White School Museum in Oswego hosts “The Fox River Trolleys” at 11 a.m. this Saturday, Sept. 13. Register in advance – $5 fee – by calling the Oswegoland Park District at 630-554-1010 or pay at the door.

A man’s medical alert pendant may have fallen into the Fox River, prompting a false alarm that prompted multiple agencies to response to a possible water rescue Wednesday afternoon near Algonquin, officials report.

The Conservation Foundation is partnering with local park districts, municipalities and nonprofits to host shoreline and on-water cleanups on Saturday, Sept. 20.

Citing parking and building size, the McHenry City Council this week did not show enthusiasm for a condo project proposed on the site of a longtime riverfront restaurant that's up for sale.

Geneva will close several downtown streets early Sunday, Sept. 21 to accommodate the annual Fox Valley Marathon.

Trevor Kroll is looking to sell Scull & Oars, a local paddling outfitter, at a time when enthusiasts say the Fox River is at its prime for the sport.

With a transformed downtown recreation area on the horizon, the long sought environmental pollution cleanup in Yorkville is making stride

The River Corridor Foundation of St. Charles will reunite with Alter Brewing Company for a fundraising event at the brewery on Aug. 27.

St. Charles Plein Air - where artists paint in the open air around the area for the community to see and enjoy - runs Aug. 18 to 24 this year.

The St. Charles Arts Council will hold its second weeklong Plein Air Event from Aug. 18-24.

The purchase of a marina in the Fox Lake area will help a somewhat obscure agency keep the Chain O'Lakes clean for boating, tourism and general health of the waterways.

The body of a kayaker, who was last seen fishing on the Fox River in St. Charles Tuesday night, was found Thursday by a passerby, officials said. He was later identified as a Hanover Park man.

Rescue crews have been searching the Fox River in St. Charles since 10 p.m. last night for a missing kayaker.

The Fox River Business Alliance raised $27,000 for Kane County charities in 2024, and group members hope to outdo that record this year as efforts expand.

Johnsburg approved 1% grocery tax and 2026 budget with money set aside for Dutch Creek and Bay restoration study, needed before grants can be applied for.

To prevent nature from returning flooding to the town’s streets and properties, the city of Yorkville conducts annual inspections of the stormwater basins, identifying areas where extra care is required.

The River Corridor Foundation of St. Charles will reunite with Alter Brewing Company for a fundraising event on Wednesday to support programs and projects along the Fox River.

Burying water and sewer lines exposed following a dam removal project could cost Carpentersville more than $3 million.

The first-time El Cardunal paddle event brought the Friends of the Fox River and other supporters from Algonquin to East Dundee, celebrating the changes in the river since the Carpentersville dam was removed.

The El Cardunal paddle stepped off at Cornish Park in Algonquin and finished near William C. Bartels Park in East Dundee, covering a distance of about 6 miles.

Add golf carts to the ways to get around East Dundee.

McHenry residents are invited to come add their touches to a mural at McHenry Brewing Co., and on Thursday a vinyl mural designed by students at McHenry High School is also set to go up

Traffic on Green Street in McHenry will be detoured Thursday morning as McHenry Community High School District 156 upgrades the HVAC system at the Lower Campus.

The McHenry City Council weighed in on what members want to see in development in downtown ahead of ordinance updates that will guide developers going forward.

Friends of the Fox River and the Fabulous Fox Water Trail invite the public to join El Cardunal, a new, six-mile community paddle event from Algonquin to East Dundee, that takes place in June.

A local man wants to sell land along the Fox River to Algonquin for a public park. The village says it's not interested.

The McHenry Country Club has been sold for almost $2 million to a local businessman and philanthropist, and the McHenry City Council had a special meeting to grant a liquor license.

Kane County's Longmeadow Parkway Bridge Corridor over the Fox River near Carpentersville received an Engineering Excellence Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies at its awards ceremony Tuesday in Washington, D.C.

Hidden Harbor, a plan to revitalize blighted property at Chapel Hill Road and the Fox River in Johnsburg, came closer to reality Wednesday with nods from the village’s planning and zoning commission.

Chicago Fire Department Captain David Meyer, who was killed in the line of duty Wednesday, was remembered by neighbors at his Johnsburg vacation home.

Yorkville is considering investing $42,150 over three years to tame the unsightly weeds and trees that thrive in the soil along the river, including the riverfront island and canoe chute, and the downtown district.

Johnsburg's Pistakee Yacht Club and the village sued each other over a boat storage dispute. Post-election, with two incumbents trailing, will the legal fight be resolved?

Calling it “an incredible miracle,” the family of Karen Schepers issued a statement Wednesday thanking all those involved in finding their loved one, who had been missing since 1983. Divers uncovered her remains and her Class of 1977 Sycamore High School tassel.

Yorkville has shined in past competitions, placing fifth nationally in both 2022 and 2018 in their city-population category.

Mike Oliver, McHenry, proposes drive-up boat storage, an expanded marina, car condos and public space at a revived Paradise Cove at Chapel Hill Road and the Fox River.

The car pulled from the Fox River Tuesday that belonged to an Elgin woman who went missing in 1983 could have been recovered three years earlier but was misidentified.

When Elgin police discovered Karen Schepers’ car in the Fox River on Monday, one question immediately popped into the public’s mind: Why wasn’t it found long ago? She went missing in 1983.

Elgin police say the car belonging to a woman who has been missing for 42 years will be pulled out of the Fox River Tuesday.

Forty-two years after a 23-year-old Elgin woman vanished without a trace, police and a dive team searched the Fox River on Monday for clues they hoped to find in the frigid, murky water. Karen Schepers grew up in Sycamore.

To promote sustainability, Yorkville is encouraging residents to participate in a national water conservation challenge. In past years, the National Mayor’s Challenge shined a spotlight on the Yorkville community, with the city placing 5th nationally in both 2022 and 2018.

Elgin police will search the Fox River Monday as part of a cold-case investigation into the 1983 disappearance of Karen Schepers, who grew up in Sycamore.

A weekend of wild and wide-ranging weather blew through the McHenry County area, from dangerously high winds to snowfall – and a temperature drop of nearly 50 degrees in the process.

Enjoy these magnificent stops in Batavia, Oswego, St. Charles and Elgin while hiking or biking the Fox River Trail.

About 10 acres of land were burned in a brush fire overnight near McHenry.

Lake in the Hills smoke seen Wednesday was from a prescribed burn, the chance of wildfires is reduced, and flooding is possible over the weekend, according to the weather service