As beach season winds down in Chicago, the Shedd Aquarium is hosting a series of weekend cleanups to clear the shoreline of a summer’s worth of litter and debris.

After a drowning in Lake Michigan near a Rogers Park beach earlier this month, longtime community activist Jim Ginderske decided to take action in the name of public safety. Now, a local alderperson is joining the effort.

For three months out of the year, Chicago’s every bit as much of a beach town as Los Angeles or Miami. As we kick off summer 2021, here are some things you might not know about the city’s sandy shore.

The city’s lakefront beaches will officially open Friday for the first time since 2019, with lifeguards on duty and concessions returning. 

Conservationists are celebrating a big win for wildlife along Chicago’s lakefront, where the expansion of a “treasured” natural area will give more room to some high-profile occupants: a pair of endangered Great Lake piping plovers, Monty and Rose.

Metered parking is already in place at lakefront destinations like Rainbow Beach, North Avenue Beach, 31st Street Beach, 63rd Street Beach and Foster Avenue Beach. Now it’s coming to Montrose Harbor — and some residents aren’t happy about it.

Chicago’s birding community is already preparing for the return of Monty and Rose, the piping plovers that captured national attention two summers ago when they made the surprising choice to nest on Chicago's lakefront. But will their favored habitat be secure in 2021?

It might not be the day of your Coppertone dreams, but you can get a little sand between your toes by signing up for one or all of this week’s volunteer beach and shoreline cleanups.

Geoffrey Baer on a mysterious lakefront structure in this week's Ask Geoffrey. 

With Chicago’s beaches closed, Evanston has been a lakefront refuge for many city dwellers, but now even that option is becoming limited as summer nears its end.

The National Weather Service is warning people to steer clear of Lake Michigan due to high waves and strong currents. That doesn't just apply to beachgoers and swimmers. Shoreline structures can be dangerous too.

A large crowd gathered over the weekend along the lakefront, prompting the city to install fencing at Montrose Beach — and the mayor to issue a stern message.

As temperatures soar, you might be tempted to jump into Lake Michigan. But with Chicago beaches closed to prevent the spread of COVID-19, water safety advocates say there’s an increased risk of drowning. 

Chicagoans hoping to beat this week’s oppressive heat and humidity won’t be able to head to Chicago’s beaches to cool off “any time soon,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Monday.

Joel Brammeier, president and CEO of the Alliance for the Great Lakes, talks about the area’s shrinking and disappearing beaches this year, and why it matters.

A new report raises some red flags about the potential health risks associated with swimming at local beaches.