Bounce, swing, and sail back in time with these local rainy day activities

Laurel Ulaszek and the rest of the team at Batavia’s public library know that few times call for curling up with a good book more than grey, soggy days.

And it doesn’t hurt to have a dizzying array of other resources, plus fun programming and safe, clean play spaces for the little ones to explore, to make the region’s brilliant assortment of public libraries a prime destination on those rare - though inevitable - summer days when the call of the outdoors may get a bit dampened.

“The library is a place where you don’t have to buy anything to come hang out and let your children play while you spend time with other caregivers,” said Ulaszek, Youth Services Manager at the Batavia Public Library

“The library is a great equalizer.”

But while always a great choice, public libraries represent but one among a litany of amazing options for getting out of the house on rainy summer days in Kane County for families and grown-ups flying sans kids.

From Aurora through the Tri-Cities and up into Elgin and its northernmost corners, Kane County bursts with a well-documented and staggering array of beautiful parks, ballfields, water parks, public pools, recreation trails, festivals, and more options for outdoor summertime fun.

But every summer will always bring with it a number of days on which clouds may roll in, cool breezes may leave everyone reaching for a sweater, and rain, sometimes accompanied by thunder - or worse - may pour down.

On those days, people may be faced with an inescapable question: What do we do now?

Fortunately, Kane County also enjoys no lack of entertaining, educational, and recreational options to provide the answer - whether or not it’s the kids who are asking.

BOUNCE AROUND

For families with little ones, there is no escaping the need for them to sometimes literally bounce off the walls. And that’s where trampoline parks can come in handy.

In St. Charles, Urban Air Adventure Park in St. Charles offers a heaping helping of performance trampolines, climbing walls, go-kart tracks and more, open to kids of all ages.

And in South Elgin, Epic Air Trampoline Park offers a 32-trampoline open jump area (including a separate area for younger bouncers), along with options for trampoline basketball and dodgeball, depending on the day or time.

TAKE A SWING

Even a little rain can certainly wash out games like baseball, soccer or golf.

But the region is bursting with options for keeping the fun going, no matter the weather outside.

Duffers looking to work on their golf swing without dodging raindrops, for instance, can find no shortage of indoor golf simulators. The St. Charles Park District, for instance, offers indoor golf opportunities at Pottawatomie Golf Course.

Virtual tee times are also available at many local indoor golf centers, including X-Golf Geneva and Fairview Indoor Golf, located inside the Fox Valley Ice Area.

At the Pickle Haus in Algonquin, visitors can drop in for a match of America’s hottest sport, pickleball. According to its site, Pickle Haus offers daily open play sessions in the morning and afternoon, as well as special youth pickleball court times, including times for players as young as seven.

Young athletes looking to toss a football, keep their soccer dribbling skills sharp, or other athletic pursuits can check out the expansive St. Charles Sportsplex for Drop-In Turf Time, subject to availability.

And baseball and softball players can keep working on their swing no matter the conditions at indoor batting cages, such as the Hittrax Batting Cages at Dick’s Sporting Goods in Geneva or at Funway Entertainment Center in Batavia.

LACE ‘EM UP

A summer rainy day could be the perfect time to knock down some pins or go for a skate.

In addition to regular open bowling, bowling alleys throughout the region, like St. Charles Bowl, offer special youth bowler programs, allowing junior bowlers to bowl all summer long for one price.

If roller skating is your speed (or your kids’), from Tuesday-Sunday every week, Funway Entertainment Center offers public indoor roller skating, from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. According to their website, Funway is offering a summer special, allowing visitors of all ages to skate all summer for $90.

And for those maybe seeking to really cool off, the Fox Valley Ice Arena in Geneva and the newly reopened Polardome Ice Rink at Santa’s Village Amusement and Water Park in East Dundee offer public ice skating sessions on weekends and other select days, all summer long

MEET CRITTERS

Every day, Monday - Saturday, at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., the St. Charles Park District’s Hickory Knolls Discovery Center offers young visitors the chance to get up close and personal with some of the Center’s resident “Animal Ambassadors.” These can include snakes, turtles and even a tarantula. During these indoor sessions, Hickory Knolls staff will display and discuss the critter of the day. And the ambassador animals change daily.

SAIL BACK IN TIME

The Fox Valley region is blessed with an abundance of local museums offering a trip to the past, with many facilities mostly situated indoors.

Though not all are open every day for public tours, the museums offer glimpses of local history. These include artifacts and memorabilia from the Civil War at the Grand Army of the Republic museum in Aurora; the Aurora Regional Fire Museum, which features two floors of exhibits chronicling the history of firefighting in Aurora and the region; and the Elgin Public Museum in Lord’s Park in Elgin, featuring exhibits telling the story of the Fox Valley region’s natural history and the deep past before the arrival of European settlers.

And in Geneva, on select dates, visitors to Good Templar Park can take a guided tour of a real 78-foot long Viking longship. In 1893, the ship, named The Viking, sailed from Norway through the Great Lakes to Chicago for the World’s Fair, where it was exhibited. The ship has resided in Geneva since the mid-1990s. According to the Friends of the Viking Ship website, the ship will be available for tours inside its enclosed canopy on June 15 and 21-22; July 19; and Aug. 16.

CATCH A FLICK

What summer is complete without a trip to the local cinema to take in a blockbuster film or just an entertaining matinee in the cool darkness of a theater, complete with a bucket of popcorn and cold drink? Whether your choice is the Marcus Cinemas in Elgin, Charlestowne 18 in St. Charles, Cinemark West Dundee, or Emagine Batavia - among other choices - you can’t go wrong.

The summer release schedule includes a long list of thrilling and amusing offerings for theater goers of all ages, including “Mission Impossible - The Final Reckoning;” “The Fantastic Four: First Steps;” “Superman;” “Jurassic World: Rebirth;” “Karate Kid: Legends;” Disney Pixar’s “Elio;” and the live action versions of “How to Train Your Dragon” and “Lilo & Stitch.”

DROP ON IN

And through the summer, don’t forget about the abundant options at your local park districts and public libraries.

The St. Charles Park District, for example, will offer video game tournaments and other workshops and programs for teens, while also offering an abundance of programs for little ones.

And at the Batavia Public Library, staff said rainy days can be a prime time for young readers, in particular, to curl up with a good book and work toward their summer reading challenge goals.

Or library users of all ages can join in any of the broad range of special programs and activities. Or they can choose to create, utilizing the library’s MakerZone, where users can find a Cricut mug press, Singer sewing machine, a sublimation printer for custom-print jobs and a heat press for transferring special ink and vinyl onto various materials.

And that comes on top of the books, music, videos and other media always available for free, all year round - and welcoming, comfortable spaces to enjoy it all, rain or shine.