Hello, curious citizens. It's Jesse Dukes, Curious City audio producer. And, well, first, hi, how are you doing? We hope you're hanging in there. What a couple of weeks, huh? We really hope you and your loved ones are staying safe. And if anybody is sick, we hope you get the care you need and recover soon. Curious City has been asked to respond to the dozens of questions WBEZ has been

receiving about COVID-19. So we're working on that right now. We've also been putting out some guides

that you can read. So be sure to keep an eye out for those on our social media channels. You can

also find them online at WBEZ.org slash Cur curious city. Anyway, we plan to keep putting out a

Curious City podcast every week. The timing may change around a little, and we will in the coming

weeks be able to put out those sorts of stories about Chicago and the region that aren't just

about the COVID-19 crisis. But for now, we did get a lot of questions about going outdoors. It seems like a lot of

you appreciate nature, like listener Tim Stafford. I'm in Willow Springs. Kind of very close to where I live.

I've been going on hikes every day. Stafford recorded this audio out on a walk in the forest

preserves behind his house. A lot of birds freaking out. There's some water going and occasionally a semi-truck goes blasting by to bring this all back to the real world.

Tim isn't alone in appreciating the outdoors. WB.EZ has gotten at least 14 questions in the last couple weeks about the safety and logistics of outdoor recreation during the COVID-19 crisis.

For now, Governor Pritzker's stay-at-home order does allow us to keep hiking and jogging outdoors.

But this past week, Mayor Lightfoot closed the lakefront path, nearby parks, the Riverwalk, and the 606 trail indefinitely. There are still many parks

and natural areas open in the region, but they can be closed too if people don't use them

safely and follow the social distancing guidelines. And many people have been wondering exactly

what that means. Can you go outdoors safely and is it a good idea? This past week I've spoken to

health experts who say it is a good idea to go outside, even in a pandemic, if you do it safely.

Going outside is really great. It's good for your health. It's good for your mental health.

Being cooped up is terrible. It's good for kids. This is Dr. Jesse Abate, an infectious disease specialist.

She and other health experts say sunshine may kill virus you have on your clothing.

And being outside and exercising actually helps keep us from getting sick.

And as far as safety, the two big rules are, one, stay six feet away from people unless you're quickly passing by,

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