Under Rocks

Poet Carl Sandburg knew blue collar culture – You know, “hog butcher for the world” and all that. Maybe that’s why he latched onto the lowly pawpaw, the “poor man’s banana,” as the root of a decades-long joke he shared with friends (who got it), the President of the United States (who didn’t get it), and reporters (who knows if they got it, but it made a fun story!).

Encore Mt. Morris has a mission: To create a unique rural arts environment in northwest Illinois. And boy, did they nail it with the annual Straw Sculpting competition. We meet up with organizer Jeff Bold and artists Chris and Cecelia Mann.

We learn about Rockford's Test Site on this latest edition of Under Rocks.

Deborah Booth finds magic in watching the Wizard of Oz with her grandchild — but she can't forget the dark side of the rainbow.

Toynbee idea in movie 2001. Resurrect dead on planet Jupiter. What? And why is this message on a tile in the streets of Rockford, Illinois? The Under Rocks team investigates.

Thousands drive past it every day, but only a few lay eyes on it. It's the Geneva Grotto. And nearly a century after it was built by local Catholic priests, the mosaic and stone structure is returning to serve as a connection between the faithful and their God.

The Under Rocks team goes on a treasure hunt with a real life detectorist.

If you grew up anywhere near Rockford, Illinois, in, oh, the last century or so, you probably have eaten at least a handful of Mrs. Fisher's potato chips. This regional delicacy started in Ethel Fisher's kitchen and still maintains that small-batch flavor, even as the company goes through 2.6 million pounds of local potatoes every year. So join Mrs. Fisher's vice president Chris Spiess as he takes the Under Rocks team on a tour of Rockford's salty treasure.

Curling fever doesn't have to end on the Olympic medal podium! Join your local curling league and the next four years will fly faster than a granite stone across a sheet of ice. We revisit our 2022 curling adventure at the Waltham Curling Club in Triumph, Ill. Plus, our resident curling superfan recaps the 2026 Olympic highlights — and explains the shocking controversy. Good curling!

It’s been just over a year since Northern Illinois University closed its outdoor education campus high above the Rock River in Oregon, Illinois. While its future is still in limbo, a group called Together for Taft is making progress in its effort to bring it back as an environmental education center. WNIJ’s Under Rocks podcast team stopped by the group’s fundraiser recently, which was held across the river from the shuttered campus.