"It is so city, but still, we're here in this peace," said Cynthia Anthony-Harris, who brought her 14-year-old son to the park for the family's first camping experience.

Anthony-Harris, 57, was among dozens who participated... in a Chicago Park District event that aims to give first-time campers an experience without a big financial or time commitment.

For Chicagoans hesitant or unable to leave the city, the growing program aims to draw new recruits to the hobby and expose them to some of the more pastoral corners of the city — in some cases just steps from their front doors.

The Chicago Tribune article reports "The CTA's Green Line clacked in the background, but the trappings of city life didn't deter the dozens who had erected tents and roasted hot dogs around campfires on the lawn of Garfield Park Conservatory one recent weekend."