Kenosha's streetcar offers a scenic whirlwind tour of the town.

Simmons Island Beach is a short walk from downtown.

The Nook on 6th Ave. downtown offered vegan options and seemed to be a popular hang-out for the local police.

New development around the harbor incorporates some great public spaces.

On July 3, my partner and I took a daycation with a couple friends up to Kenosha, Wis., via Metra. Kenosha first piqued my interest when I read about their streetcar system and harbor development. But I've also been interested for a while in checking out walkable towns in the Chicago area accessible by Metra (Kenosha's Metra station has a Walk Score of 83!).

Overall, I'd recommend Kenosha as a good place to hang out at the beach that also offers some nice walking and exploring. I was surprised at how pleasant Kenosha's streets were on foot. I had expected the really wide streets with speeding traffic found in many suburban downtowns, but instead almost all of the streets we encountered were smaller and approachable. We also saw bicyclists aplenty -- a good sign of comfortable streets. Their parks and the harbor also offer great places for walking and relaxing.

I recommend the beach because there's not a ton to do in Kenosha besides relax if you're planning to spend a long day there. But the quality beach and other activities combined made it worth the trip. If you're interested in seeing Kenosha at its busiest and packed with cyclists, take a look at Chase Food Folks & Spokes taking place Friday, July 24, 2009 -- or check out this events listing.

Kenosha is at the end of Metra's Union Pacific North Line, about 1 hour and 45 minutes from Chicago. You can pick up the train at Ogilvie station downtown, or there are two stations that are easy for north siders: the Ravenswood Metra stop is a couple blocks from the Damen Brown Line CTA and the Rogers Park Metra stop is a few blocks from the Morse Red Line CTA. Make sure to check the schedule carefully ahead of time and note that not all of the trains go to the end of the line to Kenosha. The schedule is a little more favorable on Saturdays. I made the mistake of not reviewing the schedule until the day before we were planning on going, and then realized we'd need to leave very early in the morning. We went on a Friday and took the 6:48 a.m. train from Ravenswood and the 5:51 p.m. train back from Kenosha.

Here are some things to do while you're in Kenosha:

• Stroll around downtown. The main street in downtown Kenosha seemed to be 6th Ave. from 54th St. to 59th St., though there is activity on the other downtown streets. There are a few shops to wander in and a cafe and ice cream spots, but it's not exactly a bustling downtown, so don't expect to spend any significant amount of time checking out the shops. It's a nice downtown for this area, though I don't think I'd go so far as to call it "cute" or "quaint" (but who can compete with Chicago's neighborhoods?).

• Take some self-guided walking tours. The 3rd Ave. historic district area and the walk to the Kemper Center was my favorite.
• Ride the streetcar. It runs in a loop from the Metra station, through downtown, along the harbor, to a park on Lake Michigan. The Metra station is only a couple blocks from the heart of downtown, so you don't need to take the streetcar, but it's a pleasant ride. You might just hop on for fun at some point during your trip -- it only takes about 10 minutes to go the full loop. Note the hours on the Kenosha Transportation Dept. website -- when I visited, it didn't start running until 11:05 a.m.
• Check out the HarborMarket if you go on a Saturday. The HarborMarket website also has a listing of events downtown.
• Hang out at Simmons Island Beach. This was a great, quiet beach (coming from Chicago, I especially appreciate that Kenosha doesn't have a highway running through its lakefront park). It's a nice 10 or 15-minute walk from downtown. I was a little disappointed that the beach house was closed, so there were no concessions or restrooms on the beach, but there were restrooms at the top of the hill in the park where you could change into your swimsuit.
• Visit the Kenosha History Center and take a tour of the Southport Lighthouse. This is on Simmons Island right by the beach.
• Eat. Our first stop was at The Nook downtown for coffee and breakfast. The coffee was good, the food was not so good, but we were surprised to see a good number of vegan offerings, which may appeal to some. We were pleasantly surprised by our pizza at Carl's Pizza (located between downtown and Simmons Island Beach), though not impressed with our appetizers -- maybe a sign that it's best to stick with the pizza. Franks Diner was closed when we tried to go, but it's apparently a downtown institution. And before hopping back on the Metra, we stopped at Sommelier to pick up some beers to enjoy during the ride home (you can drink on Metra). Sommelier offered a good selection of wines and local beers.

If you have any other tips for Kenosha, please share them in the comments below.