I live in Northern Illinois and haven't left my house in 3 months other than to buy groceries. I desperately need to go out and enjoy nature with my dog, spend a week or two in the wild and completely rewire myself and lose some stress.

Does anyone know any good areas around the Northern IL area? It's snowing like a mofo though, so I don't know what kind of stuff should I pack? I was thinking of going car camping to the Shawnee Forest, but would I have to spend a fuckton of money on a tent or would a normal $25 tent work fine in winter if I have a good blanket and some jackets on top?

Any other tips? Literally my first time ever going out and living by myself life this, don't even know how to make fire so I'll learn that from Youtube since I'm guessing it'll come in handy while making food

thanks