Illinois

Oak Point Campground is located in the Lake Glendale Recreation Area, there are 34 full hook up sites and 25 primitive tent camping sites. Group camping is also available at the Duck Bay Shelter and the Goose Bay Shelter. All sites are first come first serve and does get crowded on Summer weekend...

This 25 acre lake within the Shawnee National Forest was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. There are several large picnic areas and shelters available along with a sand beach and swimming area.  The hollow is surrounded by sandstone bluffs and sharp cliffs and provides an excellent day pa...

Kincaid Mounds State Historic Site is a nationally significant Native-American archaeological treasure. From about 800 AD to 1500 AD it was the ‘capital' of a chiefdom that stretched from Brookport to Hamletsburg along the Ohio River. Large flat-topped mounds were erected on which the houses and ...

Hike, swim, paddle, fish, bike, or picnic is a amazing medium size lake in the heart of the Shawnee. Surrounded by trees, bluffs, creeks, and trails in all directions paired with its central location many attractions in Southern Illinois, Lake Glendale is a great spot to spend a day or a week. Fr...

The Nachusa Grasslands is a wildlife restoration and recreational area located near Franklin Grove, Illinois that contains several hiking trails through prarie land with over 700 native plant species and features a 1500 acre enclosure for a bison heard that inhabits the preserve.  The land is cur...

This wandering intermittent creek inside of Giant City State Park only flows in periods of heavy rain or after snow melts. Prior to a confluence with Drury Creek, the path comes to a mid sized shelter bluff wall. What this shelter lacks in sheer size, it made up for in importance to Native Americ...

This is an easy trail for beginners, with a packed gravel clearly-marked trail shared  by walkers, runners, bicyclists, and even horses (the trail is next to Denada Equestrian Center).  Gently sloping trails lead through prairie land, next to small ponds filled with singing frogs, some wooded are...

Like the rest of the park, the Giant City Lodge was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1930's. The lodge's architecture will remind someone of great lodges of the West with its hardwood timber and sandstone blend that has a two story fireplace and rotunda to enjoy one of the be...

The Hollows Trail is a loop trail that takes you by a lake located near Cary, Illinois.

Grant Park is located on the east side of Chicago. It is a great place to spend the day and explore. From the famous "Bean", which is actually named "the cloud", to Buckingham Fountain there is plenty to see in this park. It is also a great place to see the Chicago skyline, as well as have a picn...

Ferne Clyffe has a campground for everyone. From the more modern, or primitive, larger groups, backpackers and even equestrian campers. From beginner to hardened veteran eagle scout, there is a campsite for everyone. The shower facilities that are offered at some campgrounds are available seasona...

Trail of Tears State Forest lies within one of the most rugged landscapes in Illinois. The hills are steep, and the soil is shallow and susceptible to erosion. Cliffs are all around and streams with gravel bottoms are in the narrow forest filled valleys. In 1838-39 the Cherokee, Creek, and Chicka...

The natural area you are now entering is 110 acres of bluffs and forest designated as Fern Rocks Nature Preserve. The reasons this was designated a preserve were to protect not only the sandstone bluffs, but also two endangered plants. The white flowered mint, and the grove bluegrass. many other ...

For a great introduction to the Cache River Basin of Southern Illinois make your way to the Barkhausen Cache River Wetlands Center. Here you will find a spur trail to the Tunnel Hill Bicycle Trail, information and exhibits, and ranger information about area trails and paddle put in's. Just outsid...

The Lincoln Memorial Park is the site of a 1859 debate between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas. This marks a stop on the Lincoln Historic Trail and was an important milestone in the growth of Abraham Lincoln. The site has several interpretive markers and memorials where the men once stood and...

Mermet Lake Conservation is an old Cypress and Tupelo Swamp that has been turned into a shallow lake by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. It was developed in 1949 as a waterfowl hunting destination. Each October the lake is closed and only accessible by hunters, but the Spring and Sum...