hiking – Hiking with Dillon

Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge

Last week, Scott, Dillon and I headed down to Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge, near Havana. Lake Chautauqua is part of the Illinois River bottoms and is very important to migratory birds as it provides sanctuary and breeding grounds during their migration. Chautauqua has more than 5 miles of hiking trails and we checked out two different trails that day.

First, we headed to the Chautauqua Nature Trail, located at the Headquarters. This was really nice. It is only a .5 mile loop, so great for toddlers. It is completely ADA accessible the whole way.

We headed to the right, which takes you to a life-size eagle’s nest you can walk up to. I’ve seen plenty of eagle’s nests way up in the trees, so it was cool to see the size of one next to you.

Further along the trail, they have three separate overlook decks. Here, you can look out over the Refuge and watch the birds. I HIGHLY recommend bringing binoculars. We did not.

It was quite a sight, listening to the birds and watching them all get up and fly when there was a disturbance, like when an eagle flew over. This link is an audio file of the birds, take a listen! Video Nov 28, 9 47 12 AM

This area was so beautiful and I would love to come back with my DSLR. There was another photographer there taking photos and I was sad I didn’t bring mine! The iphone doesn’t do it justice!

After we left the Headquarters area, we drove down the road and parked at the Eagle Bluff Area. We parked in the parking lot near the road, but probably could have parked closer to the trailhead. It was a bit of a walk down an access road to get to the North Pool trail. This trailhead did not have a sign, but looking at other photos people posted on AllTrails, it looks like it did at one time. Just look for the transformer.

This trail is 1.3 miles, one way. We hiked it to the Roundtree Trail area and turned back. There isn’t really any trail markings, but it was established enough we could figure it out.

You hike along the top of the ridge and overlook the Refuge below. This time of the year it was easy to see through the trees, but I imagine in the summer there are too many leaves in the way to see much of the Refuge. The road is parallel to you the whole time only about 30′ away, but you can’t really see it because of the angle of the ridge. There was also quite a bit of trash along the way. I ended up picking up a grocery bag full as well as a large, 5′ long box that flooring came in.

I would definitely go back to do some bird-watching at the Nature Trail and next time bring binoculars and my camera. The North Pool Trail was nice, but could use some maintenance, however considering this is maintained by our State and they don’t have any money for our parks, its something we as citizens need to help with. Pick up trash where you see it, let them know when you see downed trees or overgrown trails and ask how you can help.

Thank you for hiking with Dillon, Scott and me!

Illinois River Bluff Trail – Wokanda to Robinson

Today, Dillon and I hiked with my dear friend, Lizz, and we did a 4 mile portion of the Illinois River Bluff Trail. The Illinois River Bluff Trail is a series of trails that connect Camp Wokanda all the way to Detweiller Park, which is 6.9 miles total. We hiked out and back 4.2 miles, so we really only did about 2 miles on the Illinois River Bluff Trail.

We started out at Camp Wokanda and parked in the southeast parking lot. We headed south out of the parking lot, which takes you to a sign showing you are starting the Illinois River Bluff Trail. You pass through a few campsites and along the way see the maple syrup lines. You also pass some information on how they tap the maple trees to get the syrup out. It was a fun little educational opportunity.

From there, you start hiking up and up and up. This area of the trail is very hilly and rolling. The trails are well marked with the trail logo. You cross over a creek in a couple of spots, but with it being November, it was pretty dried up. I imagine its pretty flowing in the spring.

The views were beautiful through this area. Even though it was hilly, it was amazing to look down in the valleys. Most of the trees were bare at this point, but I bet it was gorgeous a few weeks ago.

During some of the steeper climbs, there were benches along the way to let you rest if needed. There were some stairs to climb, but it was mostly just dirt trail. We finally got to the top and there was quite a ways that was flat, so it was a nice break for our glutes.

We came to a nice bridge that crossed a steep ravine. Again, like I keep talking about, it has some great views. People forget how hilly Illinois can be, especially around the Illinois River area.

Dillon rode in the carrier most of the way because of how hilly it was, but he walked about 1/2 mile during a flat spot. After we crossed this bridge, we came into the Robinson Park area. This is a series of loops, so you can decide which way you want it go. They will all take you back to the same spot. In this spot, we saw a family of deer. The buck bolted in front of us across the trail, but the rest just stood there and stared (and we stared back).

We headed back downhill for a bit and followed along a creek. We got to a spot where we could have crossed the creek to do another loop, which would have probably added about 1/2 mile, but we decided to keep going along the path we were on and head back. This was probably around the 2 mile point.

We headed back uphill, back over the large bridge, and back towards Camp Wokanda. There was this fun ramp Dillon loved running on.

We only saw a couple other people out on the trail. I had also brought some bags to pick up garbage, but didn’t see anything along the trail. Its been really taken care of. Going back through the really steep areas of Camp Wokanda was tough since we were pretty tired, but it was so beautiful.

Overall, we did 4.2 miles according to AllTrails. This was a great trail, I would absolutely do this portion again, even with the elevations. I can’t wait to check out the other portions and to do the entire trail at once.

Thanks for hiking with Dillon, Lizz and me!

Dirksen Revisited

On Sunday, September 27, my husband, Dillon and I headed out to Dirksen Park in Pekin, again. I wanted to see if I could find where the trail crosses the creek, but coming from the opposite direction.

We cross the first bridge after leaving the parking lot and I noticed the leaves are really changing in the two weeks since I was last there. When we crossed the bridge, we headed left this time. Last time I was there, I had headed to the right.

It was a beautiful, curving path along the creek with some fun “obstacles” along the way. They are meant for the bikers, but hey, we can have fun on them, too!

After this area, we met the first steep incline of the day and it probably was the hardest one of the whole trail. I was glad Scott was carrying Dillon, this time. After a mile or so in a fairly wooded area, we came to an open pasture. It has a slight incline right when you come out of the woods, but heads back downhill after you get to the top.

After this spot, you are mostly back in the woods most of the time. We came up to the spot where AllTrails tells us to cross the creek. Again, we could not find any indication of where we are supposed to cross, so we kept going. We ended up doing the North Blue loop, which is about 3/4 of a mile. It was probably less pretty than most of the spots on Orange, but it had some really interesting spots.

We got to this one area when the trail is really close to the edge and you are pretty high up looking down at the creek. These next to photos are looking down at a bridge and then standing on that bridge looking up.

With the leaves starting to fall on the ground, Dillon wanted to pick up every single one and throw it in the creek. They definitely have some fun, huge ones in the park if you are looking to go on a leaf hunt.

This trail took us back to Orange, back to the area around the creek where it says we are supposed to cross. So we headed back on the same path as I did the first time visiting the park. I’m still frustrated I can’t find where it crosses, but really enjoyed this longer loop. I was glad we came back to check it out, so I know what to expect for the next time we go.

We ended up doing 4.4 miles. Its a hilly hike and keep your eyes peeled for mountain bikers, but overall, I really love this park and its becoming one of my favorites.

Thanks for hiking with Dillon and me!

Dickson Mounds Trails

On Tuesday, my sister, Dillon and I headed down to Dickson Mounds to check out their new trails. If you don’t know what Dickson Mounds is, I highly recommend checking it out. The Dickson Mounds Museum, a branch of the Illinois State Museum and a National Register Historic Site, is one of the major on-site archaeological museums in the United States. It offers a unique opportunity to explore the world of the American Indian in an awe inspiring journey through 12,000 years of human experience in the Illinois River Valley.

On September 17, Dickson Mounds posted on their Facebook page about their new trail system, so of course I had to check that out right away. When we arrived, the main parking lot at the museum wasn’t open yet, so we parked at the Prairie Hill parking lot. I have been going to Dickson Mounds for 30 years and never knew there was a playground on the property. We let Dillon play a bit while we got our bearings.

We figured out we would head North on Blue. When we got to the intersection of Blue, Green and Purple, we headed West on Blue/Green.

When we got to the area where Blue and Green split, we headed North on Green up to Red.

The trails had a good variety of forest and field.

The trails were cleared really well. There were a couple of hills, but nothing too crazy. There were plenty of good resting trees if you needed it.

We walked on Red down to the Museum parking lot and walked along the south portion of Purple back to Blue.

We then headed back through the Prairie Hill parking lot down to Yellow. We walked down the hill on Yellow to the bridge, but then decided to head back up. Going back up the hill on Yellow was the hardest part of the hike that day.

We ended up doing about 1.7 miles that day.

Overall, the trails were really nice. I highly recommend checking them out. They were mostly marked well, some areas confused us a bit, so I would make sure you have a map printed before you head out. They did have maps at some intersections, but not all.

You could definitely make a day of it. Go hike in the morning, have a picnic at the park, then visit the Museum.

Also, not far from Dickson Mounds is Emiquon Nature Preserve. At more than 6,000 acres, Emiquon is one of the largest floodplain restoration projects in the Midwest. I highly recommend visiting it, especially as we are nearing migration season.

Thanks for hiking with Dillon and I!

Ulrich Wildlife Preserve

On Saturday, we headed out with some friends to check out the new trails at Ulrich Wildlife Preserve in Morton. Having grown up in Morton, I never knew about this park until a couple of years ago when I saw there were some geocaches placed here. I never made it out there to find them because the fact that it was just woods without any trails unnerved me a little bit. I didn’t want to get lost in a place I wasn’t familiar with. Fast forward to 2020 and the Morton Park District has decided to start developing a trail system after years of talking about it.

When you arrive, it is located at the dead end of Turtle Creek Trail. Right now, there is not a parking lot or anything, so you just park in the street in front of people’s houses.

As you head into the park, right away you see a trail, so we headed in that direction. There are not any maps or trail markers at this time, so you basically need to figure it out for yourself. It seems a little daunting, but since I was recording our route in AllTrails, it wasn’t that bad.

The trails are pretty established. The park reminds me a lot of Dirksen or Forest Park. All forested, however, it borders a creek, and that made for some fun playtime for the toddlers.

The park also has some fun “obstacle” course activities that the kids enjoyed. Nothing huge, but for a toddler, it was pretty cool.

They also had some really nice bridges and boardwalks that were built this summer.

There were a few hills, but nothing crazy and my friend’s toddler who isn’t quite a year older than Dillon was able to walk the entire route that we did. Dillon did a little bit at the end.

We didn’t see a lot of wildlife outside of some squirrels, birds and chipmunks, but we did see some pretty cool fungi.

Overall, this was a really nice park and I would like to try to make it back out there soon to check out more of it. Hopefully in the next few weeks when the leaves start changing.

My fitbit said we did around 1.3 miles. I was recording it in AllTrails, but accidentally turned it off while we were playing at the creek.

Thanks for hiking with Dillon and I!

Gold Mine Trail

Today, Dillon, a couple friends, and I checked out the Gold Mine Trail at the Mackinaw River State Fish and Wildlife Area. This was a trail none of us had been to before and there really aren’t a lot of reviews out there on it. Its roughly 2.5 miles long and a loop. After you park, you walk past the dove fields. This time of year, there is hunting in progress, so just be cautious of dove and squirrel hunters.

After you get past this, you enter into the woods. The trail is very well maintained and about 3 people wide most of the way.

About 75% of the trail is pretty flat. The rest that were inclines were not that bad. Somewhat steep, but short. The trail splits at one point and there is a sign that says “Long Trail – Short Trail”. We went to the left on the Long Trail.

We were the only ones on the trail the whole time we were there. Walking in, we saw someone dove hunting in the distance. Leaving there was someone in the parking lot. Although the trails are really well maintained, I don’t think its a very busy area.

We came up to a creek which follows along the path a little ways, which is pretty dried up right now. This area is a little more rolling and very pretty and peaceful woods.

Shortly after this, we came to a “T” in the road with a sign pointing “Long Trail” at the direction we came from, “Short Trail” to the right, then another trail to the left, but no sign saying what it was or where it went. We decided to hop on “Short Trail” since we figured it took us back to the parking lot. It was a fairly good incline up, but short and the trail lived up to its name because we reached the original “T” from where the two split in no time at all.

At this point, we decided to do another loop, just to get some extra mileage. My fitbit registered at about 2.15 miles at that point, but my AllTrails recording was showing just at 2 miles. We turned back the way we came so we did the loop backwards.

At one point, I let Dillon out to walk a bit, although it didn’t last long because he was getting too distracted and I was ready for lunch.

Overall, I really enjoyed this trail. I’ve submitted it to AllTrails so it hopefully shows up as a new trail in the app. It currently is not listed. I would like to go back to see where that other trail leads to, sometime. Maybe you have done this and know?

With doing the loop twice, we did about 4.25 miles today, so not too bad!

Thanks for hiking with Dillon and I!

Everett McKinley Dirksen Park Hike

On Saturday, September 5th, Dillon and I set out to hike the Running Deer Trail at Everett McKinley Dirksen Park in Pekin. After reading the reviews on AllTrails, I knew I needed to record the hike because the trails can get really confusing. Dirksen Park is about 400 acres of woodland and prairie. It used for mountain biking and hiking and there are quite a few offshoot trails from the old days it was used a BMX park.

I made sure to spray ourselves down with bug spray before we headed out. I’m not sure if it helped or not, but the trails did not seem that bad when we were there.

We set out and right away you cross a wooden bridge with no rails. I’m the type of person that hates heights if I’m not enclosed and will not walk over sidewalk grates. This felt like I was walking over those. Had there been water in the creek, I’m not sure I could have walked over it. It made me pretty nervous!

Once we crossed the bridge, we headed right. I think the official map shows the route going left, but I don’t think it matters.

The trail takes you along the creek, which in early September was pretty dry, but I bet its beautiful when flowing.

Right off the bat, we came to a “Y” in the trail with no signs or directions telling us which way to go. Luckily, I was recording our route, so I knew to head left. This happened a few more times and I was glad I had the app.

There are some pretty good elevation changes, but nothing a novice couldn’t do.

Dillon loved to stop and feel the bark on the trees and I used that as a good excuse to catch my breath after a steep climb.

We crossed another creek, which was fairly dried up again. This bridge was not as scary as the other.

Most of the hike was wooded, but we did come to a small prairie opening that made for some pretty views.

After crossing the prairie, this next wooded area was my favorite part of the trail. The woods were a little more open, not a lot of under story growth. We saw a deer in here, and you walked along a ridge that overlooked the creek, which was beautiful. I bet its awesome in the Fall.

After this area is where I got lost. Somewhere around 2 miles, the map shows you crossing a creek. I could not for the life of me find this crossing. There is another trail that heads North and we started wandering on that a bit, but after pulling up a different map, I could tell it would take us way out of our way and I didn’t want to get stuck somewhere being alone with Dillon.

I headed back to try to look for the crossing a little bit longer, but did not have any luck. I decided to just turn back and go the way we came.

On our way back, I encountered two mountain bikers, but they were the only people I saw the entire time.

When we got back, my overall mileage was just at 4 miles, so even though I didn’t complete the loop, I’m still proud of what we did.

I will try this one gain, but I think I will head in the opposite direction next time to see if I can find the crossing coming from the other way.

The park is beautiful, but not well marked. There are not any “You Are Here” maps and there are some color markings on trees, but most were pretty worn off. I would recommend it, but make sure you have a good map, or are using the AllTrails app.

Thanks for hiking with Dillon and I!