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Dec 30, 2022 · Illinois has 41 State Parks, 17 State Wildlife Areas, 11 State Recreation Areas, and 6 State Forests. The Illinois State Park system encompasses over 475,000 acres of land. Nearly 44 million visitors come to an Illinois park each year.
Jul 18, 2022 · There is a great variety of beautiful state parks near Chicago. With everything from lush forests to towering sand dunes, the area has much to offer nature-lovers and explorers. Here we have some of the best state parks near Chicago for your next adventure.
- Starved Rock State Park
- Volo Bog State Natural Area
- Chain O’ Lakes State Park
- Illinois Beach State Park
- Buffalo Rock State Park
- Matthiessen State Park
Location: 2678 E 875th Rd, Oglesby, IL 61348 Carved by eons of glacial runoff, Starved Rock State Park is a geological wonder with steep sandstone canyons, several of which have seasonal waterfalls. The park is an hour and a half drive southwest of Chicago and worlds away from the hubbub. Besides hiking, there is an excellent view from Lover’s Leap...
Location: 28478 Brandenburg Rd, Ingleside, IL 60041 If you have never seen a quaking bog, here’s your chance—Volo Bog State Natural Area is about an hour northwest of downtown Chicago. Initially, the bog was a deep 50-acre lake formed long ago when a gigantic residual chunk of glacier ice became embedded in the landscape. The lake, with poor draina...
Location: James Rd, Spring Grove, IL 60081 Head about 60 miles northwest of Chicago, and you are in the area of Illinois that is home to the highest concentration of lakes. The Chain O’ Lakes State Park is in the middle and is a series of 15 connected kettle lakes formed by calving ice blocks when glaciers retreated eons earlier. With 6,500 acres o...
Location: 1 Lake Front Dr, Zion, IL 60099 Head an hour north along the Michigan shoreline, and you’ll run right into Illinois Beach State Park, the only remaining beach ridge shoreline in the state. For those of you who don’t know what a beach ridge is, it’s a wave-swept deposit of sand that makes a ridge that runs parallel to the shore. The park’s...
Location: 1300 N 27th Rd, Ottawa, IL 61350 An hour and a half southwest of Chicago, you’ll find the compact Buffalo Rock State Park—it may be small, but it packs a mighty punch. The park is a bluff with a sheer and jagged sandstone dropoff with a magnificent panoramic view of the Illinois River. It’s named Buffalo Rock because it’s thought that the...
Location: 2500 IL-178, Oglesby, IL 61348 Matthiessen State Park is in the same part of the state as Starved Rock State Park; it is about 15 minutes further south as the crow flies, making it an hour and 45 minutes southwest from the Windy City. Picking between two parks is difficult, each as visually beautiful as the other—it might be best to plan ...
Illinois state parks feature some of the most unique landscapes in America, including the Lake Michigan shore at Illinois Beach; the river bluff vistas above the mighty Mississippi at Mississippi Palisades; the famed canyons and waterfalls at Starved Rock; the rare plants on the hill prairies of Jim Edgar Panther Creek;
Click on the map for a larger view. Welcome to Illinois State Parks’ web site that provides conservation and preservation enthusiasts from around the globe an opportunity to support these Illinois treasures.
Illinois State Parks guide to better plan your visit to our remarkable state parks. Illinois has an amazing array of state parks, fish and wildlife areas, and conservation and recreation areas, with an even broader selection of natural features and outdoor recreation opportunities. From the Lake Michigan shore at Illinois Beach to the canyons
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Jun 4, 2024 · We've explored the Midwest to find the best state and national parks near Chicago, where you go camping under the stars or check the 3 Dune Challenge off your bucket list. For the novice...
