Winter 1998

Watch migrating birds, hike and camp near dunes, and swim at popular state park

Lake County, Illinois

Illinois Beach is one of the most popular Illinois state parks, offering camping, hiking, and swimming on 6.5 miles of shoreline. But it also boasts over 650 species of plants and a widely varied topography, and is a favored rest area for migrating birds. The park, located near the Wisconsin border in Zion and Winthrop Harbor, was established in the early 1950s; it now includes over 4,100 acres split into a Southern Unit and a smaller Northern Unit. Winter activities include hiking, cross-country skiing, and fishing. The Southern Unit is home to a large beach, 244 camp sites, several miles of hiking trails, and an 800-acre Nature Preserve.

The dunes and ridges that cut across the park are the result of receding lake levels over the past 8,000 years. As the waters dropped, the wind blew the newly exposed beaches into dunes. (This is the same process that created the taller Indiana dunes; Illinois dunes rarely grew to more than 10 feet high because the prevailing winds blow towards the lake.) Over time, as the lake level continued to drop, new dunes were created while the older dunes were colonized by plants. The result today is long lines of sandy, oak savanna or prairie ridges, interspersed with linear marshes.

Many ecological niches are found in the park. On the beach and foredunes, the harsh wind and blowing sand limit plant life to the hardiest species like the sea rocket, bearberry, and the Waukegan or horizontal juniper, which grows just a few inches off the ground.

Not far beyond the dunes is the sand prairie. In winter, depending on snow cover, you can see stalks of Indian grass, little bluestem, and even prickly pear cactus.

Farther inland are the oak savannas, which occupy much of the higher ground, while the wetlands in the swales host Kalm's St. Johnswort, sundew, and a wide variety of orchids, including many that are endangered. The red-osier dogwood, found near wetlands throughout the park, is easy to find in winter: the shrub's beautiful red bark stands out against the snow.

The Dead River is a sluggish stream that splits the Nature Preserve into public and off-limits areas. The river is called "dead" because, much of the year, the river's outlet into the lake is blocked by a sandbar. After heavy rains or snowmelt, the river rises and breaks through the bar, thus draining the surrounding wetlands. The river is actually quite healthy and birds are attracted to its wetland plants.

Spring and fall are the best time to see birds, when they migrate through the park in tremendous numbers. Red-tailed hawks are common throughout the winter, and great horned owls are often heard at night. Many deer, red fox, mink and beaver live in the park; visitors can catch occasional glimpses of gray fox as well.

Fishing is allowed along the shore and in ponds in both sections of the park outside the Nature Preserve. There's excellent hiking, especially on the trails through the northern edge of the Nature Preserve.

Park near the Interpretive Center, where you'll find the trailheads for a short hike down to the beach and longer hikes along the beach ridges and through the Dead River's wetland. (Though the Interpretive Center is currently closed for renovation, it should reopen sometime this spring.)

— Chris Larson