French Canyon, Starved Rock State Park, Il.
Great egret, Illinois River, east of Starved Rock.Gene and I ended up the trip with a brief stay at Starved Rock. If you haven't been there, go! There are miles and miles of trails through the limestone canyons and an incredible array of wildlife. According to the DNR:
"Red fox, beaver, Canada goose, tundra swan, bufflehead and other migratory waterfowl, double-crested cormorant, great egret, wild turkey, osprey, bald eagle, white pelican, herring gull, belted kingfisher, yellow-bellied sapsucker, cedar waxwing, softshell turtle, gar."
I want to go this winter, when the eagles come down from Canada to feed on the fish below the Illinois River dam there. Gene's been coming here for four years to work, bringing me along to hike. I missed one trip because of finals! No more!
3 comments:
what a name, too! beautiful.
From the DNR web site:
Starved Rock State Park derives its name from a Native American legend of injustice and retribution. In the 1760s, Pontiac, chief of the Ottawa tribe upriver from here, was slain by an Illiniwek while attending a tribal council in southern Illinois. According to the legend, during one of the battles that subsequently occurred to avenge his killing, a band of Illiniwek, under attack by a band of Potawatomi (allies of the Ottawa), sought refuge atop a 125-foot sandstone butte. The Ottawa and Potawatomi surrounded the bluff and held their ground until the hapless Illiniwek died of starvation- giving rise to the name “Starved Rock.”
My hometown creek, Baugo, formerly Baubaugo (Devil Creek, I believe) that I often take pics of and write about is an old home of the Potawatomis.
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