Nature And The Children of Illinois

Today's young folks of Illinois people are enjoying less and less time outdoors. As parents we know we can have a profound impact on the lives of your offspring. It is your responsibility to introducing your kids to the outdoors for the first time. They may have environmental knowledge about Illinois outdoors which you may enhance or you may just make it a play date. These outside experiences might even awaken a passion for the outdoors that will stay with them forever. The first step is to take a little time for planning, it goes a long way towards a successful and safe outdoor trip. An outdoor field trip is a great educational experience for all involved. So enjoy your time with your kids.

The state parks, natural areas, conservation areas, recreation areas, and fish and wildlife areas of Illinois has information on camping, hiking, biking, fishing, hunting, state park lodges and resorts, interpretive programs and many great ideas for places to visit and things to do in Illinois. I visited www.dnr.state.il.us

Did you know that IlIllinois has adopted may natural elements here a few:
Illinois State Tree - white oak
Illinois State Bird - cardinal
Illinois State Fish - bluegill
Illinois State Animal - white-tailed deer
Illinois State Insect - monarch butterfly

Going outside in In Illinois is easy, here are some places to go someday:

1)Churchill Prairie Nature Preserve
Du Page County
Churchill is a Wet prairie, mesic prairie, sedge meadow, mesic upland forest, dry mesic upland forest and savanna of the Morainal Section of the Northeastern Morainal Natural Division.A few wildlife species known to occur here are garter snake, fox snake, and meadow vole.

2) Ferson's Creek Nature Preserve
Kane County
Location and Access:
From the jct of Rt. 64 and Rt. 31 in the center of downtown St. Charles, head north on Rt. 31 for 0.75 mile. The preserve is on the east side of Rt. 31 on the banks of the Fox River.
Ferson's Creek Fen is a wetland ecosystem situated along the west bank of the Fox River. The preserve lies on a glacial outwash terrace and alluvial stream bed. Two natural communities featured here are sedge meadows and wet floodplain forests. Occupying the core of the natural area, sedge meadows are the prevalent community and range from undisturbed, very high quality portions to segments of moderate quality. Scattered in small "cameo-like" areas of the sedge meadows are the characteristic calciophilic species such as fringed gentian, grass-of-parnassus, Kalm's lobelia, turtlehead and marsh wild timothy. Small bedstraw, great St. John's wort and northern fringed orchid are found in the sedge meadows. Wild rice is located on the edge of the marshy sedge meadow and the floodplain forest. The preserve provides nesting habitat for prothonotary warblers, blue-gray gnatcatchers, common yellowthroats and swamp sparrows. Excellent bird watching opportunities occur during spring migration. Purple loosestrife, glossy buckthorn and native brushy species are serious problems here. A volunteer stewardship group, active for the past six years, is working closely with the Park District to address the management concerns.

3) Baker's Lake Nature Preserve
Cook County
Hwy. 14 southeast about 1 mile. The nature preserve is south of Hillside Avenue and southwest of Hwy. 14.
Baker's Lake Nature Preserve is a 209 acre area containing a 112 acre lake with an island and a stand of mature open-grown oaks. The area provides visitors with an example of a nature preserve which was dedicated primarily to protect a breeding area for rare and endangered birds rather than for its plant communities. The preserve protects a rookery for 4 species of colonial nesting birds; black-crowned night heron, great egret, double crested cormorant and great blue heron. The area also supports common moorhen, yellow-headed blackbird, and black tern. Other species, especially waterfowl, are present during migration.

OK, you're not an outdoorsy folk but you know you children need to get outside. No problem their are many outdoor programs, classes and Illinois Summer Camps available in and around your home.

Finding Overnight Camps is a great place to find camp information try SummerCampAdvice.com

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