THE FOREST PRESERVES OF WILL COUNTY, ILLINOIS

PLUM CREEK WATERSHED

45

PRAIRIE CREEK WATERSHED

Prairie Creek Preserve
The District initiated the creation of Prairie Creek Preserve in 2006 with the preservation of 121 acres
near Manhattan (McClure Woods). Preservation is ongoing to protect an unchannelized portion of Prairie
Creek between the U.S. Forest Service’s Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie and the District’s Wauponsee
Glacial Trail. The preserve includes sinuous riparian habitat. The District and Forest Service will be
partnering on restoring and managing the area when preservation is completed.

PRAIRIE CREEK PRESERVE

46

ROCK CREEK WATERSHED

Rock Creek flows southwest from Monee, past Peotone and into Kankakee County where it joins the
Kankakee River. The portion of the stream in Will County has a rural agricultural quality, but to the
south within Kankakee River State Park, it is a high quality natural and scenic resource. The District has
two preserves near the headwaters of the creek – Monee Reservoir and Raccoon Grove Nature Preserve
– which total 400 acres.

Monee Reservoir

175 acres of the 268-acre Monee Reservoir were acquired in 1982 from the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad.
The reservoir was created
by the railroad and used
to supply water to steam
engines, and was later
operated by the Izaak
Walton League as a fishing
lake. Since its acquisition,
the District has enhanced
the lake and created a
sustainable public fishery,
expanded the lake from 35
to 40 acres, and re-created
prairie areas in other
portions of the site.

Monee Reservoir on

Ridgeland Avenue in Monee

was acquired and developed

by the Forest Preserve as a

public fishing facility and

opened in the spring of Monee Reservoir

1992. A concession facility

on-site provides fishing

bait and gear, row boats, canoes, kayaks, winter recreation, and seasonal educational programs. The site

includes shoreline fishing, boat docks and landings, hiking/biking trails, picnic shelters, and other public

amenities.

Because the lake depends upon a steady supply of unpolluted surface water, District planning and
preservation efforts in the area focus on protecting intermittent “feeder” waterways west of the District’s
holdings and the upper reaches of the headwaters to the northeast.

Raccoon Grove Nature Preserve

Preservation of the 212-acre Raccoon Grove Nature Preserve has been ongoing since 1937. It protects
part of a reservation granted to the daughters of a Potawatomi woman Marie Bailly in 1832. Some sources
believe that “Monee” is derivative from the name “Marie.” Portions of Raccoon Grove were used as a park
first known as Ziemer Grove and later known as Oakdell Park.

47

The District dedicated Raccoon Grove as an Illinois State Nature
Preserve in 1989 in recognition of its high quality dry-mesic upland
forest dominated by white, bur, and black oak and shagbark hickory,
and its mesic upland forest dominated by red and white oak and
sugar maple. The District has managed it as a prairie grove with
woodland, savanna, and prairie areas. Public access is provided
by a short nature trail which provides excellent spring wildflower
viewing.

To protect the prairie grove character and function of the Nature
Preserve, District planning and preservation efforts in the area have
concentrated on surrounding grassland bird breeding and foraging
habitat.

Raccoon Grove

ROCK CREEK WATERSHED

48

ROCK RUN WATERSHED

Rock Run Greenway

The Rock Run is a low gradient creek slowly flowing through high-quality wetlands from Crest Hill and
Joliet into the Des Plaines River. Rock Run has been adopted by local residents and the City of Joliet as an
important amenity. The District, aided by the City, has successfully protected over 1,200 acres within the
watershed to date with more expected. District holdings connect and link to those of Lockport Township
Park District, Channahon Park District, Joliet Park District, and Joliet Junior College to create an almost
continuous greenway along the entire Rock
Run.

Theodore Marsh

The 180-acre Theodore Marsh on Gaylord
Avenue and Theodore Street in Crest Hill
and Joliet was acquired between 1994
and 2006 through land purchases and
donations. This wetland area includes
habitat for such interesting birds as yellow-
headed blackbirds and pied-billed grebes.

Theodore Marsh includes a playground built

and managed by the Lockport Township Playground at Theodore Marsh
Park District, and a public trailhead access

area for the 9-mile Rock Run Trail going

southwest, and the 4.4-mile Joliet Junction

Trail going south. Starting in 2000, the District removed fill that had previously been dumped into the

wetlands, and restored, enhanced, and created upland prairie and wetland on over 120 acres. In 2001,

work began on creating an additional 12-acre prairie. Management of fire-evolved plant communities with

prescribed burns started in 2005.

Rock Run Preserve

The 280-acre Rock Run Preserve lies west of Essington and south to Jefferson Street in Joliet, along a
2.5-mile stretch of wetlands. Rock Run Preserve includes multiple public trail access points such as Black
Road and Paul V. Nichols on Essington Road, the Rock Run Greenway Trail, and a nature trail winding
around a restored quarry pond and wetland. Invasive species management, brush removal, and prescribed
burning started in 1998, and additional wetland enhancement activities started in 2002 to promote and
reestablish the natural plant communities. In 2003, much of the site was granted further protection and
registered as an Illinois Land and Water Reserve. Portions of the trail may be relocated, and infrastructure
replacements are scheduled.

Colvin Grove

Colvin Grove (formerly “Middle Rock Run”) currently contains 175 acres linking Joliet Park District and
Joliet Junior College properties. It was purchased between 1991 and 2006 along the east channel of
Rock Run to protect the historic Colvin grove, and eliminated a gap in the Rock Run Greenway. Ongoing
preservation seeks to continue along the west channel. The Rock Run Greenway trail passes through the
preserve.

49

Lower Rock Run Preserve – I&M Canal Access

South of I-80 on both sides of the Illinois
and Michigan Canal between Joliet and
Channahon lies a 420-acre preserve acquired
between 1989 and 2003 to protect wetlands
and wooded habitat, and to provide trail
access. A 54-acre portion is a conservation
easement dedicated to the District. Lower
Rock Run provides public access to the State’s
Illinois and Michigan Canal Trail, the District’s
Rock Run Trail and a short nature trail, and
lies adjacent to Channahon Park District
holdings.

Rock Run Rookery

Lower Rock Run – I&M Canal Access

This 210-acre complex of abandoned quarries
on Young’s Road and Route 6 at the Rock Run’s
confluence with the Des Plaines River in Joliet
was acquired in 2002 to protect nesting islands for herons, egrets, and cormorants. Future planning will
look at restoration needs, public access/fishing potential, and trail linkages.

Other Holdings

• The 3-acre Kraske Preserve was
donated to the District in 1998,
and lies near the headwaters of
the Rock Run on the east side of
Weber Road. It expands and buffers
Lockport Township Park District
property.
• Alessio Prairie (13 acres) was
created by a 1995 donation in Crest
Hill on the west side of Weber
Road. This high-quality wetland
has been enhanced and managed as
orchid habitat since 1996.

Rock Run Rookery

50

ROCK RUN GREENWAY

51

SPRING CREEK WATERSHED

Spring Creek Greenway

Spring Creek has a broad and very scenic valley. It enters Will County in Homer Township, and flows
west to its confluence first with Hickory Creek, and then the Des Plaines River in Joliet. The stream and
floodplain is hydrologically significant. Although
much of the stream has been channelized,
the hydric soils remain, offering an excellent
opportunity for stream dechannelization and
wetland re-creation. The underlying Hadley
Aquifer is an important water source for the City of
Joliet. The District has been very successful in this
watershed by protecting a 7-mile-long greenway of
four preserves totaling over 1,765 acres in a rapidly
developing area.

Messenger Marsh

Beginning as a two-acre purchase in 1989,

Messenger Marsh located on either side of South

Bell Road in Homer Glen, has grown to over 625 Messenger Woods
acres. In 2008, the District completed preserve

improvements that expanded public access areas,

extended the trail system, created a dog park,

and connected to the downstream Messenger Woods Nature Preserve. Future preservation and planning

activities include working with Homer Glen on equestrian trail connections to Forest Preserve District of

Cook County equestrian centers to the north, and working with Orland Park to extend the greenway and

trails eastward into Cook County.

Messenger Woods Nature Preserve

The first parcel of land purchased by the District was the 144-acre Messenger Woods on January 20,
1930 for approximately $125 an acre. This later grew into a 435-acre preserve on Bruce Road in Homer
Glen. The parcels were dedicated as a State Nature Preserve in 1994 and 1999 in recognition of their very
high-quality mesic and dry-mesic upland forests, as well as wet-mesic upland, and mesic and wet-mesic
floodplain forests; shrub swamp; and wet prairie. State-listed species include rock elm, heart-leaved
plantain, golden seal, red shouldered hawk, Cooper’s hawk, and veery. Messenger Woods is well known for
its spectacular spring wildflower display.

Messenger Woods has two picnic shelters, campsites, and two miles of trails. Infrastructure upgrades are
planned. Invasive species control to protect the natural areas started in 1994, leading up to non-native
brush clearing starting in 2001 and the first use of prescribed fire in 2002. Some initial restoration and
maintenance has occurred, with more work in the planning phase.

Ongoing preservation and planning efforts are to connect Messenger Woods both upstream and
downstream to the rest of the greenway, protecting more open space, completing a wildlife habitat
corridor, and providing roadway trail linkages. Work is also underway to relocate recreational areas
outside of the environmentally sensitive interior and to provide new access and expanded recreational
opportunities.

52

Messenger Woods and Messenger Marsh

53

Hadley Valley

Preservation of Hadley Valley started in 2000, which extended the Spring Creek Greenway eastward three
miles from Walnut Hollow Preserve, and protects a portion of the Hadley Valley Aquifer recharge area
(primary source of the City
of Joliet’s drinking water),
and a scenic vista from Route
6. Hadley Valley is currently
500 acres with additional
donations and purchases
pending. It includes a
0.5-mile-wide valley
providing a scenic view from
Route 6 along the north edge
of New Lenox from Farrell
Road in Joliet to Bruce Road
in Homer Glen.

The District is partnering

with the Illinois State

Toll Highway Authority

on a large-scale stream

de-channelization and Hadley Valley
wetland and wildlife habitat

restoration project in Hadley

Valley using U.S. Army Corps

of Engineer O’Hare Modernization Mitigation Account (OMMA) funds secured through OpenLands. The

District is also developing a multi-use trail and access facilities.

Future planning and preservation will look to link the trail southward to Joliet Park District and Forest
Preserve District holdings on Hickory Creek (eventually to the Old Plank Road Trail) and northward along
I-355 to the Des Plaines River. The District will work with New Lenox and Homer Glen to extend the
greenway eastward to Messenger Woods Nature Preserve as annexation and development occurs.

Walnut Hollow

This 210-acre site (previously known as “Lower Spring Creek”) west of Farrell Road in Joliet started with
numerous purchases between 1973 and 1975 for a proposed regional stormwater reservoir partnership
with the state. Although the project did not come to fruition, it did give the District a western terminus
for a future greenway to build upon.

Given the soils and configuration of the site, there are limited opportunities to develop public access
or recreational facilities. There is currently no active resource management. Ongoing preservation and
planning activities will explore ways to buffer Walnut Hollow and to work with others to provide local
public access and trail connections westward through Joliet to the Illinois and Michigan Canal Trail, Joliet
Iron Works, Joliet Prison, and other cultural resources along the heritage corridor area of the Des Plaines
River, for education and recreation.

54

Lower Spring Creek Greenway

55

SUGAR CREEK WATERSHED

Sugar Creek is a tributary
of Hickory Creek and flows
through a rapidly developing
area in the southern portion
of Joliet. The District has
only a limited presence in the
watershed so far, with holdings
near the headwaters of each
branch of the creek.

Sugar Creek Preserve

This 300-acre preserve lies

along the headwaters of the

north branch of Sugar Creek.

Acquisition began with the

1972 acquisition of the 30-acre

Zalar Woods from the Zalars,

with the rest of the preserve

being added between 1990 and The Wauponsee Glacial Trail and the

2002. Sugar Creek Preserve

includes an access area on Sugar Creek Administration Center

Laraway Road which contains

biking, hiking, and equestrian

facilities on the 23-mile Wauponsee Glacial Trail. In 2003, the District’s environmentally “green” Sugar

Creek Administration Center was completed to house District staff and customer services, and provide

space for additional programming.

Ongoing preservation planning work is exploring the extension of the greenway another 0.5-mile
downstream as it parallels the Wauponsee Glacial Trail into Joliet. Long-range planning will look at
removing a small gap in the greenway and making trail connections northeast to the Old Plank Road Trail.

Operations and Law Enforcement Facility

Until 2003, this eight-acre parcel on the
south branch of Sugar Creek at Cherry
Hill Road and Route 52 was the home
of the District’s Administration Center.
Built in 1976, the building now houses
the Law Enforcement and Operations
Departments and Resource Management
field crews.

Operations and Law Enforcement Facility
56

SUGAR CREEK WATERSHED

57

THORN CREEK WATERSHED

Thorn Creek Greenway

Thorn Creek flows from Monee northeastward through University Park and Park Forest and into Cook
County on its way eventually to Lake Michigan. The District owns or manages over 1,100 acres in two
preserves in conjunction with a partnership of governmental entities that make up the Thorn Creek
Woods Management Commission. Together the two preserves protect a large portion of the original,
historic oak forest along Thorn Creek. An additional 760 acres are protected by Governor’s State
University, and the Cook County Forest Preserve District also has substantial holdings along the Creek.

Due to the unique partnership among the District, local units of government and the state, the entire
four-mile portion of Thorn Creek from its headwaters in Monee to the Cook County line has been
protected. Including Forest Preserve District of Cook County’s 640-acre Sauk Trail Preserve, a more than
2,200-acre ecosystem macrosite has been preserved.

Thorn Creek Woods Nature Preserve

The bulk of the forest is protected in the 1,000-acre Thorn
Creek Woods Nature Preserve that grew from a five-acre
purchase in 1974. Over 720 of these acres are owned by Park
Forest, University Park, and the Illinois Department of Natural
Resources, which together with the District form the Thorn
Creek Woods Management Commission. Under a Management
Agreement, the Commission operates the educational facilities and
programs, and the District manages the natural resources. Thorn
Creek Woods is in Park Forest and University Park.

In 1978, 500 acres were dedicated as a State Nature Preserve
in recognition of the “upland, bottomland and ravine forests,
glacial potholes, prairie and the aquatic environment of Thorn
Creek” (dedication document). Approximately 240 additional
acres were dedicated in 1993, and 77 acres more in 2001.
Several state-listed species inhabit or use Thorn Creek Woods.

The Commission has hired staff to operate Thorn Creek Nature

Center and provide programs in a historic 1862 church off of Thorn Creek Woods

Monee Road since 1981. Thorn Creek Woods Nature Preserve

also includes 2.5 miles of nature trails. Invasive plant control Nature Preserve

was initiated in 1998 to protect the woods, and planting and

seeding of native plants began in 2003. Although prescribed

fire has not been used as a management tool in this preserve, significant wildfires occurred in 1999 and

2004, which together impacted more than half of the site. Numerous monitoring programs are underway,

but restoration/enhancement actions have only recently started.

58

Thorn Grove Preserve
Thorn Grove Preserve lies directly east of Thorn Creek Woods Nature Preserve between Park Forest and
Steger. Starting with a five-acre donation in 1988, it has grown to 130 acres with 21 acres pending.
Predominantly woodland, it also includes amphibian breeding habitat in vernal (springtime) depressions,
wetlands, and ponds. There is currently no public access or facilities.
Ongoing preservation efforts work toward protecting interior woodland habitat by reducing
fragmentation through expanding and buffering the grove, and toward gaining hydrological control of
ponds and wetlands that extend beyond the boundaries. Long-term planning will look at enhanced
connections or new linkages to other public open space on Thorn and Deer Creeks.
Thorn Creek Headwaters
The District created a new preserve at the headwaters of Thorn Creek in University Park in 2007 and 2008
with the acquisition of 430 acres. Currently farmland, the District will be exploring wetland restoration
opportunities in the future that will benefit the Thorn Creek watershed.

THORN CREEK GREENWAY

59

WAUPONSEE GLACIAL TRAIL

In the 1990s, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources secured two abandoned railroads: the Chicago,
Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific from Joliet to Manhattan, and the Wabash/Norfolk Southern from
Manhattan to Custer Park. In 2004, the State transferred the 220 acres to the District.

The District has paved a 2.5-mile biking/hiking trail from its Sugar Creek Administrative Center on

Laraway Road north into Joliet. The

District is working with the City

of Joliet to connect the trail to the

Old Plank Road Trail via a one-mile

street route. The remainder is a

limestone screening trail from Sugar

Creek southward to the Kankakee

River in Custer Park. The trail is

for biking, hiking, and equestrian

use. The trail through the old glacial

Lake Wauponsee and across the

Kankakee River to Custer Park was

completed in 2007. Trail access is

currently provided by the District at

Laraway Road in Joliet, Manhattan/

Arsenal Road in Manhattan, and

Commercial Avenue in Symerton.

Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie

is building an access to the trail on Wauponsee Glacial Trail
Hoff Road in Manhattan. A large

southern trailhead will be built along

Forked Creek. The trail’s total length

is 23 miles. Prairie management and enhancement of remnants along the trail are underway. Wayside

informational signs along the trail will be installed in the future.

Ongoing planning activities include working with local municipalities on trail connections and linkages,
and extending the trail southward to the county line. Long-term planning will involve working with the
State and Kankakee County to continue the trail to the south.

60

WAUPONSEE GLACIAL TRAIL

61

OTHER PRESERVATION PROJECTS

The District has also played a significant supporting role in preservation by others through financial
contributions, grant writing, technical expertise, legal protection through easements, etc.

DuPage River

Shady Nook Park – Naperville Park District
The Forest Preserve District contributed money to assist the Park District in purchasing 8.5 acres along
the west branch of the DuPage River in 1993, removing a gap in the multi-jurisdictional greenway. The
property is managed by the Park District.

McDonald Farm – The Conservation Foundation
Also on the west branch lies this 80-acre working farm. It was Mrs. McDonald’s desire to assure that the
parcel was doubly protected; the Conservation Foundation owns, manages, and operates the facility, while
the District has held a conservation and agricultural easement on the parcel since 1997.

Hidden Lakes Park – Bolingbrook Park District
In 2002, the Forest Preserve District helped the Bolingbrook Park District protect 26 acres along the
south side of the east branch of the River by providing technical expertise and securing acquisition grants
on their behalf, reducing the gap in the multi-jurisdictional greenway. The Forest Preserve and the Park
District have also partnered to protect an additional 17.5 acres to remove more of the gap in the greenway
and to protect wooded uplands in 2007.

Jackson Creek

Round Barn Farm – Manhattan Park District
The Forest Preserve District contributed funds and technical assistance and secured a grant for the Park
District for the 2006 acquisition of the 95-acre Round Barn Farm to protect the historic barn, Jackson
Creek, and Five-Mile Grove (historic oak grove remnant). The Park District will own, manage, and operate
the Park and long-term preservation will be assured via an easement to the Forest Preserve District.

Mink Creek

Mistwood – Mistwood Golf Course
In 1998, the District received a conservation easement on a 195-acre private golf course. The easement
protects foraging habitat for birds from Lake Renwick Heron Rookery, and requires ecologically friendly
turf management and water use.

62

APPENDICES – Forest Preserve Map

63



APPENDICES – Preserve Access Locations

Braidwood Dunes and Savanna Nature Preserve is located on Route 113, east of Route 53 and I-55,
approximately 0.75 miles east of Braidwood.
Centennial Trail – Schneider’s Passage is on 135th Street (Romeo Road), approximately 0.75 mile east
of Route 53 in Romeoville.
Forked Creek Preserve – Forsythe Woods is located on Kahler Road, 1 mile east of Route 102, in
Wilmington.
Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve – Plum Creek Nature Center (27064 S. Dutton Road, Beecher,
IL 60401) is located 1.25 miles east of the intersection of Routes 1 and 394 on Goodenow Road, in Crete
Township.
Hammel Woods – Crumby Recreation Area and DuPage River Access are located on Black Road, east
of Route 59 in Shorewood. (Crumby Recreation Area entrance is closer to Route 59; DuPage River Access
is east of Crumby.)
Hammel Woods – Route 59 Access is located on Route 59, north of Route 52 (Jefferson Street) in
Shorewood.
Hickory Creek Barrens Nature Preserve is located on Schoolhouse Road just north of Route 30 in New
Lenox.
Hickory Creek Preserve – Environmental Learning Center (20851 S. Briarwood Lane, Mokena, IL
60448 is open by permit only and is located in Mokena, north of Route 30 and east of Wolf Road. From
Wolf Road, turn east onto Cleveland Avenue, then south on Briarwood. The entrance is at the end of
Briarwood Lane.
Hickory Creek Preserve – Hickory Creek Junction is on Route 30, 1 mile west of Wolf Road in
Mokena.
Hickory Creek Preserve – LaPorte Road Access is on LaPorte Road, 1 mile east of Wolf Road in
Mokena.
Hunters Woods is located on 78th Street, south of Route 30, 0.75 mile west of Harlem Avenue in Frankfort.
I&M Canal Trail/Heritage Trail north access is located at Centennial Trail–Schneider’s Passage in
Romeoville and southern access is at the Joliet Iron Works Historic Site.
Isle a la Cache – Isle a la Cache Museum (501 E. 135th Street, Romeoville, IL 60446) is located 0.5 mile
east of Route 53 in Romeoville.
Joliet Iron Works Historic Site is located on Columbia Street, off of Scott Street, 0.25 mile east of Ruby
Street Bridge in downtown Joliet.
Keepataw Preserve is located on Bluff Road, 0.5 mile east of Joliet Road in Bolingbrook.
Lake Renwick Preserve – Copley Nature Park is located on Route 30, between Renwick Road and
Route 59 in Plainfield.
Lake Renwick Heron Rookery Nature Preserve (23144 W. Renwick Road, Plainfield, IL 60544) is on
Renwick Road, 0.5 mile east of Route 30 (Plainfield Road), in Plainfield.
Lake Renwick Preserve – Turtle Lake Access is located on Lockport Street, 1 mile east of Division
Street in Plainfield.

65

Lambs Woods is located at the intersection of Farrell and Bruce Roads in rural Lockport.
Laughton Preserve – Gerdes Grove is located on Route 52, west of Route 45 in Wilton Center.
Lockport Prairie Nature Preserve is located on the west bank of the Des Plaines River in Lockport.
Take Route 53 south to Division Street, turn east on Division Street and follow to trailhead.
Lower Rock Run Preserve – I&M Canal Access is located on Empress Road (Houbolt Road), 0.25 mile
south of I-80 in Joliet.
McKinley Woods – Frederick’s Grove is located on McKinley Road, south of Route 6 and Bridge Road in
Channahon.
McKinley Woods – Kerry Sheridan Grove is located on Blackberry Lane, south of Route 6 in
Channahon.
Messenger Woods Nature Preserve is located on Bruce Road, north of Route 6 (Southwest Highway)
and east of Cedar Road in rural Lockport.
Messenger Marsh is located on South Bell Road, approximately 0.25 mile south of 159th Street (Route 7)
in Homer Township.
Monee Reservoir – Monee Reservoir Visitor Center (27341 Ridgeland Avenue, Monee, IL 60449) is
located on Ridgeland Avenue, west of Route 50 and south of Pauling Road, 2 miles south of Monee.
Operations and Law Enforcement Facility (22606 S. Cherry Hill Road, Joliet, IL 60434-1069) is
located 0.5 mile south of Laraway Road, at the intersection of Route 52 and Cherry Hill Road in Joliet.
Raccoon Grove Nature Preserve is located on Pauling Road, just east of Route 50 (Governors Highway),
1 mile south of Monee.
Riverview Farmstead is located at 11236 S. Book Road, Naperville, Illinois 60564. The entrance is
located at the intersection of Book Road and 111th Street, approximately 1 mile west of Weber Road.
Romeoville Prairie Nature Preserve is located 0.25 mile east of Route 53 on 135th Street Romeo Road)
in Romeoville. Parking is available at the Isle a la Cache Museum parking lot.
Rock Run Preserve – Black Road Access is located on Black Road, approximately 0.25 mile east of the
l-55 overpass in Joliet.
Rock Run Preserve – Paul V. Nichols is located at the intersection of Essington Road and Ingalls
Avenue, 0.5 mile north of Black Road in Joliet.
Runyon Preserve is located on Hamilton just east of Route 171 (Archer Avenue) and north of Thornton
in Lockport. From Route 171, turn east onto Thornton (Thornton is 1 block north of 2nd Street) to
Hamilton. Travel north on Hamilton, 1 block past Franklin to Morgan Street.
Sugar Creek Preserve – Sugar Creek Administration Center (17540 W. Laraway Road, Joliet, IL
60433) is located 0.75 mile east of Route 53 in Joliet.
Theodore Marsh is located on Gaylord Road, approximately 0.25 mile north of Theodore Street in Crest Hill.
Veterans Woods – Traders Corner and Hassert Grove is located on Joliet Road, north of Route 53 in
the Bolingbrook area.
Whalon Lake is located on Royce Road, 1 mile west of Route 53 in Naperville and Bolingbrook.

66

APPENDICES – Preserve and Preserve Map Index



Preserve Description Map Lower Rock Run 50 51
Alessio Prairie Page Page – I&M Canal Access 12 13
Bird’s Junction 50 51 McKinley Woods 52 53
Marsh 18 19 Messenger Marsh 52 53
Black Walnut Creek 2 2 Messenger Woods 43 45
Braidwood Dunes 34 36 Nature Preserve 47 48
and Savanna Moeller Woods 39 39
Nature Preserve 12 13 Monee Reservoir 41 42
Briscoe Mounds 18 17 O’Hara Woods 56 57
Caton Farm 7 8 Old Plank Road Trail 43 45
Preserve 49 51 Operations and Law 43 45
Centennial Trail – 5 5 Enforcement Center 30 30
Schneider’s Passage 25 25 Plum Valley 9 11
Colvin Grove 16 15 Preserve 46 46
Deer Creek Preserve 34 36 Plum Valley Ravines 47 48
Donohue Grove 20 20 Potawatomi Woods 16 15
Preserve 23 24 Prairie Bluff 49 51
DuPage River 44 45 Preserve 50 51
Confluence 54 55 Prairie Creek 7 8
Evans-Judge 18 17 Preserve 20 20
Preserve 18 17 Raccoon Grove 35 36
Fiddyment Creek 27 28 Nature Preserve 27 28
Preserve 27 28 Riverview 56 57
Forked Creek 22 22 Farmstead 10 11
Goodenow Grove 9 11 Rock Run Preserve 49 51
Nature Preserve Rock Run Rookery 58 59
Hadley Valley 7 8 Romeoville Prairie 59 59
Hammel Woods 31 31 Nature Preserve 59 59
Hastert-Bechstein 25 25 Runyon Preserve 3 4
Hickory Creek 10 11 Sand Ridge
Hunters Woods 32 33 Savanna Preserve 6 8
Huyck’s Grove 34 36 Sauk Trail Reservoir 44 45
Preserve 6 8 Sugar Creek Preserve 54 55
Illinois and 50 51 Teale Woods 60 61
Michigan Canal 19 Theodore Marsh 21 21
Trail/Heritage Trail Thorn Creek Woods 14 15
Isle a la Cache Nature Preserve 3 4
Jackson Creek Thorn Creek
Preserve Headwaters
John Wesley Thorn Grove
Preserve Vermont Cemetery
Joliet Iron Works Prairie Nature
Historic Site Preserve
Joliet Junction Trail Veterans Woods
Kankakee Sands Vincennes Trail
Keepataw Preserve Walnut Hollow
Kraske Preserve Wauponsee
Lake Chaminwood 18 Glacial Trail
Wayne Lehnert
Preserve
Whalon Lake
Wolf Creek

Lake of the Woods 18 19
Lake Renwick 37 38
Preserve
Lambs Woods 26 26
Laughton Preserve 22 22
Lily Cache Wetlands 40 40
Lockport 10 11
Prairie East
Lockport Prairie 9 11
Nature Preserve

67

APPENDICES – Visitor Facilities

Sugar Creek Administration Center
Sugar Creek Preserve
17540 W. Laraway Road
Joliet, Illinois 60433
815.727.8700

Weekdays, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.;
Closed on weekends

The Sugar Creek Administration Center provides
informational services, such as brochures and
permits for the public. The office also offers
educational programs.

Plum Creek Nature Center
Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve
27064 S. Dutton Road
Beecher, Illinois 60401
708.946.2216

Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.;
Sunday, Noon - 4 p.m.

Plum Creek Nature Center features hands-on
displays to explore your natural world. The Nature
Center provides educational programming for
school groups, youth groups, and the public.

Isle a la Cache Museum
Isle a la Cache
501 E. 135th Street
Romeoville, Illinois 60446
815.886.1467

Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.;
Sunday, Noon - 4 p.m.

Isle a la Cache Museum features hands-on displays
of the 18th-century fur trade between Native
Americans and French voyageurs. The museum
provides educational programs for schools, youth
groups, and the public.

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Environmental Learning Center
Hickory Creek Preserve
20851 S. Briarwood Lane
Mokena, Illinois 60448
708.479.2255

Open by permit only.

The Environmental Learning Center offers a wide
range of environmental education programs
for educators, schools, youth groups, and the
community including camping, workshops, nature
and science programs. Conference facilities are
also available.

Monee Reservoir Visitor Center
Monee Reservoir
27341 Ridgeland Avenue
Monee, Illinois 60449
708.534.8499

April - October, 6 a.m. - 7 p.m.;
November - March, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.;
Closed on Mondays

Monee Reservoir Visitor Center provides boat
rentals, concessions and tackle, snowshoe rentals
and a variety of outdoor recreation programs.

Four Rivers Environmental Education Center
McKinley Woods – Kerry Sheridan Grove
25055 W. Walnut Lane
Channahon, Illinois 60410

For hours of operation, please call 815.722.9470.
The Four Rivers Environmental Education
Center offers environmental education programs
for educators, schools, youth groups, and the
community as well as state-of-the-art conference
facilities.

69

Notes

Notes

www.fpdwc.org • 815.727.8700