December 11, 2009
I like to think of Matthiessen State Park as one of Illinois’ best kept secrets – a little piece of paradise hidden in plain sight.
Why is it hidden? Well, the parking lot at the Dells Entrance to Matthiessen sits just three miles from the awesome Visitor’s Center of its big sister park – Starved Rock. And if you’re exploring along the Illinois River, just a few miles south of Utica or a few miles east of Oglesby, it’s easy to miss the park named for industrialist and philanthropist Frederick Matthiessen while climbing around the canyons at Starved Rock.
Matthiessen – the person – purchased the land for the park in the late 1800s and developed it as a private park – which he called Deer Park because of its frequent inhabitants. The park, which was passed to the state of Illinois and rechristened in his name after Matthiessen’s death, has grown from its original 176 acres to nearly 2,000 acres today – and while it’s very comfortable and spacious, can be covered from tip-to-toe in just a few hours on the abundant hiking trails.
Cascade Falls
As a photographer, I’m drawn to the waterfalls – which are plentiful. The creek that runs through the park flows out of Lake Matthiessen and down to the Vermillion River in just a few hundred yards. And yet in that space there are no less then 10 falls of note – many nameless – just begging to be captured.
The lovliest waterfall for me is Cascade Falls, down in the Wishing Well canyon. The falls themselves sit very close to the northern entrance to the park, off Illinois Rt. 178 about one mile south of Illinois Rt. 71. You can see them from the little footbridge above the waterfall but the grand view is from down in the canyon which requires a little hiking – and splashing through the creek.
The creek, between the Giant's Bathtub and Cedar Point
But beyond the falls are five miles of hiking trails and lots of opportunities to get your feet a little – but never too – wet. You can experience the entire park from trails along both the creek and from above – on top of the canyons. The park is also kind of two parks in one. Everything I’ve talked about so far describes the northern Dells area. The southern River area lets you hike right along the Vermillion before it flows into the Illinois – and has lots of picnic areas and family-friendly opportunities.
The park is also an amazing place to visit in the winter. I’ve had days up there in January and February where I’m the only car in the parking lot and I have the park to myself – what an amazing experience! Because of the canyons, which can easily reach 70-80′ deep, you are well protected from any wind and the peace and quiet is just breathtaking. I also love to hike around in the spring where the waterfalls are gushing – I think late-April through early-May are just top notch times to visit with a good pair of water shoes.
Be sure to check out the Illinois Department of Natural Resources web page before you go – especially between November and January when the park closes for a few days at a time during hunting season (there’s no hunting in the park proper, but there is on adjacent properties).
A little Matthiessen surprise
- David Vernon
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Adventure/Outdoor Illinois, Blog Authors, Central Illinois, David Vernon, Illinois Photos | Tagged: Enjoy Illinois, hiking, Matthiessen State Park, Nature, Outdoors, Starved Rock State Park, Travel, Vermillion River, waterfalls | 
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Posted by David Vernon
November 24, 2009
As the heart of the Heartland, Illinois offers a unique topography that I love to capture on film.
Mountains of a different color
From its lowest point (on the Mississippi River at 279′) to its highest point (Charles Mound at 1,235′), the state covers 956′ of elevation.
Charles Mound, in the far northwestern part of the state, is probably unknown to a lot of Illinois natives. If you’ve ever spent time skiing on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River in Jo Daviess County at Chestnut Mountain, you realize pretty quickly how you can go from the top of the state to the bottom in just a few rather exciting minutes. If you take a look at the Wikipedia article on Charles Mound you get an important clue however to what made Illinois a state with such impressively wide vistas:
“Charles Mound is a gentle, 1,235-foot (376 m) high hill in northern Jo Daviess County, Illinois, near the small town of Scales Mound and 11 miles (18 km) northeast of Galena. It is the highest natural point in the state…. It is within the Driftless Area, a region of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, centered around Dubuque, Iowa, that was not covered or ground down by the last continental glaciers.”
The big bluffs at Matthiessen State Park
So there you go, they got to the keyword: glaciers. As the glaciers retreated they left behind a lot of local variation – and that is what I love to look at in Illinois. I live about 30 seconds south of the Mackinaw River – and let me tell you – we have some bluffs down here that are scary tall. And state parks like Starved Rock, Matthiessen and Castle Rock will wear you out going up and down hills. And those glaciers – they crafted some of the finest soil on the planet. We can grow everything we need here in Illinois – including mountains.
So are we known as a prairie state? Sure. But if you explore Illinois on a micro level, where we are a big mess of hills, canyons, valleys and adventure, you get to the heart and soul of the state. And if you want mountains – if you REALLY want mountains – we have them too. Just west of Lake Michigan near the confluence of Interstates 80 and 94. The Mountains of Chicago:
Now we’re talking. Thanks for stopping by Illinois Big Sky country today.
- David Vernon
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1 Comment | David Vernon, Illinois Photos | Tagged: Enjoy Illinois, flatness, Geography, Glaciers, History, IL Travel | Permalink
Posted by David Vernon
October 30, 2009
There’s one thing about being a photographer and living in Central Illinois – you had better like taking pictures of agriculture because you are surrounded by it.
Now fortunately for me, I love taking pictures of agriculture. When I was younger (and living in a big city hundreds of miles from Illinois) I never thought I’d utter the words “I’m an agricultural photographer”. But here I am and there they are.
If you’re into taking shots of agriculture, sooner or later you photograph your first grain co-op. The reflectiveness of the silos, the lines, the skies – it all works. I live a few miles from the little village of Tremont, IL. When I moved down here a few years ago, their Tremont Grain Co-Op #1 had just two silos (the two on the left up there). In 2006 all my pictures were made outdated in a flash when they added a third silo (natch! on the right). So I started over and made some new images.
Well guess what? Yep. Just this summer silo number four has gone up and once again I need to venture out and start from scratch. But secretly I’m okay with that because I really do love it.
So one day when you’re headed down I-155, from Morton to Lincoln, you’ll pass these guys on the edge of Tremont. Look on over. If there are five silos – yeah – I’ll be at it again.
- David Vernon
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1 Comment | Central Illinois, David Vernon, Illinois Photos | Tagged: Central Illinois, corn, Enjoy Illinois, farming, Illinois, Illinois Travel, silos, Tremont | Permalink
Posted by David Vernon
October 15, 2009
Corn...
Ahhh – I can smell October in the air. It’s definitely one of my favorite times of the year. Crisp air, pretty scenes, all those colors, harvest time. As a photographer in the Midwest, I live for autumn. But Fall also means that two other favorites of mine are on tap. That’s right: pumpkin pie and whipped cream (and yes I do occasionally eat the whipped cream without the pumpkin pie – but don’t we all? Besides this post is about pumpkins so let’s end this digression).
Central Illinois has a special relationship with pumpkins, even if they are often perceived as the middle child of agriculture down here. Corn is the big sister; beans the little brother – pumpkins are often ignored right there in the middle. But as a pumpkin pie lover – no fanatic – I know that the fantastic orange gourds serve an important role, so I just can’t ignore them.
Beans...
So – this special relationship? Well – if you love you some pumpkin pie too (yep – that’s how us pumpkin freaks talk), then it’s almost a certainty that the can of pumpkin pie filling you picked up at your grocery store was created right here in Central Illinois. About 15 minutes up the road from me sits the little village of Morton, IL. And right smack dab in the middle of Morton sits a very big (and wonderful smelling) factory – owned by the folks at Nestlé Libbys – where they make 85% of the world’s pumpkin pie filling (this according to the Morton Area Chamber of Commerce). In fact some 4,000-5,000 acres in Central Illinois are planted with a special breed of pumpkin called Dickinson Selects. All that acreage will end up in some 50,000,000 pumpkin pies every year (that does sound heavenly – and think of all the whipped cream). Dickinson Selects do not look like your standard Jack-O-Lantern, either. These yummy gourds are built for eating. They’re taller, less orange and more football-shaped then basketball-shaped. And like a middle child, they have their own complexities.
Corn and beans are all about order. They’re planted in rows, grow in rows and are harvested simply – in rows. Even when they’re growing a foot per day, you can still make out order in corn and bean fields. Pumpkins… well – they’re troublemakers. Planted in rows, they almost immediately rebel. Long vines snake everywhere and before you know it you have a gigantic field of footballs laying everywhere. And because of that, you can forget mechanically weeding the fields, so all manner of undesirables end up springing up. They are the unkempt middle child. And then there’s harvest time. Pumpkins are so special they have to be harvested TWICE. First a delightful machine (everything about pumpkins is delightful because it helps the pumpkins end up in my tummy) restores order to the field. One day you’re driving past the fields and it’s a mess. The next day – everything is back in order. It’s a minor miracle. Finally another delightful machine comes along and picks up the gourds of wonder and eventually deposits them into an 18-wheeler for the short trip over to Morton. Once at the factory, the trucks are picked up whole on a gigantic pumpkin-devouring system of ramps and pulleys and bells and whistles. Then before you know it, little cans of pumpkin pie filling are coming out the other end of the building, where I can BUY THEM. Hooray.
and delightful Pumpkins!
Want to be a pumpkin trivia expert? Learn more about Pumpkins then you ever thought possible.
- David Vernon
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Posted by David Vernon
