Goose Lake Prairie State Natural Area
Goose Lake Prairie State Natural Area
Location:Northeast Illinois, in Grundy County, 50 miles southwest of Chicago and1 mile southwest of the confluence of the Kankakee and Des Plainesrivers.
Facilities:Picnic areas, restrooms, hiking trails (7 miles), visitor center. Aboat launch and boat rental concession is available at HeideckeLake, a 2,000-acre cooling pond that lies adjacent to Goose LakePrairie.
Activities:Hiking, picnicking, interpretive programs; fishing and hunting at Heidecke Lake.
Special Features:At one time more than half of the state of Illinois was covered withprairie, which is how it earned the nickname "the Prairie State."Today, the 2,500-acre Goose Lake Prairie is the largest remnant ofprairie left inIllinois. Goose Lake itself was drained by settlers in 1890 in order togain more farmland, leaving only the ponds and marshes that remain atthe site today. Most of the prairie is now made up of tall prairiegrasses, and the rest consists of broad-leaved flowering plants knowncollectively as forbs.
Address:5010 N Jugtown Rd
Morris, IL 60450
Phone:815-942-2899
Web: dnr.state.il.us/Lands/Landmgt/PARKS/I&M/EAST/GOOSE/HOME.HTM
Size: 2,537 acres.
See other parks in Illinois.