The Illinois River watershed extends from the headwaters of the Des Plaines River, in southeast Wisconsin, and the upper tributaries of the Kankakee River, in northern Indiana; these two rivers merge in northern Illinois to form the Illinois River which flows westward and then SSW to join the Mississippi, just north of St. Louis.
Some of the best views of the Upper Illinois River are obtained from Starved Rock State Park that stretches across forested bluffs south of the river. Accessed from Illinois 71, this popular Park protects a spectacular landscape of cliffs, canyons and recessed caves, sculpted from Ordovician St. Peter Sandstone by torrents of water; most of the erosion occurred during the wet climate of the Pleistocene. Indeed, the Illinois River Valley and those of its major tributaries are all products of glacial meltwater (including intermittent catastrophic floods) which peaked late in the Pleistocene (10-15 thousand years ago) as the Wisconsin Ice Sheets retreated into Canada. The Park, which has both a Lodge and a Visitor Center, is accessed by 13 miles of trail loops which lead to overlooks atop the bluffs and into the magnificent chasms.
Named for a deadly confrontation between Native American tribes, Starved Rock State Park hosts a large number of bald eagles during the winter months and offers broad views of the Illinois River, which forms a wide lake behind the Starved Rock Locks & Dam; increasing numbers of American white pelicans congregate along the river during migrations as do a wide variety of waterfowl. Today, raked by a gusty south wind, we enjoyed summer-like conditions at the Park; by evening, a potent cold front had pushed through the area, bringing rain and a rapid fall in the temperature. It is, after all, late October.
