THE NATURAL WONDERS OF ILLINOIS
We
arrived at the campground at Ferne Clyffe State Park
well after dark on Friday night. I’d
picked this campground (despite the pretentious spelling of the park’s name)
because it was conveniently located and reservations are accepted. I would’ve preferred camping near Garden of
the Gods, but those campgrounds are small and are first come first serve. I was afraid we would have trouble finding a
spot arriving late on a Friday evening. Ferne
Clyffe State Park was a bit too civilized for our
tastes, but it is nice to take a shower every now and then.
I
got up at first light on Saturday morning and let Christy sleep in. My goal was to visit the park’s namesake
before the sun came up and ruined any chance of getting good photos. This was a bit unpleasant after getting in
late the previous evening, and ultimately not worth it. I had the trail to myself, and enjoyed a
quiet stroll up a peaceful canyon to the headwall. Ferne Clyffe Falls
drops 60-70’ here (the park officially lists it at 100’, but that appears to be
overstated). In understand that it is an
impressive sight when the water is up.
The water was not up during my visit.
Although there had been numerous storms earlier in the week, that water
was long gone. The waterfall was just a
trickle on Saturday morning. If you want
to visit this one, make sure to go during or right after a good rain.
I
made the most of the hike, exploring the base of the cliffs and scrambling
through the cavern behind the falls.
Afterwards I explored up a side drainage, which features more cliffs
(including the park’s official rock climbing area) and two minor, low-volume
waterfalls. The wildflowers were
fantastic in this area, making the early start worthwhile.
After
my hike I returned to the campground and made
breakfast. Then we drove to the far
corner of the park to check out Bork’s Falls.
This is a lesser-known waterfall, but it is on a larger stream. I was hopeful that there would be enough
water there to make it worthwhile. Fortunately a decent dirt road leads right to the top of the
falls. We rock hopped the creek where to
road fords it, just above the brink of the falls. There was decent volume in this creek, which
drains a much larger area than Ferne Clyffe
Falls. Luckily, it wasn’t too high. At least one car has been swept over the 40’
waterfall while attempting to cross the creek during high water.
We
picked up a path on the far side. We
followed the brink of a cliff away from the falls until we found a break. A short, easy scramble led to the base of the
cliff. We followed the base of the cliff
it back to the falls. While Ferne Clyffe Falls had been disappointing due to the low water,
Bork’s Falls is a beauty! I was amazed
at how cool this spot is. The waterfall
is a 40’ sheer drop into a lovely green pool.
The pool is surrounded by cliffs, and there is a cave behind the
falls. The mid-morning light was
marginal for photos, but I made the best of the situation. We ended up spending a full hour there
enjoying the place and taking photos.
Next
up on our grand tour of southern Illinois was a hike in Jackson Hollow, a
sandstone canyon with interesting cliffs, caves, and boulders. My friend Mitch and his friend Bob were
driving all the way from St. Louis to meet us for the hike. We were still a little ahead of schedule, and
Mitch was running a bit late. We decided
to squeeze in one more waterfall. We’d
passed signs for Jackson Falls shortly before reaching the trailhead, so we
headed that way. Unfortunately
one sign was missing and we took a wrong turn.
Once I realized our error, we were almost at Burden Falls. We decided to hit that one instead. Burden Falls is a popular spot. It was swarming with people when we
arrived. Like Bork’s Falls, a decent
dirt road leads right to the top of it.
I took a couple of photos from the rim of the canyon and considered
scrambling to the base. However, the
scramble down looked a bit involved, and conditions were poor for
photography. We’d be late meeting Mitch
if I did it, and I was eager to start our exploration of Jackson Hollow.
We
drove back to the trailhead, which is just a grassy spot on the shoulder of
Trigg Tower Road. They weren’t there,
and there was no cell signal. We kept
driving down the road and found Mitch and Bob at a parking area popular with
horseback riders. It was great to see
Mitch! He had missed his annual Spring
trip to South Carolina in March, so it had been over a year since I’d seen
him. His buddy Bob was a friendly guy
who had done a lot of hiking in the area.
However, neither of them had been to Jackson Hollow.
Apparently
not many people go to Jackson Hollow.
Although it features impressive cliffs, boulders, and caves, it seems to
be largely off the radar. After moving
our cars back to the side of the road we bushwhacked through the woods and down
into the canyon. Most of Jackson Hollow
is guarded by cliffs, but the west end offers a gentle approach. We found breaks in the cliffs, and before
long joined a prominent trail. It
connects Jackson Hollow with a point to the south, possibly on private
property.
Jackson
Hollow is a broad, forested canyon with a stream running through the middle of
it. The path follows the stream, but all
of the canyon’s interesting features are along the cliff walls to the north and
south. We decided to explore the north
side first. We headed that way, and
scrambled up through a maze of giant boulders to the base of the cliff. My plan had been to follow the base of the
cliffs all the way around the canyon.
However, our approach had been a bit inefficient. We had missed some sections of cliff back to
the west. After a bit of debate, we
decided to double-back. Christy decided
to hang out in the shade of a big boulder while we explored. Mitch and I temporarily lost Bob along the
way, but we eventually regrouped back at the meeting spot. The extra exploration turned out to be
worthwhile. We found some impressive
overhanging cliffs and a couple of small caves.
One of them hosts a population of Filmy Ferns, an endangered species.
After
regrouping we followed the base of the cliffs to the east. This stretch of the canyon featured more
giant boulders, overhanging cliffs, stone passageways, and small caves. We took our time and enjoyed the
exploration. Eventually the cliffs ran out,
and we found ourselves at the bottom of a steep railroad embankment at the east
end of Jackson Hollow. Here, it is
possible to wade through a culvert (or climb up and over the railroad tracks)
to access the Jackson Falls area. Originally I thought we might do that, but it was much later
than I’d anticipated. Exploring a
boulder playground can be time-consuming!
Also, Christy was not at all interested in wading through the
culvert. I suggested following the base
of the cliffs on the south side of the hollow on our return. However, it was getting late, and I still
wanted to visit Garden of the Gods that evening. In the end we
decided to take the direct route back to the car by following the trail along
the stream.
Jackson
Hollow was a really cool place to explore!
If I’m ever in the area again I’d like to visit some of the other
canyons in the area. Jackson Falls is a
popular destination. Also, the next
canyon to the south, the Promised Land, is a popular rock climbing area.
A
rather long drive brought us to the Garden of the Gods. It is a touristy place, and the crowds there
were a bit startling after having Jackson Hollow to ourselves. We parked and did the short hike along the
rim of the cliffs. Garden of the Gods
features cool rock formations, impressive views, and lots and lots of
tourists. Originally, I’d planned to
catch sunset there, but the horizon was clouding up. We were also worn out from a long, fun day of
exploring. Christy and I decided to head
back to the campground, while Mitch and Bob drove up to Carbondale to hit a
brewery. It was nice meeting Bob, and
great hiking with Mitch again.
We
returned to the campground before dark.
First, we scoured Goreville looking for firewood. We stopped at the most promising gas
station. They didn’t have any, but
tipped us off on a stash of firewood owned by a Boy Scout Troop in a local
church parking lot. The wood was cheap,
and payment was by the honor system. We
took a couple of bundles and dropped the money in the box before returning to
the campground. We showered, had dinner,
and spent the rest of the night relaxing by the fire, as we had a long drive
ahead of us on Sunday.
I
got up at first light on Sunday and drove back to Bork’s Falls for more
photos. Although the light was better, there
wasn’t much difference in the photos. Go
figure. I returned to the campground and
we packed up and hit the road. We drove
to Paducah, Kentucky and stopped at a Cracker Barrel for breakfast. We used the last of our gift cards
there. From Paducah, we drove all the
way to Asheville with only minor stops along the way. We had an early dinner in Asheville (having
skipped lunch) and then drove the last two hours home. That final drive was long, but it had been
worth it. It was a great road trip, and
I would definitely return to most all of the places we visited. The Ozarks of Arkansas are particularly
compelling. There is a lot more to explore
in southern Illinois, and I still need to hike in Louisiana. We had also been very close to Oklahoma on
this trip, but had skipped it due to a lack of time. We’ll get there on another trip!
There
are still a few states I haven’t hiked in.
In no particular order, they are:
Idaho, North Dakota, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Delaware,
Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
I should be able to hit the three New England states in a single trip at
some point in the future. All of the
western states are compelling in their own way.
It’s actually pretty surprising that I haven’t gotten to Idaho or New
Mexico, and North Dakota has Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Oklahoma has several mountain ranges and even
a couple of waterfalls. Delaware and
Louisiana will probably be the biggest challenges. Where to next?
Back to Illinois
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