$250,000 in Horse Trail Upgrades Set For Shawnee

Visitors to some of the most scenic parts of the Shawnee National Forest will soon have better access thanks to a $200,000 grant announced by the state this week.

The grant provides 80 percent of the funding for four projects that will cost around $250,000 when complete. The projects include two new parking lots and trailheads near One Horse Gap in Pope County and Garden of the Gods in Gallatin County. A third trailhead will be expanded and more than five miles of trails for hikers and horseback riders rebuilt and improved.

The Governor's office and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources made the announcement.

Eighty percent of the funding comes from the federal Recreational Trails Program grant administered by DNR. The U.S. Forest Service will match the 80-20 grant with $37,500 of their own trails funding for the Shawnee National Forest and $12,500 from the Shawnee Trails Conservancy, a local equestrian trail group. Earlier this year that group had received their portion as a grant from the Illinois Equine Industry Research and Promotion Board, which distributes funds from an voluntary assessment on equine feed purchased in the state.

"Improving our infrastructure for recreation on public lands is an important step as we work to connect more people with nature and the outdoors,” IDNR Director Marc Miller said in the release. "These grants will help communities and government agencies do a better job of making public spaces available to all."

Amanda G. Patrick, public affairs officer for the Shawnee, told Southern Illinois Tourism News the forest leadership, "is excited about this successful cooperative effort between the U.S. Forest Service and the Shawnee Trail Conservancy."

The Conservancy wrote the grant application and guided it through the process, she added.

The new trailheads will be located near One Horse Gap and just outside the Garden of the Gods Wilderness Area. The one to be expanded will be the East Trigg trailhead on the River to River Trail.

"All three trailheads will be large enough to accommodate multiple horse trailers as well as passenger vehicle parking to serve all trail users," explained Patrick.

The second new trailhead between Garden of the Gods and High Knob will be located close to the rock formation long associated with the Civil War era Confederacy supporting Knights of the Golden Circle.

The grant will also fund approximately 5.4 miles of work on USFS hiker/equestrian trails, including some portions of the River to River Trail, in the One Horse Gap area.

"These trails are heavily utilized and in many cases are not well-constructed or well-located for the heavy impact," Patrick explained. "Sections of trail will be relocated on the landscape to minimize resource damage from erosion and sedimentation and to avoid sensitive features while other sections will be reconstructed in place."

While Forest Service personnel will complete the planning and layout, Trails Unlimited, a team that specializes in trail work will perform the construction.

The One Horse Gap trail work will be a continuation of a project funded by a 2010 RTP grant to reroute and reconstruct approximately 7 miles of hiker/equestrian trail in the same area. About 5.5 miles of this work is complete to date; the remainder of the work is expected to be done in fall 2014.

Patrick said planning has already begun for the trailheads and trail work associated with the new grant. Actual construction may not begin until spring 2015.

"The Forest is very appreciative of the time, energy and investment provided by STC as this project would not be possible without their continued support. [We're] also grateful for the state of Illinois's consideration and selection of this project that promotes the development of trails and the opportunities they provide for visitors to the Shawnee. This level of support is exciting as it brings capacity to all involved in addressing trail reconstruction and maintenance, needs that are critical to the long-term sustainability of local trail systems that protect unique places while also increasing the safety of our visitors," she added.

The project in the Shawnee was one of four announced this week by Gov. Pat Quinn. The three other Recreational Trails Program grants announced this week were $151,000 for a special parking area for vehicles and snowmobilers along the Pecatonica Prairie Trail in Winnebago County, $616,000 for the development of the Hanna City Trail in Peoria and Fulton Counties and $200,000 for the development of the Freeman Kame Horse and Hike Trail in the Freeman Kame - Meagher Forest Preserve in Kane County.

New River to River Trail Guide Available

The 4th edition of the River to River Trail Guide is now available for hikers and backpackers.

The new edition covers reroutes of the trail in recent years in the Lusk Creek Wilderness Area, Crab Orchard Fish and Wildlife Area and Pine Hills region. But the most notable difference in the new guide from the previous guides is the size.

...The guide is more than a trail section to trail section guide for backpackers. It gives information on legends of the area, such as a brief history of Anna Bixby who was credited with the discovery of milk sickness, a discussion of weirdness associated with the Max Creek Vortex, information on canoing opportunities and a chapter on the American Discovery Trail from the Atlantic to the Pacific coasts of which the RTR Trail is a part. Those passages may not be vital to someone looking to the next turn in the course of a multi-day trek, but may help pass a few minutes at an end-of-day campfire.

The guide also is the first to show the official change of the eastern edge of the trail of Battery Rock to Elizabethtown which was made last year.

Copies of the guide can be purchased from Big John's in Eldorado, the Shawnee National Forest headquarters in Harrisburg as well as Bookworm in Marion and Carbondale. Orders can also be placed directly with John O'Dell, president of the trail society at 618-252-6789.

Region's Beaches Ready for Summer

It's a long way to the beaches in Florida, but Southern Illinois has some great ones right in our back yards.

Some of them like Sandusky Beach at Rend Lake and the public beach at Pounds Hollow Lake in the Shawnee National Forest. Others will open Memorial Day weekend.

Cedar Lake - Poplar Camp Beach (Jackson County) south of Carbondale opens Friday, May 23, from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends.

State certified lifeguards are on duty during beach open hours. Admission is $2 per person with children under four admitted free. The beach and lake are operated by the City of Carbondale. Passes are available for 10 visits for $15 and 20 visits for $25. Passes are good for the entire esason and can be used by anyone at anytime.

For information on beach closings, call 618-549-8441 or 618-549-5302. Alcoholic beverages, glass containers and fires are prohibited at the beach.

Crab Orchard Lake (Williamson County) - The beach at Crab Orchard Campground will open for the season on May 26. Hours are from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a week. There is a lifeguard present. Admission is $2 per person per day. No alcoholic beverages or glass bottles permitted. For more information contact the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge at 618-997-3344.

Lake Glendale (Pope County) - The beach at Lake Glendale opens May 24 with hours from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

Lifeguards are present. Admission is $3.50 for persons 6 and over and $2.50 or persons 5 and under. The admission is for the entire day and swimmers may come and go. No alcohol or glass bottles permitted. The lake and beach is part of the Shawnee National Forest.

The concessionaire at Lake Glendale also offers paddle boat and canoe rentals.

Pounds Hollow Lake (Gallatin County) - This is a free day-use area in the Shawnee National Forest. The beach is open during daylight hours. No lifeguards are provided.

Rend Lake - Sandusky Beach is currently the only beach open at Rend Lake from 8 a.m. to sunset.

No lifeguards are on duty though. Admission is $1 per person up to $4 per vehicle (per day). Children 12 and under are admitted free. No alcohol or glass bottles permitted. Operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Sam Dale Lake (Wayne County) is part of the Sam Dale Lake State Fish and Wildlife Area that's open Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day.

The swimming area is a buoy-marked area with a large beach area for sun-bathers. No life guards present. Swimmers under 17 must be accompanied by an adult. No alcohol allowed.

Court Oversight of Shawnee Forest Continues

The Daily Register is reporting that U.S. District Judge J. Phil Gilbert has decided to continue court oversight of the U.S. Forest Service's operations of trails and public guide and outfitter permits.

The Forest Service wanted out from the scrutiny.

Environmentalists and equestrians, usually at odds over forest use issues, joined together in supporting another year of oversight, which Gilbert saw as a positive step. Everyone seems to be working together at the Lusk Creek area — the flashpoint of debate in the case. Any cooperation between environmentalists and horse riders has to be seen as progress, the judge said Tuesday.

I used to cover the judge and the various lawsuits concerning the Shawnee National Forest in the 90s. Gilbert has been hearing those cases for more than a decade and has little patience for squabbling.

Burden Falls Flows on YouTube

One of the Shawnee National Forest's hidden gems isn't hidden as much now with this user created video on YouTube taken last New Year's Eve.

Burden Falls is located in northern Pope County near Bell Smith Springs.