Parks/Outdoor
Shawnee National Forest
Management Contact:
Name: USDA Forest Service
Phone: 618-253-7114
E-Mail: rbanker@fs.fed.us
Website: http://www.fs.fed...
In addition to an astonishing variety of trees and plants, many species of wildlife live here, including at least 48 species of mammals, 237 birds, 52 reptiles, 57 amphibians and 109 fish. Approximately 500 vertebrate species live in the Shawnee. Numerous insects and invertebrates occur throughout the Forest as well. Perhaps you'll see a whitetail buck leave his forest shelter for early evening grazing. Or you'll follow brilliantly feathered finches from a boardwalk as they dart through pin oak treetops at Oakwood Bottoms. You may not be lucky enough to see a rare Indiana bat, eastern woodrat, pygmy sunfish or blind cavefish, but they are in the forest and protected. From ancient bald cypress trees and tupelo wetlands, to dry upland hardwood slopes, the Shawnee is home to an extraordinary diversity of species. Non-game and huntable wildlife are cooperatively managed by the Forest Service, which preserves and enhances wildlife habitat, and by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, which manages wildlife and establishes and enforces game regulation.
Directions:
To reach Jackson Falls from Harrisburg, turn south on Hwy 145 to Delwood. Turn right (west) toward Bell Smith Springs. Pass through McCormick, then Zion Hill church. Turn left (south) on Forest Road 494. The road is rough until the unmarked recreation area on the right, just before the creek. There is a very small outbuilding there and a bulletin board with information supplied by the Illinois Climbers Alliance. Camping is allowed here. A trail follows the top of the bluff (southeast) around to the "dogleg" where you can walk into the canyon, or you can tie up and rappel.
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