Tuesday, March 16, 2010
When the weather cooperates, get out and enjoy Kankakee County's rivers, forests and parks.
Perry Farm Park, Trail and Farm House
(815) 933-9905
www.btpd.org
Driving Directions: From I-57 Exit 315, travel south on Rt. 50 to North Street in Bradley. Turn right onto North Street and travel West to the second stoplight, and turn left onto Kennedy Drive. Take the first right onto Perry Street and turn right at the first stop sign onto Perry Farm Park. Follow signs to Perry Farm House, park or Exploration Station.
The Perry Farm Trail offers four miles of walking trail. The 170 acres of land was willed to the State of Illinois by Lomira Perry in 1961, “to be used as a park and recreational facility, kept in its natural setting with a part to be developed commercially to finance the natural and recreational portions (May 1985, The Daily Journal).” Perry’s will required at least 40 acres of land to be a park with the name “Perry” included and the farm to be maintained by friend Francis DuVoisin.
In 1989 the Bourbonnais Township Park District gained title and ownership of the land; and DuVoisin, with the future interests of the land in mind, sold his life interest in the farm. He and his wife still maintain Francis’ garden on the property, with an array of hollyhocks.
Open spaces, picnic areas and a gazebo, oak meadows and Indian caves are offered for recreation; trails lead to the shores of the Kankakee River and the farm is still maintained.
Park and trail hours: Dawn to dusk year-round
Exploration Station: A Children’s Museum
1095 W. Perry St.
Bourbonnais, IL
The Exploration Station offers opportunities for children to explore a medieval castle, be a clerk in a grocery store, be a postmaster, direct a fighter plane from its cockpit, work in a hospital emergency room, work in a dentist’s office, create a flying machine, create water structures, learn about dinosaurs and fossils, view the planets and constellations, fly a passenger jet or just be creative!
Public Hours:
September – March
Closed Mondays (except special holidays.)
Tuesday – Sat.: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.,
Sunday: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Office hours: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
April – August
Mon. – Sat.: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.,
Sunday: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Office Hours: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Daily Admission: $4 for children and senior citizens, $5 for adults. Residents receive a special price: $2.50 for adults and $2.00 for children and seniors.
Special Programs: Group and birthday reservations can be made Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. at 815-933-9905. The Exploration Station also sponsors group trips, museum sleepovers and play groups. Volunteering opportunities are also available.
Children under 11 years old must be accompanied by a paid museum attendee 16 or older.
The museum is closed New Year’s Day, Easter, Memorial Day, July 4, the last week in August and the first week in September for maintenance, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Willowhaven Interpretive Center
Bourbonnais Park District
(815) 933-9905
www.btpd.org
Splash Valley and Bird Park Splash Pad
See the related article on this site for details.
Camp Shaw
6641 N 6000 W Rd.
Manteno
815-933-3011 or 815-922-2321
www.campshaw.org
Camp Shaw is a great place to host a wide-range of indoor and outdoor events. Camp Shaw, which opened in 1956, offers overnight accommadations, horseback riding and guided trail rides. The camp serves as an environmental science education program that works to encourage interest and participation in the controlled use of natural resources.
Haigh's Scuba Diving Quarry
2738 E. 2000 North Rd.
Bourbonnais
(815) 939-7797
www.haighquarry.com
Haigh's Scuba Diving Quarry allows visitors to dive in a 12- acre quarry, and see a large array of Midwestern fish. Haigh's features rock mining equipment and an underwater Marine dump truck, , LARC-amphibious vehicle and a 33-foot cabin cruiser. Haigh's also offers a Tricycle park, a 25-foot swim tube, and anavigtion course. Customers can also take part in a wreck dive. Haigh's also offers equipment rental, air-fills and dive instructions. Hours are Monday-Saturday 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Sunday 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Kankakee River
The Kankakee River Valley provides visitiors with the opportunity to experience a variety of outdoor sports and activities. Fishing, boating, hunting, canoeing, hiking, and camping are only a few of the exciting adventures visitors are able to enjoy.
Fishing on the Kankakee River
The Kankakee River runs through Kankakee County for 55 miles, and is the home to the state record for Northern Pike, Walleye, and Small and Largemouth Bass. Fishing is one of the most enjoyable experiences the Kankakee River offers. See the article on this site for more information.
Reed's Canoe Trips
907 N. Indiana Ave.
Kankakee
(815) 932-2263
www.reedscanoetrips.com
Each year, 4000 canoe and kayak trips are made from two different locations on the Kankakee River. Reed's Canoe Trips offers three types of trips that range from two to six hours in length. Canoe trips are suitable for both the beginning and novice canoeists.
Forest Preserve
The Kankakee River Valley Forest Preserve District is responsible for over 252 acres at six sites throughout the county. The district office is located in the Shannon Bayou Environmental Education Center at 3301 Waldron Rd. in Aroma Park. They can be reached by phone at (815) 935-563 or on the Web at www.krvfpd.org. The president is Kenneth Allers.
The Shannon Bayou Environmental Education Center, surrounded by 46 acres of preserve, provides space for programs about natural history, ecology and preservation of open space in the Kankakee River Valley. The Forest Preserve also has walking trails that feature plantings of many native trees and plants, including an acre of native tallgrass prairie, a 3/4-mile asphalt and fine gravel walking trail, a picnic shelter and picnic tables. Educational programs offered by the forest preserve include Children’s’ Nature Club (Bug Club), nature walks, and environmental programs.
Other forest preserve sites include:
All of these sites offer walking trails that go throughout the preserve.