Home2018-10 Southern Illinois

Fall Colors Trip

Southern Illinois
October 27-28, 2018
Submitted by Mike Dale

This was a camping, bicycling, hiking trip to the Shawnee National Forest, about 4 hours from Memphis. It's packed with scenic areas to explore.

We base camped at Shawnee Forest Campground in Vienna, Illinois. This is a full hookup RV park and campground with brand new bathrooms and shower facilities.

Saturday morning we biked 10 miles on the Tunnel Hill State Bike Trail. This is an awesome "rails-to-trails" bike trail. We did a section that was mostly a very slight downhill grade and included a tunnel, several trestles and some beautiful scenery. Check out the "light at the end of the tunnel" in the Photo Album

After a hearty lunch at Ned's Shed in Vienna we hiked up the canyon in and checked out some caves in Ferne Cyffe State Park. By then we were ready to relax with wine and live music at Blue Sky Winery followed by a family style dinner at Giant City State Park in an historic lodge built by the CCC.

Sunday morning we climbed among the boulders in the Garden of the Gods and had a picnic lunch before disbursing for the return home.