THE LURE OF THE COUNTRYSIDE
Full sunshine, yellow and gold flowers of fall, golden fields at harvest time, trees gradually changing color getting ready for a rest – all of these call us to take advantage of moderate temperatures and head for the country. Stephenson County parks, wetlands, and trails invite us to be outdoors to take notice of all the changing season has to offer.
If you are a little more adventuresome, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has more than 100 sites in Illinois many of which have public access allowing you to see “plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on earth,” according to their mission statement. Find out more at www.nature.org/Illinois
In Ogle County, neighbor to Stephenson County, is the Conservancy’s Nachusa Grasslands. The Grasslands cover more than 2,826 acres, with more than 725 acres protected through easements. You can reach the entrance to Nachusa Grasslands by going east of Oregon, Illinois on highway 64 to Daysville Road / 1700 East. Go douth on Daysville for 2.5 miles to Lowden Road /1500 East (just past LaVigna Restaurant). Turn righ and coninue southwards on Lowden Road for eight miles (you will pass Flagg and Stonebarn Roads). The entrance is on the right side of the road.
You will see “steep sandstone outcrops descending into rocky meadows and streams which saved large pieces of native prairie plants from the plow.” You will get a feel for what Illinois was like when it was “once blanketed with abundant grasslands where bison, badgers, and songbirds lived among the prairie plants.” www.nature.org You can imagine yourself as a settler walking beside your wagon traversing the prairie of Illinois seeking a place to settle.
The Nature Conservancy and its partners have protected more than 100 sites in Illinois. On the Illinois website you can find out more about current projects that represent the organization's work to preserve Illinois' diverse habitats: prairies, savannas, forests, wetlands and rivers.
By driving west of Freeport on Highway 20 or going north into Wisconsin you can see countryside unique to the Driftless Area. TNC has projects in northeast Iowa where “cliffs formed of ancient limestone are riddled with sinkholes, caverns, groundwater springs and algific talus slopes (also known as cold-air slopes). The glaciers of the last Ice Age left this driftless region untouched. Because of their unique geology, these hillsides remain cold even on the hottest days and contain plants and animals found during glacial periods 10,000 years ago.” The Retz Memorial Forest near Elkader is a TNC project open to the public. An algific slope can be experienced along a river walk in Decorah, Iowa.
Get out and take a look at the countryside. Better yet walk into one of the many natural areas not too far from where you live.

Della Moen, Earth Team Volunteer, NRCS/Stephenson Soil and Water Conservation District, an equal opportunity provider and employer, 10/6/10 (for publication on 10/14/10 in the Northwest Illinois Farmer) Della can be reached at info@stephensonswcd.org