White Deer and Waterfalls: Top Trails To Trek In Illinois This Summer

ACROSS ILLINOIS — Dust off your trekking shoes. It's hiking season and Illinois offers trails to tempt hikers of all levels. Whether you're taking a day trip for a short treka road trip to camp out in one of the state's more distant destinations, you won't be disappointed by how the landscape of the Prairie State unfurls.

Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve

Darien, IL

Located just 25 miles outside of Chicago Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve sprawls over more than 2,500 acres. Its 11 miles of trails wend through old quarries, waterfalls and forests lined with maples, oaks and other old growth trees.

Waterfall Glen is popular for hikers, bikers and people who enjoy fishing. One of its most attractive features is a bluff savanna that blooms with hundreds of colorful wildflowers and trees that are over two centuries old.

Insider tip: On occasion, hikers can see white deer at Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve, so keep an eye out. These deer are the stuff of legends.

Starved Rock State Park

Oglesby, IL

Perhaps one of the most popular hiking spots in Illinois, Starved Rock State Park boasts a varied landscape that weaves through 18 canyons. The area offers hiking, trolley tours, waterfowl cruises and other activities.

Camping is available in and around the park throughout the season.

Busse Woods

Rolling Meadows, IL

Located in the Ned Brown Forest Preserve, Busse Woods charms with plenty of waters for fans of fishing and boating. There's even an elk pasture along the way.

In spring, wildflowers bloom abundantly along the trails, creating a scene-scape of brilliant colors.

Garden of the Gods

Herod, IL

This hike is one of the top trails in Shawnee National Forest. The observation trail offers Instagram-worthy vistas of sandstone bluffs. It's especially beautiful if you take the hike around sunset and see brilliant colors span the horizon

Visitors can stay over at Pharaoh Campground, which has a dozen campsites with fire pits and other amenities.

Cave-in-Rock

Hardin County, IL

The aptly named Cave-in-Rock features a cave that spans 55 feet across. From inside the cave, hikers can get an idyllic view of the Ohio River. Along the hike, views the river are even more breathtaking atop bluffs that reach nearly 400 feet in elevation.

The legends that surround Cave-in-the Rock include tales of pirates and criminals. A Disney movie called "Davy Crockett and the River Pirates"was also filmed there in the 1950s, as were parts of "How the West was Won."

What's your favorite hiking trail in Illinois? Let us know in the comments.