The following stories originally ran in the First Quarter Issue 2002 of the Lake & Prairie. They were compiled by Terri Treacy. Photos courtesy of Tony Jones
Bell Smith Springs
by Sam Stearns
I have been visiting Bell Smith Springs since before I was born. My mother used to tell me how she visited the shady canyon in the summer before my birth, wading the pools and soaking her feet in the cool water. My earliest memories are of watching tadpoles in the rock basins above a little waterfall there. Some of my most pleasant recent memories include lazing around those same pools, contemplating a new generation of tadpoles. Their lives and mine are inextricably intertwined and will continue to be so.
I appreciate now the privilege I took for granted as a child. Bell Smith Springs is an essential destination for anyone interested in native ecology and local history. It is designated a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Park Service, a Natural Area by the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, and a recreation area by the U.S. Forest Service. This gorgeous canyon and its surrounding watershed have been studied by scientists and enjoyed by visitors for generations.
Untold thousands of citizens have visited this piece of public property through the years to observe the rare phenomenon of interconnected, complete, functioning ecosystems. There are four creeks which come together in the canyon at Bell Smith Springs; and even when the creeks are parched there are a dozen ice-cold spring pools which never go dry. The unique hydrology of the canyon contributes to its vegetative diversity: over 700 species of plants flourish at Bell Smith Springs.
Native Americans utilized the canyon for its abundant water and huge shelter bluffs. Early settlers farmed the ridge tops; grazed livestock on the hillsides; and harnessed one stream to power a gristmill. Massive trees of the virgin forest were felled during this time. The cougar, wood bison, bear, elk, and many other species which once drank from the pools have long since been extirpated. But bobcat, turkey, deer, fox, a plethora of songbirds and other animals are still glimpsed at Bell Smith Springs.
The rugged, isolated topography of parts of the canyon serve as a repository for species that have disappeared from many other places. The netted chain fern is found in upland areas of the watershed, its fruiting bodies rising above the foliage. Pale, greenish, spongy-looking tufts of sphagnum moss line the sides of some north-facing slopes. Rosy blooms of the flower-of-the-hour appear in arid patches, display their short-lived beauty, and then wither away within a couple of hours. The rare French’s shooting star occur in drip lines of the bluffs. Alder trees tap their roots deep in the cold soil adjacent to spring pools. There are lichen grasshoppers, endangered crayfish, and unusual minnows that inhabit the cliffs, rocks, and pristine water.
During the decades that these hills and hollows have been protected as public land, natural regeneration has restored much of the area’s biological diversity. Pine plantations on the ridge tops now nurse a diverse understory of native oaks, hickory, and other hardwoods. Continued protection and respect for the land will insure its survival for future generations.
My own daughter has a deeper appreciation of Bell Smith Springs than I do. I grew up thinking that the tadpoles I observed were part of a food chain that culminated with human beings at the top. My daughter realizes that those tadpoles are part of a complex web of life, the intricacies of which are sometimes too subtle for us to understand fully. Bell Smith Springs will continue to be a nurturing classroom as long as we are humble enough to listen to the lessons that it has to offer.
Sam Stearns lives with his wife and daughter near Bell Smith Springs in the central part of the Shawnee Forest, and has been a strong voice for many years for the protection of the forest. He is the founder of Friends of Bell Smith Springs, an organization that promotes the protection and conservation of the area. Sam is a hiker and forest watcher, who loves to share his “backyard” with folks that share his love and appreciation of the land.
Ripple Hollow
by Les Honey
One of my favorite places to hike and commune with nature is Ripple Hollow located primarily in Southwest Union County. Ripple was a small community until around the 1930’s, and until the 1950’s could be accessed from the Grape Vine Trail in Alexander County or the Old Cape Road in Union County. The old road still exists as a good foot trail both to the north and south. Ripple is an excellent place to hike for a number of reasons, including its rich history, its beauty, its unique physiography and its variety of plant and animal species.
Ripple has and interesting history. There are few remnants left of the community; however, if a person looks for them, he will see them. I have found a few, including a fender from Model “T” Ford. I was surprised to find some building remnants located on a mound at the mouth of Ripple. This spot is particularly unique in that the mound is, in all probability, a vestige of one built by prehistoric native Americans. This mound can be located on a U.S. Geological Survey map at the mouth of Ripple by a black dot representing a dwelling encircled by an elevation contour line. I have heard accounts that many years ago there were mounds to the west of Clear Creek that have now been removed by farming operations. There are other evidences of prehistoric habitation of the area including a burial ground on the north ridge of Happy Hollow. It was looted in the 1930’s or 40’s and all that is left are the stones used to line the graves.
A second reason that Ripple is a great place to hike is the simple beauty of the area. In the spring and summer there is an abundance of wildflowers of upland and lowland species that one doesn’t see everywhere, such as Shooting Stars and Cardinal Flowers. In the fall, of course, the color of the foliage is excellent.
Next, the physiography of the area is unique. A person can walk south of Ripple and see limestone bluffs, which delineate the Mississippi flood plain from the Ozark Hills of Illinois, or one can follow the trail up Ripple Hollow to a ridge of the Illinois Ozarks approximately 300 feet above the valley floor.
Finally, the area is rich in wildlife and unusual vegetation. Of particular interest to me are the many species of birds. The area attracts both wooded bottomland as well as upland species. A hiker in the Ripple area might see a prothonotary warbler, a pileated woodpecker or a wild turkey, just to mention a few. Also, if a person is interested in snakes, he may be able to find varieties from cottonmouths, to timber rattlers. As for unusual vegetation, the largest of giant cane that I have ever seen grows at the mouth of Ripple.
Ripple is really an interesting and beautiful place to visit. The historical remnants, the beauty, the unique physiography, and the abundance of wildlife make it an ideal spot for hiking. It should be noted that Ripple has north and south forks; however, most of my hiking has been in the North Fork. I would suggest use of the USGS map of Mill Creek quadrangle. Having a map of the area allows a person to choose option of access to Ripple or to follow other trails in the area. Have a good time and good hiking.
Les Honey, who now lives in Cairo, Illinois with his wife of 41 years, grew up near the proposed Ripple Hollow Wilderness in northeast Alexander County in the Shawnee National Forest. He has served on a variety of boards and committees in the pursuit of forest preservation, including volunteering one day per week at the Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge. He’s a hiker, photographer, bird watcher, and as some of his friends say, a genuine “tree hugger.”
Burke Branch
by Craig Rhodes
I’ve been exploring the 6,000 or so acres of Burke Branch for almost 25 years now and I’ve only scratched the surface. The countless hours I’ve spent in Burke Branch have taught me to expect the unexpected. Whether it be a new orchid, a record white oak, a quiet, prehistoric bog with 6 foot cinnamon ferns, an undiscovered cave, or any number of other surprises. I’ve come to realize that I can spend the rest of my life exploring the area and never exhaust the possibility of discovery in both Burke Branch and myself. It is infinitely entertaining.
While I am by no means wise, I have learned that wisdom, more often than not, comes after deep reflection. It is these qualities that drew most of the world’s great religious leaders to use the wilderness as a refuge from the cacophony of civilization, as a means to communion and ultimately, to seek enlightenment. For this reason, the wilderness, as both metaphor and necessity, has become an integral part of our culture. The Burke Branch wilderness has afforded me the opportunity for serenity, solitude and needed reflection. It is quiet in ways that go beyond the mere absence of noise. It encourages meditation.
I’ve learned over time that to gain conviction one should speak softly. Burke Branch speaks softly to the attuned. It doesn’t shout at you like the Garden of the Gods, which is also in the Shawnee. It has a much subtler and quieter appeal to the senses. It requires attention.
Moreover, the lessons aren’t given gratis but have to be earned. All true art requires something of the viewer… participation, not just observation. In this respect the Burke Branch wilderness can be considered art in the truest sense. To be appreciated one has to bring something of themselves to the experience or the experience isn’t complete. It doesn’t lend itself to the superficial, the drive-by view. Something has to be given.
Each individual can only determine what is taken and given. There is no formula. But for me it must be, first and foremost, a sensory experience divorced from the abstract and the analytical. In the end science will play an important role in how the Burke Branch wilderness will be legally defined. But, for me, its deeper truths can only be appreciated as art not as science. My time in Burke Branch has taught me that the deepest truths are known through synthesis rather than analysis.
Burke Branch is wilderness in the truest sense. It doesn’t require an act of Congress to make it so; no more than an oak requires an act of Congress before it can be an oak. But it will require an act of Congress to keep it as wilderness. For this reason, I pray that we will continue to value the ineffable qualities inherent in wilderness that have played such an important role in our cultural evolution.
Craig Rhodes and his wife live on property adjacent to the proposed Burke Branch Wilderness located within the southeastern portion of the Shawnee National Forest in Pope County. Craig is a high school art teacher, a potter, and an excellent musician. His love for the Shawnee has inspired him to become a fervent activist on many of the environmental issues facing the Shawnee.