Welcome to Wolf Road Prairie in Westchester
Inside the 80 acres of this preserve every day is earth day
This area became prairie about 10,000 years ago, as the climate continued to warm after the last glaciers receded from this part of the country. Oak and hickory, grasses and wildflowers established themselves through most of Illinois. Only a small percentage remains, and this preserve includes prarie, oak savanna, and a wetlands environment.
The preserve is owned and managed by the CCFPD, IDNR and the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission. Often times the most visible presence here is the non-profit conservation group Save The Prairie Society, which has merged with Franzosenbusch Heritage Society and now manages and operates the historic 1840's Prairie House located at the north end of Wolf Road Prairie. Enhance your visit to the prairie by coming when it is open, and see the nature center and museum. It's not always open, so check the website for special programs and activities held throughout the year.
In fact, if you decide to come out here today (4/22/12) be sure you check out the schedule of Earth Day activities taking place here. You may want to take part in some of it. (And know that you will have to be very discreet at the cache site. There will be many more muggles than usual to deal with, and parking may be a challenge.)
There are sidewalk trails in the south 40 acres, remnants of an attempted housing development in the 1920s that never got off the ground, and was scrapped during the Great Depression. If you approach from either of the first two small parking bays on 31st Street west of Wolf Road you can get to the cache without leaving the sidewalk. (That makes it a terrain rating of 1, but make sure your wheel chair is sturdy and in good shape.) If you park on Constitution by the Prairie House there is a trail behind the house that crosses the wetlands to the sidewalk.
Due to the fragile nature of the environment it is imperative that you stay on the trails and walks at all times. Bicycles and pets are also banned here. And don't come after dark. Please heed all of the rules..
While finding this cache, and perhaps a few others if this is your first time here, take some time and explore the area. You can pick up a Self Guided Walking Tour when you come, or see the same as a virtual tour to help identify some of the many prairie plants found here, numbering over 360 species.There is also an abundance of wildlife to discover. If you encounter any muggles while you're here, chances are some of them might be bird watchers.
I placed the cache and did some subsequent recon right after a controlled burn in the area. The bare ground cover allowed us to make several discoveries. One day my grandson found deer antlers, which he took home and now proudly displays. The same day (unfortunately without a camera) we also found the skeletal remains of another deer. Soon to be obscured by tall prairie plants, we took the skull and "hid" it right next to the sidewalk. If you want to see if its still there see the additional waypoints. Also "just around the block" are a couple of glacial erratics, small Pre-Cambrian boulders of Canadian origin. If interested, see my log from 4/10/12. They may or may not be visible from the sidewalk, depending on the vegetation.
It would be greatly appreciated and beneficial if some of you took a photo or two of your visit, and posted it on your log. This would help document the changes that take place here during the different seasons. But no matter when you come, enjoy this little gem of a preserve and appreciate its diversity.
Since I couldn't think of any better place to place an Earth Day cache than right here, this will be the last one of the series. The other four caches hidden in honor of Earth Day include;
Salt Creek Confluence - Earth Day 2011
Brookfield Oak Savanna - Earth Day 2010
Forestview - Earth Day 2009
Waubansee Woods - Earth Day 2008