TREASURES OF THE CACHE,
by Susan Post and Michael R. Jeffords
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Lower Cache River
Access Area :
Home of the State-Champion Bald Cypress
The Lower Cache River swamps, part of the Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge and the Cache River State Natural Area, are a contiguous forested corridor of swamps. Measuring 9.25 miles long by about a half mile wide, it is one of the largest, most significant natural areas in the state. One of the best ways to view this area is via canoe. With only arm power, journey through duckweed and buttonbush to explore 800-year-old cypress trees-one with over 200 knees! The highlight of the trip is a stop at the state-champion bald cypress. Because the tree is hollow, its actual age is unknown. But it is certainly over 1000 years old. It is also the largest tree in Illinois. While here don't forget to look up for chattering groups of chimney swifts that nest in the cypress and experience the Christmas tree-ornament-like blooms of the buttonbush.
Limekiln Springs
An interesting trail through the Lower Cache heads to Limekiln Springs, located in the Cy-press Creek National Wildlife Refuge. During spring the wooden boardwalk is littered with the seeds of pumpkin ash. The trail passes several of the springs that flow from the limestone bedrock. These springs help maintain the water in the swamp during droughts and provide a special habitat for uncommon aquatic species such as the cypress minnow. The springs flow into Limekiln Slough, a biologi-cally significant Illinois stream. During mid-May an abundance of Indian pink wildflowers occur along the trail. Each tubular, scarlet flower has a yellow center, reminiscent of the prothonotary warblers skittering about overhead. The dusty trail is a magnet for wild turkeys; look for their scratchings and dust bath depressions. In early July, look left from the boardwalk into a sea of American lotus blooms.
Big Cypress Access Area
Very early into this short walk, one's appetite is whetted for big trees by a magnificent pin oak towering on the right side of the trail. A few feet farther a truly spectacular grove of bald cypress more than 1000 years old comes into view. Reaching over 100 feet tall and some in excess of 40 feet around at their buttressed bases, these have been dubbed the "Winnie the Pooh" trees because all are hollow. Nearly 100 examples of these immense cypresses are scattered through the woods.
Take note, also, of the gargoyle-like knees scattered around the trees. Be aware that in spring rubber boots may be needed because these trees occupy the ancestral bed of Cypress Creek. These trees, located in the Cache River State Natural Area, provide an impression of the past.
Frank Bellrose Waterfowl Reserve
At first view, especially in spring and summer, this area appears little more than a grassy field backed by dark trees on the horizon. Occasionally, large wading birds such as great egrets, little blue herons, and great blue herons are seen stalking the wetlands. On late afternoons in winter, though, Bellrose becomes a cacophony of sounds and sights as thousands of mallards and pintails erupt from the marsh at the slightest provocation. At dusk waterfowl come to roost by the hundreds, by the thousands, sometimes the tens of thousands in a show that is not to be missed.
The Frank Bellrose Waterfowl Reserve, located in the Cypress Creek National Wild-life Refuge, honors Bellrose, waterfowl biologist at the Illinois Natural History Survey. His work, spanning more than 60 years, led to a better understanding of wetland resources, included the first practical housing for wood ducks, and documented the effects of season length and shooting hours on waterfowl populations. What began as 2,100 acres of swampy, marginal farmland validates the adage, "If you build it, they will come."
