Hike Location: Anita Purves Nature Center and Busey Woods
Geographic Location: east side of Urbana, IL (40.12670, -88.20940)
Length: 1.2 miles
Difficulty: 1/10 (Easy)
Date Hiked: August 2018
Overview: A double loop through mature wet woodlands.
Park Information: https://www.urbanaparks.org/facilities/anita-purves-nature-center/
Directions to the trailhead: On the east side of
Urbana, take I-74 to US 45 (exit 184).
Exit and go south on US 45. Drive
US 45 south 0.4 miles to Country Club Lane (the second traffic light south of
the I-74 interchange) and turn right on Country Club Ln. Drive Country Club Ln. west 0.4 miles to
Broadway Avenue and turn left on Broadway Ave.
The signed entrance for Crystal Park and the Anita Purves Nature Center
is 0.1 miles ahead on the right. Park in
the large paved parking lot between the Nature Center and the swimming area.
The hike: Owned
and maintained by the City of Urbana, Anita Purves Nature Center and adjoining
Busey Woods comprise a 59-acre island of green on the very developed east side
of Urbana. The park was created in the
1960’s when the University of Illinois purchased the woodlands to save them
from commercial development. The Urbana
Park District purchased the land in 1991.
Busey Woods
offers only some trails for amenities, but Anita Purves Nature Center offers
educational programs, a playground, and the Audubon Nature Shop. Also, the Crystal Lake Park Family Aquatic
Center, a city-owned and operated pool, is located to the south across the
parking lot. Yet the main attraction at
this park is the trail system, which features a 0.3 mile boardwalk loop through
a swamp forest. The hike described here makes
the most of the boardwalk while also exploring the dirt trails by taking a
figure-eight route through the small suburban woodland.
 |
| Gateway Trail |
The trail
system’s entrance/gateway trail starts at the west side of the Nature Center as a
concrete path, but soon the wooden boardwalk begins. The boardwalk crosses a man-made ditch via a
wooden suspension bridge before splitting to form its loop. Turn right to begin hiking the loop
counterclockwise.
The
boardwalk stays close to Country Club Lane on the right with first Urbana
Country Club and then Woodlawn Cemetery in view across the road. Several cars zoomed by on this road when I
hiked this trail. The boardwalk curves
left twice as it passes several wide spots featuring interpretive signs that
describe the periodically wet swamp forest.
The forest contains some large oak trees, quite a few maple trees, and a
few shagbark hickories.
 |
| Interpretive station on boardwalk |
Ignore the
first dirt trail that exits right, but when you reach a power line clearing,
turn right to leave the boardwalk and begin hiking west near the power
line. Power line easements do not make
for the most scenic hiking, but this one is fairly grown-in with a lot of
shrubby greenery. After climbing
slightly, turn right to leave the power line easement at 0.6 miles. The trails are poorly marked and rather
confusing here. If you reach CR 1700N on
the power line easement, you have missed this turn. In that case, your best option may be to turn
right and walk along the road several hundred feet to a vehicle gate on the
right.
 |
| Hiking under the power line |
Soon you
reach said vehicle gate on CR 1700N, where the trail curves right to begin
paralleling the county road. As you
approach the northwest corner of the property, the trail curves right and
descends via a well-constructed set of steps with wooden handrails. Now on an eastward course, the somewhat
narrow trail passes the swamp forest’s wettest area on the right. Despite the wet nature of this land, I did
not have any problems with mud when I hiked here on a humid morning in early
August.
 |
| Wet area in swamp forest |
Just past
0.9 miles, you return to the boardwalk.
Turn right to continue heading counterclockwise around the
boardwalk. When you reach the power line
again, turn left this time to stay on the boardwalk. Soon you close the boardwalk’s loop, and
continuing straight will return you to the Nature Center and complete the hike.
I think this area is worth exploring
ReplyDelete