Forestry Field Days

Two forestry field days were held in Pike and Calhoun Counties with over 100 attendees at each. Topics at the workshops were:  tree selection and planting, pruning, timber sales, intermediate stand management, lumber sawing, alternative uses for hardwoods, wildlife, GPS forestland applications, forest land tax issues, fire management for timber, buffer strips, firewood selection, and chainsaw carving demonstrations.  Youth sessions covered an introduction to Tree Identification and Seed Identification; Tree Measurement and a Forestry Judging Contest.  Grant assistance was provided through the Illinois Conservation Foundation and the Illinois Department of Agriculture.

 McCully Heritage Project

The McCully Heritage Project in Calhoun County offers a whole day of activities in outdoor education.  The not for profit 501(c)(3) corporation owns 940 acres of scenic bluff top vistas, deep forested ravines and sparkling streams.  Trails, parking lots, handicap accessible restrooms, picnic tables, shelters, and primitive camping make it a great place to bring a group.  A 6 acre wetland with walkways makes it easy to get close to nature.  Previous grants have provided plant and wildlife identification signs along the woodland and prairie trails and wetland walkway.  The McCully Heritage Project was the site of the October

 Access Illinois Outdoors was started in 1994 to match landowners with visitors wishing to pursue outdoor recreation.  Over 530 landowners have joined representing 210,000 acres in 48 counties.  The landowners offer a wide variety of outdoor activities-hunting, fishing, hiking, bird watching, camping, trail riding, and photography.  Over 2750 visitors, representing 39 states, Canada and Germany have enrolled in the program.  Landowners in the program earned over $475,000 last year by charging visitors for access.   The overall economic impact from the Access Illinois Outdoors program was $3 million in just one county. 

Hundreds of Pike County families benefited from the generosity of Illinois deer hunters, local businesses, conservation and service organizations thanks to a new program, Access Food, implemented by the Access Illinois Outdoors program.  Access Food was created to serve a dual purpose: to encourage hunters to take a doe to help control the deer herd and then donate the processed meat to local food pantries.  Over 100 deer were donated which produced several thousand pounds of processed meat for needy people.  All processing costs were covered by the project through donations, grants and cooperation with the Sportsmen Against Hunger program. 

Agri-Tourism Tour

Agricultural methods and the techniques we use to conserve natural resources are constantly changing.  One of the great challenges posed by theses changes is how we can conserve our resource base in ways that help people and communities prosper.  The Agri-Tourism tour showcased some of western Illinois’ most unique farms. Each stop included a presentation by the owner to explain their enterprise.  Tour Stops included:  Wolf Ridge Pumpkin Patch which offers two corn mazes, adult and child haunted houses, hayrides, Halloween décor and pumpkins;  Ocean Farm, a 154 acre research, education and demonstration farm including a pizza Farm demonstrating where the ingredients for pizza originate; Golden Windmill, a completely restored 1873 mill operating with its original millstones and wood gear mechanisms; Illinois Connections Lodge, offering nature-based tourism in an area recognized for trophy whitetail deer and Ridge View Winery,

a new winery operated by one of the five founding members of the Western Illinois Grape Producers Associated Cooperative.

 Each stop demonstrated how good stewardship of the land can be combined with a creative sense of fun.  Many examples were presented of ideas that can be used to increase farm income while protecting our natural resource base.  A grant from the Illinois Department of Agriculture Sustainable Ag Grant Program helped make the tour possible. The purpose of the tour was to bring a greater awareness of the diverse business opportunities that can be derived from our natural resources and heritage in Western Illinois.

Park-n-Ride Matching Service

Commuters can call Two Rivers RC&D to arrange for car pooling from the commuter parking lot located at the intersection of I-72, US-54, and IL-107.  This 60 car commuter parking lot is well lit and patrolled regularly by the Illinois State Police.  A 1999 survey documented over 2.6 million miles driven by commuters in the area.  If these commuters are able to car pool, they can reduce the miles driven by 1.3 million miles.  At 40 cents per mile, this will result in saving over $520,000 annually.  Other benefits include air quality improvements and public safety benefits.   A database is maintained by Two Rivers RC&D staff matching carpoolers with their destinations and schedules.

  Women in the Outdoors

Another successful Women in the Outdoors Event was held in cooperation with the National Wild Turkey Federation and Two Rivers RC&D Area.  Participants from all over the Midwest traveled to Muddy Rivers Lodge, located in Calhoun County, for a day in the field.  Through this event, women from all walks of life were given the chance to experience the thrill of outdoor activities and a variety of fun and educational sessions including: archery, canoeing, dog handling demo, wetland wagon ride, forestry and tree identification, outdoor cooking, shot gunning, duck and goose hunting. Women were able to develop a greater understanding of wildlife conservation and meet others who share their enthusiasm.   Next year’s event will be repeated at Muddy Rivers Lodge in Calhoun County and will include families.

La Moine River Ecosystem Partnership

Progress on the watershed plan for the LaMoine River continues with the LaMoine River Ecosystem Partnership. This partnership includes parts of Adams, Brown, Schuyler, Fulton, McDonough, and Hancock counties.  The LaMoine Board ranked five grant applications for the 2006 C-2000 grant program through IDNR.  A grant from EPA is helping pay for inventories and meetings within the watershed.  Conservation practice data has been digitized and the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) is meeting to develop recommendations. A newsletter to inform landowners and invite them to participate in existing conservation programs has been distributed.   For more information, visit www.lamoineriver.org.

 Mounted Angels

The Mounted Angels Therapeutic Horsemanship was assisted by the Two Rivers RC&D Area in obtaining a grant for the purchase of a cargo trailer for equipment transportation and storage through the Illinois Equine Industry Research & Promotion Board.  Mounted Angels uses volunteers to offer free therapeutic horsemanship lessons to children with disabilities.  Riding lessons were given on Thursday evenings during June and July.

Locally Grown, Locally Good

 The Western Illinois Sustainable Agriculture Society was very active this year.  The Locally Grown, Locally Good festival was held in Washington Square Park in downtown Quincy in August.  It was coordinated with the Downtown Quincy Farmers Market.  The event drew over 1000 people to the park.  Information, education, and food booths were set up near the market area.  A chef’s cook-off was held, along with a tomato contest, and cooking classes.  Local performers kept the crowd entertained in between events.  The Adams-Brown Extension Unit printed  “Locally Grown” tote bags and sold them prior to the event.  The planning committee provided extensive media coverage prior to and during the event, promoting the “Buy Local” theme.  Farmer’s market sellers reported an increase in sales following the event.   For more information visit: www.wisas.org

 WIGPAC Vineyard Tour

      WIGPAC (Western Illinois Grape Producers Associated Cooperative) organized the vineyard tour event.  Two vineyards were toured in the morning in Pike County with the main program presented at Ridge View Winery in Brown County in the afternoon.  A wine tasting and grape stomp were held for a total of total of 87 participants.

Orr Research Center

Two Rivers RC&D provides ongoing assistance to the Orr Research Center Corporation.  The purpose of this Corporation is to provide the leadership in assisting the University of Illinois in the further development, promotion and expansion of the Orr Research Center and Orr Beef Research Center and to provide guidance to University of Illinois personnel in regards to future research and demonstration studies that need to be conducted at the center.

 Christmas Lodge Tour

A Christmas Lodge Tour was coordinated through the Access Illinois Outdoors program and included four lodges: Harpole’s Heartland Lodge, Lodge at Walnut Knob, Kinderhook Lodge and Illinois Xtreme.  Each lodge was decorated by a different florist and included brunch, lunch, dessert and appetizers.  A diverse group of talented musicians performed throughout the day at each lodge.  The Christmas Tour was a great way to promote the tremendous asset the lodges are to the area with their facilities for other events in addition to the hunting services they provide.

RC&D SUMMARY –  January 23, 2008

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Highlights from the Coordinator’s Report that was distributed included:

Two Rivers RC&D is assisting the Adams SWCD with the Greater Bear Creek Watershed Plan.

Two Rivers RC&D is also assisting with the La Moine River Ecosystem Partnership.  Grant deadline for C-2000 applications within the watershed is Feb. 28, 2008.

The Western Illinois Sustainable Agriculture Society will host a Local Food Expo at the Quincy Mall on Feb. 9, 2008.  Members will be giving out free samples, coupons, and visiting with consumers.  Their annual meeting will be held at 4:30, following the Expo.  WISAS will help with the Gardener’s Palette on March 1 at John Wood Community College in Quincy and help sponsor a workshop on “Putting Small Acreage to Work”.  This workshop will be held on Feb. 7, from 5-9pm at the Adams County Extension office.  They also plan to participate in the Locally Grown Festival this summer. 

Women in the Outdoors event will be held at McCully Heritage Project in Calhoun County on May 10, 2008. 

Our first loan for $35,000 was approved and will be closed soon and a second application has been approved by the Committee for partial funding. There is still approximately $50,000 available to lend. 

The Orr Corporation held their annual meeting on Jan. 28, 2008 at the Orr Center.  The meeting included reports from John Wood Community College, U of I Beef Program, and U of I Agronomy Program.  This summer will be the 30^th anniversary of the Orr Center and the Corporation Board is planning a special celebration at the Agronomy Field Day in August.

Access Illinois Outdoors

In addition to our normal activities of matching outdoor enthusiasts with private landowners for recreational experiences which improve the area’s economy and provides additional income to landowners, we have also conducted the following projects:

Access Food

The Access Food project in Pike County has resulted in over 10,000 pounds of processed meat being donated to the local food pantries.  This has been very much appreciated by the individuals being served by these pantries.  During the firearm season, arrangements were made to have a refrigerated truck from a meat processing plant in Auburn, Illinois, available to accept donated deer.  The owner of the meat processing plant is meeting with City of Pittsfield officials to discuss locating a processing plant in the Industrial Park in Pittsfield.  Hopefully, this plant will be operating by next year’s deer season.   The Schuyler County Access Food project is in its first year and collected over 1500 pounds. 

Tours

 The Christmas Lodge Tour for Pike County was another huge success.  Mark McDonald from Illinois Stories filmed the Pike County tour. 

A Christmas Lodge & Winery tour was conducted for the first time in Brown County to include three lodges and the new winery.  This tour was also extremely popular.

The RC&D Board adopted a new project, a History Tour.  Meetings have been held with the New Philadelphia Association, Lincoln Committee and Civil War Re-enactors to plan the History Tour.  This tour will begin at the New Philadelphia site with archaeologists explaining what they are searching for, how it is processed and where is it stored.   Gerald McWorter, Free Frank McWorter’s great, great, grandson will discuss family history and details of New Philadelphia.  A blacksmith and other artisans will be on hand to demonstrate products of the 1830’s.  During lunch, there will be an opportunity to visit and ask questions of Free Frank descendants and members of the New Philadelphia Association and view a photo exhibit “Faces of Philadelphia”.  Next will be a visit to the nine Lincoln Houses. A Lincoln Museum guide dressed in period costume will conduct tours through the Shastid House.  Other Lincoln Houses will be visited via the “Talking Houses”.  There are more homes in this area where Lincoln actually stayed than any other area in the United States.  The tour group will then visit the Civil War Re-enactment where hundreds of re-enactors will participate including Artillery, Infantry, Calvary Divisions and hospital staff.  Six operating cannons will add to the furious battle.  Participants will tour the camps and visit with soldiers, peddlers and President Lincoln and the First Lady.  An authentic period dinner of pulled pork, potatoes, cole slaw and corn on the cob served with homemade root beer will be served and then period music and dance.

Realtree contacted the Access Illinois Outdoors office for information to include on their website.  They have since named Pittsfield, IL, as one of the nation’s top 5 hunting locations.

A new website, www.centralillinoishunting.com has been developed by the Schuyler Economic Development Corporation through a grant obtained by Carol Montague and contains information about Access Illinois Outdoors.

The American Outdoorsman TV show continues to air the program they taped on Access Illinois Outdoors and this has resulted in an increased interest in visiting Illinois.  It aired several times in the months of October and November and will air again in January on the Men's Outdoor Recreation Channel.   Another TV show was taped for Outdoor South and the Fox Channels.  This included not only information about visiting Illinois to hunt but also information on the Access Food program.

Send mail to bmiddendorf@2riversrcd.org with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2005 Two Rivers Resource Conservation and Development
Last modified: 08/14/07