Into the Wild

Tekakwitha Woods

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Kane County, IL

Trail into Tekakwitha.

Photo: Erica Lemon/FPD of Kane County

Named in honor of the first Native American woman to become a saint, Tekakwitha Woods Forest Preserve is a 65-acre parcel of land situated at the big bend of the Fox River in St. Charles. With forests that fill with migratory birds, this small preserve becomes a springtime delight.

Once part of a private recreation area called Five Island Park, Tekakwitha (pronounced “TEK-uh-WITH-uh”) Woods is rich in cultural history. Park visitors once traveled the Elgin Aurora Trolley Line, now the Fox River Bike Trail, to picnic on adjacent islands in the river and dance at the pavilion. At the turn of the 20th century, Father Hugh McGuire, a Catholic priest in failing health, purchased the property as a getaway for recuperation. When he passed away in 1908, he bequeathed his home and adjacent land to the Sisters of Mercy, who later converted it to a spiritual retreat center. In 1990, the sisters sold the property to the Forest Preserve District of Kane County, requesting it be named for Kateri Tekakwitha, a Catholic Mohawk maiden. In 1992, the pavilion was turned into Kane County’s first nature center. “The sisters used to come back now and then,” remembers Valerie Blaine, program manager for the district. “They’re so glad it’s being preserved and hasn’t become another Home Depot or Wal-Mart. This is just how they wanted it.”

Tekakwitha habitats include a mixed hardwood forest, savanna, restored prairie, and a floodplain forest along the Fox River. The 0.9-mile main trail loops from the nature center to the river’s edge, then around the McGuire House, offering opportunities to view the great diversity of trees including red, white, bur, and swamp white oak, rare blue ash, shagbark hickory, ironwood, and sugar maples. Along the river, look for cliff swallows collecting mud for nest building.

Cliff swallows collect mud.

Photo: Rob Curtis/The Early Birder

In the spring the preserve is hopping with ephemeral wildflowers and migratory birds. “The first pretty patch of hepatica pokes up right after the snow melts,” explains Blaine. Other flora here include the large white trillium, blue cohosh, trout lily, and Dutchman’s breeches. Tekakwitha’s floodplain forest offers a migratory layover for many songbirds and waterfowl. Along the river, lucky visitors might spot osprey, gray-cheeked thrushes, veeries, hooded mergansers, goldeneyes, or any of the numerous warblers passing through.

Along the main trail are various opportunities to take secondary trails throughout the preserve. For the more adventurous, the Fox River Bike Trail connects Tekakwitha with the Jon Duerr Forest Preserve across the river, offering miles of trail for biking, hiking, or running. The nature center offers an impressive diorama of the Fox River, as well as hands-on activities for kids, a working honeybee hive, and a bison display. Tekakwitha offers public programs for all ages. To learn more, or to volunteer at Tekakwitha, contact Valerie Blaine at (847) 741-8350 or visit the Forest Preserve District of Kane County online.

— Jennifer Tang