Wampum Lake Woods

With nearly 1 mile of shoreline, the lake itself offers excellent year-round fishing opportunities, and the 412-acre site has shady picnic groves and large open spaces to play catch. Thanks to continued restoration efforts, Wampum Lake is now also a place to see high-quality natural habitats.

The Illinois Nature Preserve Commission recently dedicated 380 acres of the site as Wampum Lake Nature Preserve, a mosaic of sand seep, freshwater marsh, dry-mesic upland forest, wet floodplain forest and eroding bluff community. Thorn Creek runs through Wampum Lake Woods, beginning at the southwest corner of the site and flowing up to the northwest side of the lake.

Within these diverse habitats, Wampum Lake Nature Preserve is home to four plant species currently listed as State-endangered.

This site is part of the Forest Preserves of Cook County.