Shabbona Lake State Recreation Area
Shabbona Lake State Recreation Area is a nature reserve in Illinois, at a modelled elevation of 256 m. Johnson’s Mound stands 273 m to the east-northeast, 24 miles off. The nearest named place is Chief Shabbona Forest Preserve, a nature reserve 0.7 miles away. Lincoln Highway passes 13 miles off. 2 named summits stand within 25 miles.
What to expect
- Operated by
- Illinois Department of Natural Resources
How to reach it
- 13.0 mi off the Lincoln Highway, National
- 35.2 mi off the Historic Route 66, National
- 27.5 mi off the Illinois River Road, National
Overlooks nearby
- Fabyan Windmill · 30 mi
Named places within 25 miles
- Purdy Park: 1.5 mi
- Lions Park: 1.6 mi
- Lions Park: 4.5 mi
- Gordon Korth Park: 5.0 mi
- Gordon Korth Park: 5.0 mi
- Chief Shabbona Forest Preserve: 0.7 mi
- Steward Pheasant Habitat Area: 7.8 mi
- Afton Forest Preserve: 8.6 mi
- Sannauk Forest Preserve: 13.1 mi
- Merritt Prairie Forest Preserve: 13.6 mi
- Homes of Chief Waubonsie and Madeline Ogee: 7.4 mi
- Old Chicago Trail Marker: 7.6 mi
- The Northern Boundary: 13.1 mi
- February 14th, 2008 Shooting Memorial: 13.8 mi
- Indian Creek Massacre Historic Site: 14.5 mi
- Shabbona - Lee - Rollo Historical Museum: 1.5 mi
- Earlville History Museum: 11.4 mi
- Ellwood House Museum: 14.1 mi
- Stone Mill Museum: 14.4 mi
- Flagg Township Museum: 16.1 mi
- Huskies on Parade - Nestle: 12.3 mi
- Train: 13.4 mi
- HIV Awareness Statue: 13.6 mi
- The Missing Piece: 13.8 mi
- The Elephant: 13.8 mi
- MLK Commons: 13.8 mi
- Farnsworth House: 18.5 mi
- Sycamore Speedway: 20.8 mi
- Birthplace of Wild Bill Hickok: 22.6 mi
- Blackberry Carousel: 24.4 mi
- Roadside Park: 11.6 mi
- Fox View Picnic Area: 18.7 mi
- Tall Oaks Picnic Area: 18.8 mi
- Olivia's Party Deck: 24.4 mi
- Willow Creek Rest Area - Northbound: 7.7 mi
- Willow Creek Rest Area - Southbound: 7.8 mi
- DeKalb Oasis: 12.3 mi
- Coltonville: 16.8 mi
- Brush Point: 20.2 mi
- Maramech Hill: 18.1 mi
- Johnson’s Mound: 23.7 mi
- Stephanie's Garden: 21.2 mi
Summits around it
The highest named summits within 25 miles of Shabbona Lake State Recreation Area. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson’s Mound | ENE 70° | 273 m | 23.7 mi |
| Maramech Hill | ESE 114° | 196 m | 18.1 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:00 | 18:31 | 19:08 |
| June solstice | 05:22 | 19:52 | 20:34 |
| September equinox | 06:44 | 18:18 | 18:54 |
| December solstice | 07:20 | 15:44 | 16:29 |
Local time (America/Chicago).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Oct.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 21 | 25 | 36 | 48 | 59 | 69 | 71 | 69 | 62 | 50 | 37 | 26 |
| Precip in | 1.7 | 1.9 | 2.5 | 3.6 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 2.1 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Shabbona 5 NNE, 7 mi away.
- American White Pelican18 obs
- Canada Goose16 obs
- Jack-in-the-Pulpit16 obs
- Virginia Springbeauty15 obs
- prairie trillium15 obs
- rue anemone14 obs
- Red-winged Blackbird11 obs
- American Robin11 obs
Research-grade iNaturalist community observations within 3 km — what people have recorded, not a species inventory.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikipediaWikidataOpenStreetMap element way/470318560
Day trips start here
Take the scenic way to Shabbona Lake State Recreation Area.
Byway plans around your taste, verified places, real weather and opening hours — then opens every leg in Google Maps with one tap.