Arrival & hours
Use 1401 Middlefork Drive, Lake Forest, Illinois. From Waukegan Road, turn west onto Middlefork Drive and bear left at its end for preserve parking. Hours are 6:30 a.m. to sunset daily.
Places to Explore • Illinois
Summer flowers, quiet wetlands and small discoveries in Lake Forest.
Yellow coneflowers fill a meadow, a Great Blue Heron watches the water, and a Monarch pauses on pink milkweed. Brian’s photographs invite a closer look at the plants and wildlife encountered during visits to Middlefork Savanna.
A rare landscape
Lake County Forest Preserves protects 687 acres here, including oak savanna, woodland, prairie, sedge meadow and marsh. A particularly valuable 25-acre tallgrass savanna remnant is part of this threatened ecosystem.
Once within a glacial lake, the preserve now protects wetlands feeding the North Branch of the Chicago River. It opened to the public in 2002 and also supports ecological research and education.
The close-ups tell smaller stories: aphids gathered along a leaf, unusual galls, green hickory nuts and insects visiting blossoms. The heron photographs move from a quiet standing pose to a feeding moment.
This is a record of what Brian photographed, not a complete species list or a promise of what you will see. Some flower and insect photographs use broader descriptions where the image alone does not securely establish a species.
Plan your visit
Use 1401 Middlefork Drive, Lake Forest, Illinois. From Waukegan Road, turn west onto Middlefork Drive and bear left at its end for preserve parking. Hours are 6:30 a.m. to sunset daily.
The preserve lists 5.5 miles of gravel hiking trails, with 4.2 miles available for biking. Two boardwalks protect wetland crossings. A separate half-mile grass path is for hiking and cross-country skiing only.
Dogs must stay leashed on permitted trails; clean up after them. Dogs are not allowed on the grass trail. Check the official interactive map and current signs for route restrictions.
Bring water, sun protection and a way to keep your camera dry. Give birds space and use a longer lens for feeding behavior. Photograph flowers and insects where you find them, without handling or collecting them.
Photographs by Brian Woolman
28 selected photographs from 68 images, organized by subject. Open a photograph for the slideshow; additional wildlife images load into the same gallery.
Flowers growing in a preserve are not automatically native plants. This group records additional plants encountered during the visits; it is not a planting recommendation.
Preserve facts and visitor guidance: Lake County Forest Preserves. The official interactive map is linked below; check current notices before visiting.
Official Visitor Information Official Trail Map ← Back to Places to Explore