Start at Prairieview
2112 Behan Road
Crystal Lake, IL 60014
Use the Behan Road entrance for the education center. Silver Creek also has a separate entrance on Rawson Bridge Road in Cary.
Places to Explore • Illinois
Prairie skies, woodland trails, and wildlife at Silver Creek Conservation Area.
Explore 189 photographs from Brian’s visits, with birds, wildflowers, insects, and quiet moments along the water.
Prairieview Education Center sits on the north side of Silver Creek Conservation Area. The building began as Otto and Hazel Rhoades’ home in 1945, on property they called Sunrise Farm. McHenry County Conservation District purchased the property in 1993 and opened the education center to the public in 1999.
Today, the center’s Family Sun Room, bird feeders, and exploration packs offer ways to look more closely at nature. Outside, the wider 840-acre Silver Creek landscape includes prairie, savanna, wetlands, and woodland.
This collection follows the details that make a walk memorable: a heron with its catch, bluebirds on their perches, milkweed alive with insects, and flowers changing through the seasons.
2112 Behan Road
Crystal Lake, IL 60014
Use the Behan Road entrance for the education center. Silver Creek also has a separate entrance on Rawson Bridge Road in Cary.
A network of trails explores prairie, woodland, and wetland habitats within Silver Creek Conservation Area. Consult the District’s current trail information to choose your route.
Conservation-area hours are generally sunrise to sunset. Education-center building hours vary seasonally and are more limited than trail access.
Check current alerts before visiting; portions of the trail system may close seasonally for hunting or management.
Open any photograph for a larger view, then use the arrows or swipe to browse. Each gallery begins with a small selection; choose “Load additional photos” to see the rest.
Photographs reflect Brian’s visits over time, rather than conditions on a particular day.
Get directionsSilver Creek trail informationCenter hours & programsCurrent alerts
21 photographs
Wide skies, mown paths, quiet water, and the education center through the seasons.
22 photographs
Bluebirds, Bobolinks, woodpeckers, and other birds photographed around the prairie and woodland edges.
11 photographs
Herons, egrets, kingfishers, and waterfowl using the ponds and wetland margins.
11 photographs
A closer look at the animals along the paths and water’s edge, plus signs they leave behind.
12 photographs
Wings at rest and visitors to summer flowers.
17 photographs
Flowers, seed pods, caterpillars, beetles, and other visitors make milkweed worth a patient look.
13 photographs
Dragonflies, mantises, a spider, and easily overlooked details from the trails.
43 photographs
A photographic collection of prairie blooms, from shooting stars to coneflowers, asters, and goldenrod.
29 photographs
Spring flowers, moisture-loving blooms, foliage, and fruit photographed around the wooded and wetter parts of the site.
10 photographs
More flowers and grasses encountered along the way, including familiar introduced plants.
Visitor information and history: McHenry County Conservation District — Prairieview Education Center. Landscape and trail information: Silver Creek Conservation Area. See the District’s closures and alerts for current access updates.