Shawnee National Forest · Illinois

Clear Springs/Illinois Ozark

2.8 mi of trail, end to end · native material surface · trail No. 368 · trail class 1 · typical grade 12-20% · tread 18-24 inches wide · hiking, horse

Begins at the forest's mile 0, 37.6160, -89.4182 - no trailhead mapped Drive to where the trail begins

Clear Springs Wilderness the Forest Service's write-up

Located on the west side of the Shawnee National Forest, Clear Springs Wilderness is one of the largest designated wildernesses in Illinois. With elevations ranging from 400 feet to over 900 feet, the Wilderness is generally regarded as having rough and steep terrain, with narrow ridgetops, steep slopes and scenic creeks along the valleys. Trails for hiking and equestrians lead through areas where visitors can see evidence of old homesteads before it was part of the Shawnee National Forest, such as old stone foundations from homes, fruit trees, abandoned roads, and old family cemeteries.

Clear Springs Wildernsess lies adjacent to Bald Knob Wilderness to the south and LaRue-Pine Hills/Otter Pond Research Natural Area to the west and pristine waters of Hutchins Creek running through it.

This hike on fs.usda.gov

Every trail in Shawnee National Forest

All 277 trails in Shawnee National ForestFind a trailForest on fs.usda.gov

About this trail's facts

The lines are the US Forest Service's National Forest System trails layer (public domain), read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end, and the class, surface, grade and tread width are the forest's own entries where it publishes them - a forest that publishes the centreline alone has none. The trailheads and the points along the way are the Service's recreation points, and the write-ups its own recarea text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the forest's own site before you go.