Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge, Illinois, United States
4.5 (83 reviews) Spent Ranking #1 in Marion Nature & Wildlife Areas
Beautiful
We only stopped for an hour or so. There is a small fee but our NPS pass covered it. We saw two deer (a buck and a doe). There are large lakes where we saw white pelicans,ducks,cranes and several other waterfowl. There are a pair of eagles nests . It is probably the nicest wildlife refuge we have visited
Address
8588 Route 148, Marion, IL 62959-5822
Mobile
Website
http://www.fws.gov/refuge/crab
Current local date and time now
Thursday, May 09, 2024, 15:29
User Ratings
4.5 based on (83 reviews)
Excellent
70%
Good
27%
Satisfactory
2%
Poor
1%
Terrible
0%
Reviews
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5Sally M 5:00 PM Jun 26, 2014
Love the Wildlife Drive!!!
Have been coming here and taking the Wildlife Drive around the refuge for many years. Great opportunity to see birds and mammals in natural settings. Endless photo possibilities! There is a fee for driving the route, $5 for a week pass or $2 a day, there are also other options which you can inquire about at the Visitor Center. There are hiking trails, we usually take the one near the Visitor Center that leads to a section of the lake. Dawn and dusk are the best times to view wildlife but we have been out there in the middle of the day and still see wildlife. This time we watched a raccoon crawl into a dumpster at one of the businesses on the refuge and then watched 4 or 5 baby raccoons scamper away into a ditch. Our visit was in late June and there were still fawns, the baby raccoons, baby beavers and turkey poults. Thanks to someone else that was out driving the loop, we now know where there is an eagle nest that we can check out if we are there at different times of the year. The day we were there it had rained and 2 fledgling eagles were sitting and drying out on an old dead tree.
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4Sherry C 5:00 PM Apr 28, 2022
Nice hike with a waterfall too.
We hiked the Rocky Bluff Trail in the Wildlife Refuge, and really enjoyed it. Only steps from the parking lot is a waterfall and then you can continue past there and hike the loop trail. I can't remember the distance, but I think it was less than 2 miles round trip. Since it had been raining a few nites, the waterfall was flowing pretty good. There were also lots of wildflowers in bloom along the trail. Nice stop!
