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Independence Grove Canoe Launch |
Bring your own canoe and launch it on the Des Plaines River. The launch, located near the Preserve's North Bay Pavilion, offers shoreline fishing, a trail connection to the Des Plaines River Trail and parking. If you put your canoe in at Independence Grove, the next canoe launch is at Oak Spring Road Canoe Launch, 2.7 miles downstream. |
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Location |
| The Canoe Launch is located in the northwest corner of Independence Grove Forest Preserve, on Buckley Road (Route 137) east of Milwaukee Avenue (Route 21) near Libertyville. Follow signs to the Canoe Launch parking area. |
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History |
| The land for the Wadsworth Road Canoe Launch was the first acquired in 1973. Acquisition of the Route 60 and Oak Spring Road canoe launches followed in 1975. In 1984, the Russell Road Canoe Launch was added to the Forest Preserve holdings. Independence Grove opened in 2001. The annual Canoe Marathon is the largest and longest down river canoe event in Illinois. The race covers 19.5 miles of the Des Plaines River, beginning at the Oak Spring Road Canoe Launch in Libertyville. |
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The Natural Scene |
| Preservation of the Des Plaines River Greenway has been a key priority since the Forest Preserve District was founded in 1958. It covers more than 7,700 acres and protects land along more than 80 percent of the river in Lake County, providing wildlife habitat, natural flood protection and outdoor recreation opportunities. Forest Preserve canoe launches offer access to the river, shoreline fishing and trail connections to the nearly-complete 33-mile long Des Plaines River Trail as it winds its way through the Greenway from Wisconsin south to Lake-Cook Road. |
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