8-20-2024 3:52am

William & Gayle Keefer Nature Reserve is opening to the public in Rockton

Burpee staff (L) and NLI Executive Director Alan Branhagen (R) looking for fossils at the Keefer Nature Reserve. Photo: April Bieschke

Natural Land Institute (NLI) invites the public to attend a public opening event at their William & Gayle Keefer Nature Reserve in Rockton, Illinois on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024. The open house will be 4 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. Event parking and check in will be at Woodlands Park, corner of Falcon Point Place and Park View Court, just before Highview in the Woodlands, Rockton. Visitors are welcome to take a guided hike or explore on their own. Registration for this free event is requested by noon on Sept. 26, 2024 by calling 815-964-6666 or visiting the calendar at www.NaturalLand.org.

Light refreshments will be served and attendees will learn about the natural history of this site that includes three quarries, woodlands, and remnant prairie. Rockton Township Historical Society and Burpee Museum of Natural History will participate and share historical and geological information about Keefer Nature Reserve. Fun fact: Burpee Museum houses a crinoid fossil from this preserve that is named after their first director, Milt Mahlburg. It will be at the event to view. Visitors can explore for fossils in one of the quarries during the open house with Burpee staff on site.

The William & Gayle Keefer Nature Reserve will be open to the public on a daily basis, sunrise to sunset following this public opening event (no pets, though). The public access address and parking lot are located at 12804 Old River Rd., Rockton, Ill. 61072.

About the Natural Land Institute:
The Natural Land Institute, an accredited conservation land trust, is a 501(c)3, non-profit organization based in Rockford, Illinois, which has protected 18,000 acres of natural land in Illinois since 1958. The current service area covers twelve counties in northern Illinois. NLI’s mission is to create an enduring legacy of natural land in northern Illinois for people, plants and animals. For more information and to donate, visit NaturalLand.org.