Garden of the Gods

Shawnee National Forest

We took a trip to Missouri and stayed in the Shawnee National Forest in Illinois on our way.

I had always heard about the Garden of the Gods,

so we checked it out.

These are some of the rocks we saw as we entered the area.

Pretty, but not spectacular.

 

Walking the Observation Trail, we followed a nice stone walkway.

 The pathway squeezed between huge boulders.

And we were rewarded with views like this.

OK, now its getting interesting.

I thought one of the rocks resembled a duck's head.

The sedimentary rock in this area has been sculpted by wind & rain

for millions of years, exposing these sights.

 Look closely to see the people on the rocks.

They are standing near Monkey Face.

 This is Camel Rock, which will be featured on the 2016 Illinois quarter.

This is Anvil Rock, one of the first named rocks.

 This is Mushroom Rock.

The iron in the rocks resists the weathering, forming strange features in the rocks.

The sun sets on a beautiful and unique place