Garden of the Gods Trail

Garden of the Gods Trail introduces visitors to the most bizarre and arresting landscape in Illinois — a collection of massive sandstone rock formations in the Shawnee Hills that rise improbably from the surrounding flat farmland like the remnants of an alien geology. The rocks are Pounds sandstone, formed from beach and nearshore marine sediments deposited roughly 320 million years ago and since sculpted by millions of years of erosion into shapes with names that reflect their improbable forms: Camel Rock, Anvil Rock, Devil's Smokestack, and the Guardian. The short paved loop at the main overlook area weaves between the largest formations, passing through a tight squeeze called Fat Man's Squeeze and around the base of Camel Rock, whose perfectly formed humped silhouette is best appreciated from the eastern approach. The sandstone surface displays extraordinary cross-bedding patterns and erosional pitting from millennia of wind and water action. The surrounding oak-hickory forest of the Shawnee National Forest provides habitat for cerulean warblers, summer tanagers, and whip-poor-wills. The Garden of the Gods is one of the few places in Illinois where the Shawnee Hills' ancient geology is fully exposed and accessible. No fee is charged for access to the main trail area.