My friend and I took a Friday off of work and headed up to Springfield, Illinois to visit the Lincoln Memorial Garden. Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States and this area is named after him.

We parked and then began hiking the trails on the east side of the gardens along the Silver Bell Trail and the Arrow Wood Trail. The trees were just past their peak fall color, but it was still really beautiful.

We then got our first view of Lake Springfield.

We also saw several council rings while hiking. There are 8 in total! My favorite was #7, the half council ring.

We then checked out the beautiful cypress grove and then continued on the Lake Trail.

After criss-crossing a few more trails, we came upon the troll! This was pretty cool!

We made our way along the Shadbush Lane Trail and over the Walgreen Bridge.

There is actually a second “park” here called the Ostermeier Prairie Center. The prairies had already been mowed for the season, but it was still peaceful out there.

One of my favorite parts was the boardwalk over the pond.

There are also a lot of benches scattered throughout the gardens. Each one had a quote from Lincoln. It was fun pausing at each bench and reading the quote.

We made our way back to the parking lot and I really enjoyed this place. It was so peaceful and the perfect way to de-stress after a busy work week. We didn’t even see anyone on the trails while we were there!

If you are near Springfield, Illinois, I highly recommend that you check this place out. Ellie had to sit this one out though since no dogs are allowed.

What do you think? Leave a comment below?