Bird’s foot violet, prairie thistle, mountain mint, downy gentian…just a few of the plant species that can be found on a remnant hill prairie in the middle of Camp Wokanda. This hill prairie is surrounded by open grown chinquapin oaks that have curved sweeping branches that twist one way and then back again to give the appearance of frozen dancers. All this lies on a glacial drift ridge that runs through the heart of this diverse segment of river bluff country.
Camp Wokanda was named back in 1936 when B. Claude Heacock, a former president of Caterpillar Inc. gifted this parcel to the W.D. Boyce Council of the Boy Scouts of America. This action may have had the unintended consequence of saving it from some of the early logging that occurred on other properties along the bluffs. The scouts also did some selective thinning for firewood, which, in some ways, mimicked a natural disturbance regime. This thinning evolved into a concerted restoration management effort in the early 1990’s when Ted Fleming and the Peoria Park District’s natural resource managers reintroduced fire back into the system. Ted also worked with the scouts to control evasive exotic plants and continue the selective thinning effort. Meanwhile, the Boyce Council constructed several cabins, a lodge, and a dining hall before selling it to Peoria Park District in 1996. The scouts and many other civic groups still use the facility and assist the park district in maintenance and restoration of the site.

Camp Wokanda maintains a diverse array of plants and animals. Surveys have turned up 359 plant species and more are continuously being added. There is also a  
 
diversity of forest structure, from mature oak-hickory to open canopy cottonwood to relatively young maple-ash-basswood forest. All this leads to a diversity of fauna such that on any given day red-headed woodpeckers can be heard while red-tailed hawks soar overhead. This has made Wokanda a favorite with local birders in the spring due to the array of warblers that move through this area. The integrity of the original landscape still shines through in this secluded gem. To the observant beholder, it holds many a natural treasure.

For more information contact Ted Fleming at (309) 691-7425 or John Mullen at Forest Park Nature Center (309) 686-3360.