RANKING MATTHIESSEN STATE PARK TRAILS BY HAZARD RATHER THAN DIFFICULTY

West of Starved Rock State Park lies the smaller but equally interesting Matthiessen State Park. While geologically similar, Matthiessen State Park offers differing perspectives of the geology of the area, from the stunning views of bluffs and floodplain of the Vermilion River to the deep, winding canyons of the park’s Dells Area. However, due to the physical nature of the park, there are many natural hazards. These include steep cliffs, floods, rockfalls, fallen trees, etc. Other hazards include steep climbs and major staircases. A numerical system was used to rank the severity of these hazards along the various park trails similar to the work of Ross (2014a, 2014b), who pioneered the ranking of trails by hazard, specifically for Starved Rock State Park. She showed that ranking trails by hazard may be more useful for visitors than simply ranking trails by degree of difficulty. Ranking of trails for Matthiessen State Park proved somewhat different from those of Ross, since hazards in the two parks are not exactly the same. The most hazardous trail is the Upper Dells, which is closely related to erosional surfaces. Other trails, in descending order by hazard rank are: Lower Dells, River Trail, Ridge Trail, Ziggy Trail, and Big Hill Trail. Steep cliffs and drop-offs are especially significant in the specific ranking concerns. It is hoped that such studies will be used to inform visitors of the hazards associated with each trail and enhance the safety of park visits.

Ranking trails based on natural hazards instead of difficulty: a case study of Starved Rock State Park, 2014, (Julia K. Ross and Max W. Reams) Abstracts with Programs, 2014 Annual Meeting of the Geological Society of America, Vol. 46, No. 6, p.394.

Natural Hazards of Starved Rock State Park, 2014, (Julia K. Ross and Max W. Reams) Abstracts with Programs, North-Central Section, Geological Society of America, v. 46, no. 4, p. 50.