Starved Rock State Park: An Illinois Treasure

Nestled along the Illinois River, Starved Rock State Park is a favorite destination no matter the season--nearly 2.5 million people visit each year. This National Historic Landmark boasts a landscape filled with tall bluffs, elegant trees, and wildflower-adorned hills, perfect for the adventurer inside us all.

In Starved Rock State Park: An Illinois Treasure, photographers Lee Mandrell and DeeDee Niederhouse-Mandrell showcase the beauty and grandeur of this Illinois state park. With photos of twisting forest trails, plunging canyons, and lakes veiled in mist, they uncover this land piece by piece. Hike to take in the view at Lover's Leap Overlook or relish the waterfalls that come roaring out from canyons with names like "Wildcat" and "St. Louis." Come explore this park thriving with life. From hawks soaring across crisp blue skies and snakes slinking over bramble to folksy log cabins and meadows of black-eyed Susans, there is a little something for everyone.

With 120 high-quality color photos and an appreciation of the finer details in life, Starved Rock State Park will transport you to a land rich with history and wonder.

For Lee Mandrell, photography began as a hobby that quickly ignited into a fiery passion and then into a lifelong career. He started out at age 14 with a secondhand Minolta Hi-Matic E Rangefinder. Mandrell worked as a custom darkroom technician in a professional lab for years and was eventually promoted to production manager. An early adopter of both digital technology and Photoshop, he was actively involved in all current photography techniques and practices. He is author of Indianapolis: The Circle City and coauthor of The Great Smoky Mountains: A Visual Journey, Indiana Across the Land, Illinois Across the Land, and Illinois State Parks.

DeeDee Niederhouse-Mandrell's interest in the art of photography began over 25 years ago. What started out as a hobby eventually turned into a paying photography job--she is now the principal photographer for the Ray Skillman Corporation. After several years, Niederhouse-Mandrell became the corporation's creative photography manager for their upper-end magazine advertisements. She is coauthor of The Great Smoky Mountains: A Visual Journey, Indiana Across the Land, Illinois Across the Land, and Illinois State Parks.