On our second day of the April 2026 trip, we visited Dixon Springs State Park and Tunnel Hill State Trail. Dixon Springs is about 5 hours and 20 minutes south of Chicago, or 30 minutes north of Paducah, KY. The Tunnel Hill trail is 45 miles long, stretching from Harrisburg to Karnak, but the tunnel that the trail is named for is about 25 minutes northwest of Dixon Springs.
We started out our day by heading directly to Dixon Springs SP, and a 1.7 mile hike there. It was a beautiful morning, with bright blue sky and very few clouds. The trail starts with a relatively easy, flat walk through the woods. We came upon a creek to cross after a short distance, and after navigating to the other side, we found small cliffs carved out by the water over the years. Canyons are my favorite places to hike, so getting the rock formations when I was just expecting a short wooded walk was delightful. The trail goes along the face of the rocks before looping over the creek again and meeting up with the same path back to the trailhead.
After so many park visits all over the state, we are so happy that things can still surprise us, and we really were not expecting just how wonderful of an experience it was to hike here. It feels quite similar to Starved Rock or Giant City, but without the crowds.
Directly across the street from the park entrance was a small candy shop called The Chocolate Factory. In addition to the many chocolate confections, they also serve ice cream, which we are sure makes this a popular stop during the summer after visiting Dixon Springs. We decided to just get some candy to try later. We especially liked all of the different bars of chocolate they offered, particularly the cookies ‘n cream bar.
Our next stop of the day was Tunnel Hill State Trail. This is the fourth and final state trail we had left to visit, and are pleased to say it lived up to our pleasant experiences at the first three. Similar to the Rock Island State Trail, Tunnel Hill ST used to be a railroad line. Originally built in 1872, this was the Vincennes and Cairo Railroad, named for the towns at the beginning and end of the line. The train changed operators several times over the years, with the last being Norfolk Southern Railroad. They gave this section to the state of Illinois in 1991, since they had abandoned operations there. The IDNR started developing the trail, which opened in 1998, and was completed in 2001.
As with the previous trails, this one was far too long to try and hike the entire thing, so we had to choose which section to visit. This one was the easiest of all to choose, as the tunnel is by far the most iconic landmark. Tunnel Hill has an elevation of 680 feet. While this is certainly tiny compared to mountains, it was high enough that the builders decided to go through it. The tunnel was originally 800 feet long, but today it is 543 feet long.
From where we parked, the tunnel is only a quarter of a mile walk. It is unlit and cool, and would be a very nice reprieve from a hot summer day. Beyond that, the trail is well maintained and fairly woody. We walked for about a mile, when the woods opened up and it looked as though there were private homes along the sides, and then we turned around to head back to the car.
We have two wineries to highlight for these parks. The first was Purple Toad Winery in Paducah, KY. This was such a fun place to visit, the tastings are quite generous and the wines are mostly good, although they do skew very sweet.
The second is Hogg Hollow Winery in Robbs, IL. They have a much shorter wine list, and what they are known for is having off-the-wall flavors. I really enjoyed the basil wine, but their other odd flavors included corn, hot pepper, and garlic. We decided to sit on their patio and have glasses of sangria. The icing on the cake was the winery dog that decided to sit with us.
We had a very good time at both parks. We had done very little research on Dixon Springs prior to our visit, and were pleasantly surprised. The rock formations were really interesting to walk around, and we did not find there to be any issues with trail maintenance, although the portions of the trail that cross the creek are probably more difficult after heavy rain. Tunnel Hill was also a great time, and would have been an excellent place to bike. The tunnel itself is very unique amongst attractions at state parks. Despite the prevalence of railroads in Illinois history, the closest we’ve come to something similar to this is the depot we saw while hiking at Rock Island State Trail. We would recommend this portion of the trail to those interested in trains and their history. We would recommend the rest of the trail, as well as Dixon Springs, to anyone visiting the area and interested in hiking.
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