Illinois Beach State Park

Illinois Beach State Park
IUCN category III (natural monument or feature)
Map of the Illinois showing the location of Adeline Jay Geo-Karis Illinois Beach State Park
Location	Lake County, Illinois, United States
Nearest city	Zion, Illinois
Coordinates	42°25′02″N 87°48′42″W / 42.41722°N 87.81167°W / 42.41722; -87.81167
Area	4,160 acres (1,683 ha)
Established	1948
Visitors	1.2 million (in 2015)[1]
Governing body	Illinois Department of Natural Resources
U.S. National Natural Landmark
Designated	1980
Ramsar Wetland
Official name	Chiwaukee Illinois Beach Lake Plain
Designated	25 September 2015
Reference no.	2243[2]

Adeline Jay Geo-Karis Illinois Beach State Park, part of the Illinois state park system, is located along Lake Michigan in northern Lake County in northeast Illinois. Together with lands to the north, including Chiwaukee Prairie, it forms the Chiwaukee Prairie Illinois Beach Lake Plain, an internationally recognized wet-land of importance under the Ramsar Convention.^[2] The park is broken into two units that encompass an area of 4,160 acres (1,683 ha) and contains over six miles of Lake Michigan shoreline. In 2010, it was renamed for former state senator Adeline Geo-Karis.

Recreational activities at the park include boating, swimming, hiking, bicycling, camping, bird watching, and picnicking.^[3] Known primarily for the beach, the park also includes dune areas, wetlands, prairie, and black oak savanna. The area at the far southern end of the park is a designated nature preserve, which was named a National Natural Landmark in 1980.^[4]