Stephenson County

城市概覽

The Illinois Driftless area is locally renowned for its scenic beauty (especially in Chicagoland), and this helped boost its tourist industry. As more and more people visited and vacationed there, the area grew to meet the demand. Galena is particularly tourist-driven, but even Stockton and Mount Carroll have some tourist elements. It is called the Illinois Driftless Area because it is part of the driftless zone. "Driftless" refers to the geological history of the area: its ground hasn't been eroded by glaciers during Ice Ages, nor does it have rocks or other sediments transported there by moving glaciers.

如何抵達

The region is most accessible from the following route:

US Route 20 connects the region to Dubuque (west) and Rockford and Chicagoland (east), and is the only route to run through both of the largest cities in the region - Freeport and Galena. Illinois Route 78 runs through Mount Carroll and Stockton and is a major north-south route in western Illinois, running from Jacksonville to the Wisconsin state line. Illinois Route 78 runs through Galena and Hanover. It runs along the Mississippi River and connects the region to I-88 and I-80 to the south. In Illinois, US 20 is designated the General Ulysses S. Grant Highway (often abbreviated the U.S. Grant Memorial Highway) and is the longest route in the United States. In eastern Jo Daviess County, US 20 is one of the few areas that remain two-lane across the entire stretch of US 20. The road between Dubuque and Stockton was once known as the most dangerous stretch of all of Highway 20 because of the hills and curves flanked by cliffs and valleys. Travelers were greeted with signs reminding them to drive carefully as they entered this stretch of road.

必看景點

The Chicago-Galena Stagecoach Trail: A rural route running between Lena and Galena, this old stretch of road closely follows the original stagecoach trail that ran through the area and has some of the basic scenic views in the region.

順遊推薦

Within Illinois: East elsewhere in Northern Illinois region including Rockford, and on towards Chicagoland and Chicago. South to Western Illinois region, for Quad Cities and Peoria. North into Southwest Wisconsin, for Baraboo and the Wisconsin Dells. West across the Upper Mississippi River and into Eastern Iowa, for Clinton and Dubuque.