Northern Illinois is a region of Illinois generally located immediately along and north of I-80 and outside of Chicagoland. While largely rural, it does include Rockford, the third largest city in Illinois, as well as DeKalb, home of Northern Illinois University.

地区

State of Illinois

Illinois Driftless Area (Jo Daviess and Stephenson County as well as the western portions of Carroll Counties.)

Illinois River Valley (Kankakee, Grundy, Kendall and LaSalle Counties as well as portions of southern Will County.)

Kishwaukee Valley (The western portions of McHenry County as well as Boone and DeKalb Counties.)

麦亨利县

Rock River Valley (Cities and Villages along the Rock River including Rockford, Dixon and Rock Falls-Sterling as well as the nearby countryside in Winnebago, Lee, Ogle and Whiteside Counties as well as the eastern portions of Carroll County.)

城市

• 1 洛克福德 - 位于洛克河谷，是伊利诺伊州第三大城市。
• 2 迪卡尔布 - 铁丝网发明家之家，也是北伊利诺伊大学的所在地。
• 3 迪克森 - 美国总统罗纳德·里根的童年故居，也被称为“紫丁香之城”。
• 4 弗里波特 - 第二次林肯-道格拉斯辩论会所在地，拥有许多19世纪晚期的住宅和建筑。
• 5 加勒特 - 尤利西斯·S·格兰特故居，拥有许多19世纪晚期的历史遗产。
• 6 哈佛
• 7 拉萨尔-佩鲁
• 8 渥太华
• 9 斯特林-洛克福尔斯 - 被洛克河分开的两个相邻的城市。
• 10 斯托克顿 - 一个充满历史的小镇，是J.L. Kraft第一家奶酪厂的所在地。
• 11 锡卡莫尔 - 迪卡尔布的“姐妹城市”，位于东北方向。
• 12 尤蒂卡

其他目的地

• 1 苹果河峡谷州立公园 - 靠近斯托克顿：提供露营、徒步、钓鱼和狩猎，这里有西北伊利诺伊州的石灰岩悬崖、峡谷、泉水和溪流。
• 2 苹果河堡历史遗址 - 位于伊丽莎白：为应对1832年黑鹰战争而匆忙建造的定居者堡垒。
• 3 苹果峡谷湖 - 靠近斯托克顿：提供划船、钓鱼、打高尔夫球；这是一个规划完善的度假社区，拥有400英亩（160公顷）的湖泊。
• 4 城堡岩州立公园 - 靠近俄勒冈：位于洛克河沿岸 - 提供划船、露营、钓鱼、徒步、狩猎。
• 5 查尔斯山 - 靠近斯凯尔斯山：伊利诺伊州的最高点，海拔1,235英尺（376米），位于私人领地，可达性有限。
• 6 莱阿奎纳湖州立休闲区 - 靠近莱娜：提供划船、露营、钓鱼、徒步、狩猎。
• 7 劳登州立公园 - 靠近俄勒冈：位于洛克河沿岸，设有黑鹰永恒印第安人雕像 - 提供划船、露营、钓鱼、徒步、狩猎。
• 8 密西西比河岸州立公园 - 靠近萨凡纳：密西西比河沿岸有许多洞穴和巨大的悬崖，就在苹果河的入河口。
• 9 洛克卡特州立公园 - 靠近洛克福德：提供骑行、露营、划船、钓鱼、徒步、狩猎。
• 10 沙伯纳湖州立休闲区 - 靠近沙伯纳：通过大坝拦蓄福克斯河支流形成的人工湖；提供划船、露营、钓鱼、狩猎、徒步。
• 11 饥饿岩州立公园 - 靠近奥格尔斯比：位于洛克河山地区，提供划船、露营、钓鱼、徒步、狩猎。
• 12 上密西西比河国家野生动物和渔业保护区 - 当地称萨凡纳北部，跨越从明尼苏达州瓦巴夏到伊利诺伊州罗克岛的整个上密西西比河区域：这是一个占地240,000英亩（970平方公里）的野生动物保护区，长261英里（420公里）。
• 13 白松森林州立公园 - 靠近波洛、马里斯和俄勒冈：提供露营、钓鱼、徒步、狩猎，位于洛克河谷。

了解

Northern Illinois is generally considered to be the area of Illinois north of I-80 and outside of Chicagoland. Another way to consider Northern Illinois is by the 815 and 779 area codes. Definitions might slightly differ to include Kankakee and Grundy counties, which may also be considered part of Central Illinois.

Northwestern Illinois topography hilly with bluffs and cliffs, a stark contrast to the majority of the "Prairie State" that is mostly flat or with slightly rolling hills and farmland. This region is home to 9 of the 10 highest points in Illinois, with 8 in Jo Daviess County alone, including the highest point in Illinois, Charles Mound at 1,235 ft (376 m).

Culturally, the entire region is similar to many other rust belt rural areas. Residents tend to be politically conservative.

抵达

乘飞机

• 1 洛克福德国际机场 (RFD ^IATA). 提供飞往四个目的地的服务，由Allegiant Air执飞。  

• Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD ^IATA) east, is the nearest full-service airport and is directly connected to Rockford by Interstate 90.

• 麦迪逊地区机场 (MSN ^IATA) 位于北边的麦迪逊，威斯康星州，距离洛克福德约一小时二十分钟车程，位于90/39号州际公路北边，由六家航空公司运营。

• Dubuque Regional Airport (DBQ ^IATA) west in Dubuque, Iowa, is about a thirty minute drive from Galena.

乘汽车

A number of different major routes run through Northern Illinois

Interstates

• 80号州际公路是一条横贯东西的路线，穿过本地区，从东部的印第安纳州和芝加哥，向西延伸至四城地区并进入爱荷华州。
• Interstate 88 (portions tolled) runs east-west from Chicago west through Rochelle, Dixon, Rock Falls and on towards the Quad Cities.
• 90号州际公路（收费）连接着洛克福德及其郊区与东部的芝加哥，以及北部的麦迪逊和洛克县，威斯康星州。它在贝尔维德尔附近进入该地区，然后向西北方向行驶，进入洛克福德。进入洛克福德后，它与39号州际公路汇合并向北行驶，在威斯康星州边界处离开。

• Interstate 39 (portions tolled) runs north-south through the area to Central Illinois and Bloomington-Normal to the south. In Rockford, it joins I-90 and continues north to the Wisconsin border.

US Routes:

• 20号美国国道是一条横贯东西的主要路线，穿过该地区。它在贝尔维德尔以西从芝加哥地区进入，向正西行驶，在洛克福德南部与39号州际公路汇合。从那里，它绕过城市，穿过弗里波特和加勒特，并跨越密西西比河进入爱荷华州的迪比克。
• 30号美国国道是一条横贯北伊利诺伊地区的路线。它在肯德尔县东部进入该区域，然后向正西行驶，连接迪克森和斯特林-洛克福尔斯，然后到达爱荷华州东部的克林顿。
• 52号美国国道从东边的门多塔地区进入该地区，就在拉萨尔-佩鲁以北，然后向西北方向斜穿过迪克森和肖尼镇，然后在萨凡纳跨越密西西比河进入爱荷华州。

• US Route 51 is a major cross-country north-south route running through the region. Starting in South Beloit, running south (sometimes concurrently with I-80/I-39/US 20) through the region around Rockford, Rochelle, and LaSalle-Peru, then into Central Illinois.

Illinois Routes

• Illinois Route 72 runs east-west and connects the middle part of the region, principally Byron.

• Illinois Route 2, a trans region north-south route, IL 2 starts at the Wisconsin state line in South Beloit, connects Rockford and its suburbs with Oregon, Dixon and Sterling, ending in Sterling.
• 伊利诺伊州26号公路南北向贯穿，从威斯康星州边界南部的门罗，连接弗里波特和迪克森，并继续进入伊利诺伊州西部。

活动

Companies like Kayak Starved Rock provide unique and educational guided kayak tours as well as kayak rentals to explore the towering St. Peters sandstone bluffs and Bald Eagles.