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Bradley Anderson

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Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« on: August 03, 2009, 08:46:20 AM »
Over the weekend the boys and I hiked around Illinois Beach State Park. This is the best place I know of for studying natural sand features.

Everything you see here was formed by wind and native plant growth. You can find almost every architectural style out here. There is even a Robert Bruce Harris Bunker in the photos that I have put up.
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Adam Clayman

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Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #1 on: August 03, 2009, 08:59:14 AM »
Come on now. Everybody knows that bunker style is a fad.

J/K

Thanks for posting these. They remind me of some where. For the life of me, I just cant a finger on it.  ;)
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"It's unbelievable how much you don't know about the game you've been playing your whole life." - Mickey Mantle

RJ_Daley

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Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #2 on: August 03, 2009, 02:02:35 PM »
My Grandmother used to be the live on the property caretaker of the Reynolds Estate, that I believe was where the Marina is today.  As a boy, I remember hiking in the dunes across from the property gate when we'd go to visit her.  It is surprising more people don't comment about how golfy that land is.  Of course I'd imagine the chances of ever siting a golf course on that state land are about zero.  Yet, with State's strapped for funds, it would clearly be a revenue generator, if done minimumly, which is all that land requires, rather than a big mega expensive project. 
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No actual golf rounds were ruined or delayed, nor golf rules broken, in the taking of any photographs that may be displayed by the above forum user.

Joe Hancock

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Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #3 on: August 03, 2009, 02:41:32 PM »
RJ,

The reason no one is commenting is because it's like porn to this crowd; everyone is looking and reacting, but no one can openly talk about it.

Joe
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" What the hell is the point of architecture and excellence in design if a "clever" set up trumps it all?" Peter Pallotta, June 21, 2016

"People aren't picking a side of the fairway off a tee because of a randomly internally contoured green ."  jeffwarne, February 24, 2017

Jim Colton

Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #4 on: August 03, 2009, 03:03:43 PM »
Paging Charlie Goerges, I think you have the next site for your armchair archie contest.
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PCCraig

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Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #5 on: August 03, 2009, 04:56:27 PM »
Those sand features are begging for a trip up north with my vokey and a handful of Titleists!

Is there really any chance at all that a course could be built on that site? The environmentalists would have a field day with the permit process...
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H.P.S.

Brent Carlson

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #6 on: August 03, 2009, 07:26:47 PM »
Bradley,

Is that the park in Zion?  If so it has the makings for a good golf course.

Couple Questions:

Why is it that this site has such good sand while Whistling Straits is all clay?

Is there anymore linksland available for golf around lake Michigan?  Man I wish Doak had done Arcadia ;D  (I know it's bluff land)
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Adam Clayman

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Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #7 on: August 03, 2009, 09:05:00 PM »
Bradley, Would you be surprised to find out that the origin of those features were likely caused by an outside influence? Then the wind accentuated the effect.
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"It's unbelievable how much you don't know about the game you've been playing your whole life." - Mickey Mantle

Emil Weber

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Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #8 on: August 04, 2009, 05:59:29 AM »
I've got some examples,too.

The first one is ooooops that was the wrong one  ;D ;)

The second one is on Sylt, a German island in the north sea, oh how beautiful would a golf course look there...
« Last Edit: August 04, 2009, 06:01:07 AM by Emil Weber »
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Bradley Anderson

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Illinois Beach State Park - Natural Bunkers
« Reply #9 on: August 04, 2009, 11:15:07 AM »
Guys,

Although I have never seen a site better suited for golf, I could not recommend that this beautiful site be used to build a golf course.

There are wild flowers and shrubs in this small park that occur no where else in nature. There is even a native cactus plant growing here - in Illinois !

Our old house was three miles from this park and we would go hiking there as a family almost every week.
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