HARRISBURG - Although Illinois Department of Natural Resources officials won't give a specific date, they hope to have enough infrastructure in place to open the 4,100-acre Sahara Woods State Fish and Wildlife Area on a limited basis in fall 2006.

"Everybody likes to speculate, but as far as a projected opening date, there is nothing concrete," said Eric McClusky, the IDNR's site superintendent.

Coincidentally, the opening will depend directly on the amount of concrete that is poured in the next year.

"If everything works out, the road bids will be let in January," McClusky said. "If everything goes according to plan, we hope to have it open in some capacity in the fall of 2006.

"What we're talking about is five to six miles of loop road. It will circle the whole park. We'll build parking lots for hunter access, and it's also in the plans to put in a parking lot for the boat ramp."

There is one 105-acre lake on the property and a total of about 275 acres of water.

A viable road system and parking lots would allow the IDNR to open the park for fishing and possibly a bowhunting deer season. McClusky said the boat ramp at the main lake probably would not be completed at that time.

In the meantime, reclamation work is continuing. Reclamation is currently in the fourth of five phases.

"We're working on one large coal waste area," said Greg Pinto, of the IDNR's office of mines and minerals, division of abandoned mines reclamation. "There is one more large coal waste area to go; that will be phase five.

"Most of the equipment is gone. We've even demolished a few small buildings."

The reclamation work began in 1999. Pinto said reclamation should be completed by the fall of 2006, although some seepage issues may still be monitored.

Pinto said he hopes the current waste area will be covered and seeded this fall. Bids will be let for the final phase in October, with work possibly beginning in December.

Even after reclamation work, the terrain at Sahara Woods will remain rugged.

"Pyramid (State Park) is about as close as you're going to get to this as far as terrain is concerned," McClusky said. "There are rocks out there big as trucks. We're going to leave it pretty much unchanged.

"We're not going to have it look like a manicured golf course. Most of this property is what is called pre-law reclamation. They aren't using any topsoil. They're covering the spoil banks and seeding it."

Although other improvements are in the long range plans, the IDNR is concentrating on opening the area for hunting and fishing.

"Turkey, deer, rabbit and quail, and they'll try to do some dove management down there as we get farther along," McClusky said. "Past that, we haven't really talked about anything. Waterfowl is down the road. That's something we'd like to see, having a draw out there eventually.

"The deer population is unbelievable. The deer population, as far as I know, is probably unrivaled. You drive out there, and people that live there, they know what I'm talking about.

Day use areas and camping are also possibilities in the future.

"It will be down the road," McClusky said. "What we'll try to concentrate on is getting the hunting and fishing opened up.

"Then, we'll progress into day use and camping. It will come. There are plans already set for full Class A campgrounds, and possibly cabins."

les.winkeler@thesouthern.com

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