Arlington Wetlands

These wetlands are just a half drive from St. Louis and are gorgeous. Located in Granite City, IL, it is worth the longer drive. The main water body in the wetlands is a 83 acre lake remnant of the Mississippi River! In larger rain events, these wetlands can hold up to five times the peak flow that would have become flood waters. Park in the parking lot and take the short gravel path to the floating boardwalk. The boardwalk takes about 5 minutes to walk through the wetlands! We saw many birds, turtles and ducks! We spotted lots of lily pads on the water. At the other side of the trail is a sand prairie, and my girls loved drawing pictures in the gravel with sticks. The total trail is .9 miles and is a nice mowed trail and boardwalk across the wetlands. Trail Type: Mixed (Paved over the boardwalk, but then unpaved on the mowed trail) Friendly: I would consider this not stroller-friendly or not handicapped accessible because of the mowed trail. Level: Easy Dogs are welcome. Note: there is limited shade here, which makes this a great spring trail instead of summer. The trails are sometimes overgrown on the outer edge of the lake in the fall.