My job assignment happened to fall during a great time of year to be in Peoria. Upon my arrival, the weather was unusually mild on that mid September day. It felt like summer the day I moved in to my apartment, however within a month the fall like temperatures arrived. Many people were surprised to hear that of all places to find a number of fun activities, Peoria had several to entertain me during my 13 week stretch. This area is home to several great restaurants, breweries, outdoor activities, etc to enjoy in your downtime.
Peoria is called the “Whiskey City” because of its role in the mass production of whiskey during the 1800’s. I was surprised to learn on a city tour, that it was considered to be the Whiskey Capitol of the World back then, producing more whiskey than Kentucky at that time. One of the things that made this area so perfect for distilling whiskey was its proximity to the Illinois River and the limestone-filtered water that these distilleries were able to utilize as a result. During the 1800’s, the riverfront was said to be saturated by distilleries because of these favorable water conditions. Prohibition changed all that and the number of distilleries dropped dramatically, leaving abandoned buildings behind, some of which still serve as a visible reminder of it’s profitable past today. By 1890, distilleries in Peoria were producing 40% of all alcohol in the United States. This mass production of whiskey meant that Peoria and nearby Pekin, Illinois collected enough taxes to supply half the federal government’s revenue.
In addition to it’s past as a major distilling city, Peoria is also home to some notable people: Dan Fogelberg, Richard Pryor, and Fulton Sheen (an archbishop of the Catholic Church who was known around the world and whose remains are entombed within the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Church in Peoria). If you find yourself on Grandview Avenue in Peoria Heights, a very expensive residential street with massive homes sitting high above the Illinois River, you will find a bench dedicated to Dan Fogelberg. It wasn’t until I stumbled upon this on my walk in this area, that I realized he was even from here.
In addition to the beauty of Grandview Drive, I would like to dedicate the remainder of this blog post to talk about the outdoor activities you can enjoy in Peoria. But before I move on from Grandview, I need to draw attention to an amazing home that is referred to as Soderstrom Castle. This home literally looks like a castle with a driveway that welcomes its guests with fire breathing dragons on each side of its gated entrance. During the month of October, this castle puts on a sound and light show on multiple nights, free of charge, complete with the fire breathing dragons synchronized to this show. It is definitely a sight to behold and many parents will bring their children and gather in the driveway to watch this feast for the eyes.
Just up the road a few miles from Soderstrom Castle, is a place where you can see spectacular 360 degree views of the surrounding area and can see for miles. This is the observation tower at Tower Park in Peoria Heights. To reach the top, you take a slow moving glass elevator that makes its way to the top along the outside of the tower. The pace this elevator moves, with its 180 degree glass views from top to bottom, are a little intimidating to anyone even just remotely afraid of heights. But the reward is huge when you get to the blustery top. Midwesterner’s, with their relatively flat terrain, don’t often have the opportunity to get a birds eye view of things. This is definitely that!
Another activity that is always fun on a crisp fall day in the midwest, is to head over to Tanner’s Orchard in nearby Speer, Illinois to test your skills in finding your way through their very challenging corn maze in a timely fashion. Not only does this orchard offer the corn maze, but they also have food, apples, a petting zoo, kiddie rides and a store onsite that sells baked goods, produce, etc. If you are looking for a more rural activity, this is a fun place to spend a few hours.
For those interested in stargazing, head over to Northmoor Observatory on cloudless Saturday evenings between May and October. The building is situated in a location that can be a bit challenging to find, especially when your GPS directs you through the woods to find it sitting out in the middle of a field, in pitch darkness no less – make sure you bring your flashlight. Once inside you can climb the stairs to the large telescope and take your turn looking up at the moon or whatever planet they are showing you that evening. This is not your everyday activity, making it a cool experience to partake in.
Lastly, Mineral Springs Park in nearby Pekin, is a nice place to go for a walk or sit by the water. When the weather is seasonable, you will find pedal boats for rent on the water. There are several picnic tables throughout the park if you want to enjoy a picnic afterward.
The Peoria Park District also offers a variety of guided hikes you can sign up for. At the time I was there, I went on a hike that talked about the bark on the trees and how the appearance of the bark will tell you what kind of tree it is. For a suburban girl like me, that was cool to learn.
In my next post, I will focus on Peoria’s food and drink scene that I enjoyed during my time there, as well as highlight a few of the city’s sightseeing activities. Stay tuned…