Annual Snake Migration Prompts Seasonal Road Closure In Illinois
A road in Illinois has to be shut down for two months because of the migration of snakes in that area.
Snake Road In Illinois Closes For Two Months
This past summer has been crazy with so many road closures because of construction. It's great to see the streets all over Rockford getting fixed, but sometimes that makes it difficult to arrive at your destination on time.
Besides construction, there are other reasons for a street to be closed in Illinois. This one might surprise. Have you ever experienced a road being closed because of animals? I've seen warning signs for things like deer, but never the route actually being shut down.
Down in southern Illinois, LaRue Road in the Shawnee National Forest has been closed until October 30th because of snakes. It happens every fall when all of the snakes in the area migrate to another place, so they basically take over the street, which has been nicknamed Snake Road.
Could you imagine coming up to the sign for that road closure? That many snakes would freak me out. People are allowed to walk down Snake Road, but I would take a hard pass on that one. They are warned not to touch the creatures.
According to NBC Chicago...
Nearly three miles of a southern Illinois road have been shut down for a rather unusual reason: a snake migration - albeit a massive one.
LaRue Road in the Shawnee National Forest, which is affectionately known as "Snake Road," is regularly used by snakes and amphibians as they go back and forth between limestone bluffs and the LaRue Swamp during their biannual migration.
To help ensure safety, a 2.7-mile stretch of road is closed yearly from Sept. 1 to Oct. 30 and March 15 to May 15, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
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