2024 Shawnee Cave Total Solar Eclipse Festival (April 5-8, 2024)

We pulled off the most incredible 2024 Total Solar Eclipse Festival at the Shawnee Cave Amphitheater last weekend and everyone is still buzzing about the festivities! We threw one heck of a good party and we have several more festivals planned for the remainder of 2024. We had the time of out lives, to say the least :) Below, I curated some of my graphics and family fun moments throughout the event. If you would like to see more of our traditional photos covering the past weekend, please visit us on Instagram or Facebook.

Above, my poster design which inspired the event t-shirts. Below, Travis and I at the Shawnee Cave.

Me and the venue owner, Alexis. Look at our shirts!!!

We had such a fantastic lineup and we made sure to personally thank each and every one of the bands for their incredible talents and hard work.

Above, we had great success with our Grateful Dead inspired graphics I made, which were completely inspired by one of our headliners, Terrapin Flyer Band - a 20+ year Grateful Dead tribute band from Chicago, IL. They played Sunday and Monday, April 7-8, and the second day (the day of the eclipse), they completely rocked the stage and played before and after the 202 Total Solar Eclipse! Below is my poster singed by every band member. What an unforgettable experience.

Below, one of the most successful and entertaining aspects of the festival was our Eclipse Eve Late Night Dance Party (another fun graphic I tested out for this one)! Midwest Music Supply’s lights and sound production got to test out their new lighting setups and it went over flawlessly! This was the great beginning to festival season.

For more information about upcoming Cave shows, visit www.ShawneeCave.fun!

Below, a great view from the Eagle’s Nest at the Shawnee Cave!

Shawnee Cave Amphitheater Venue Owners, Shane and Alexis Wade.

Travis looking fly in eclipse glasses & my t-shirt design!

Travis has been getting his setlists signed for decades :)

Frank & Gandolph

Travis shot the most amazing eclipse progression photos!

I just love this man so very much :) He was a huge support throughout the entire weekend and leading up to the festival.

Most of the photos here are just fun family pics, but if you would like to see what I have been sharing on the Shawnee Cave socials, visit them on Facebook and Instagram! Until next time, friends!

Shawnee Cave Revival - June 7-9, 2024

Yesterday, our tickets went live and on sale for our next festival, Shawnee Cave Revival! I am most excited for Greensky Bluegrass too - I remember seeing them back in Carbondale, IL at Tres Hombres when only 30 folks attended and NOW, look at them - headlining HUGE festivals and selling out large venues.

I created all the artwork for the festival, which I am so very proud of. Abive is the 18x24 poster and below is our schedule!

Below, you can check out all the Artist Frames I created using the same style as the poster. I am thrilled with this and all the bands approved them right away. So happy to be an integral part of this amazing place.

Additionally, I am in charge of working with Etix to re-design our new website, www.shawneecave.fun. Etix Rockhouse did such a fantastic job of making our venue shine. Below, is a photo of Travis and I last June at the Shawnee Cave Weekend At The Cave Festival 2023. We had the best weekend EVER.

Here is a photo of the venue at night. They have such high quality sound and light production, and I am happy to say this is somewhere we can be proud to help grow and flourish!!! If you want to learn more about the venue, please visit our website for details on Shawnee Cave Revival (June 7-9, 2024) and our incredible Shawnee Cave Total Solar Eclipse Festival (April 5-8, 2024), visit our website here, the Shawnee Cave Instagram page and Facebook page here!

Plus, they are now offering event rentals and wedding venue rentals, so stay tuned as that progresses!

Heron Pond - 50th Anniversary

Thrilled to be a part of this upcoming event in southern Illinois. I created the poster graphic, below, learn more about this amazing event!

Register on Eventbrite or Donate Here.

Learn more on the Friends of IL Nature Preserves Website Here.

Come celebrate the dedication of Heron Pond - Wildcat Bluff as an Illinois Nature Preserve!

The Cache River wetlands in southern Illinois represent the northernmost extent of North America’s vast Coastal Plain physiographic province. However, only ten percent of the original extent of the Cache River’s swamps and bottomland forests remain, and an even smaller fraction still resembles its historical condition.

For the diverse native species that call it home and the many people who have witnessed its splendor, Heron Pond hearkens back to the wilderness of the original Cache River swamps. Thanks to the efforts of local citizens, conservationists, and government agencies, this remarkable ecological legacy has been protected as an Illinois Nature Preserve since 1971.

We welcome you to celebrate 50 years of permanent protection for Heron Pond and its upland counterpart, Wildcat Bluff, on Saturday, April 9, 2022. This one-day event is hosted by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources in collaboration with the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, Friends of the Cache River Watershed, and Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves. Event highlights include informational talks by pivotal figures in the acquisition, protection, and early management of this unique site; a juried art exhibit; and field tours of Heron Pond and Wildcat Bluff. Please join us for this celebration of our irreplaceable natural heritage!

Main Ceremony

10:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Join us for an outdoor ceremony at the Barkhausen Wetlands Center. Ecologists Max Hutchison, John Schwegman, and Andy West will speak about the early days of the Cache River, the acquisition of Heron Pond, and the original efforts to restore and manage the site’s swamps and bottomlands.

Presentation: Natural Areas Day at Heron Pond

(2:00 PM- 2:45 PM)

Watch a pre-recorded presentation by John Schwegman on the 1972 Natural Areas Day event that celebrated the then newly dedicated Heron Pond – Wildcat Bluff Nature Preserve. John will be available after the talk to answer questions from the audience. The recording will be made available online for later viewing.

Cache River Wetlands Documentary

(1:00-1:15 PM, 1:30-1:45 PM, 3:00-3:15 PM, 3:30-3:45 PM, 4:00-4:15 PM)

Site Interpreter Molie Oliver will introduce this 12-minute video on the history of the Cache River Wetlands.

Follow our Facebook page for updates and more information about each of the event partners.

COVID Protocol

Attendance to this indoor event and other indoor displays may be capped in consideration of IDNR COVID protocols at the time of the event.

Partners

Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves, a newly founded 501(c)(3) in support of nature preserves in the state of Illinois and non-profit Friends of the Cache Watershed collaborated on coordinating this event in support of the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission (INPC) and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).

Hike Descriptions:

Hike 1, Heron Pond

Free

1:00-2:30 PM at the Todd Fink Trail

Join Natural Heritage Biologist Mark Guetersloh (IDNR), John Beardsley (Illinois State Water Survey), and Dr. Jeff Hoover (Illinois Natural History Survey) for a tour of the Todd Fink trail out to the Heron Pond boardwalk. Learn about the ecology of this unique wetland and the work done to restore its hydrology. Registration required to attend and capped at 25 participants.

Hike 2, Heron Pond

Free

3:00-4:30 PM at the Todd Fink Trail

Join Natural Heritage Biologist Mark Guetersloh (IDNR), John Beardsley (Illinois State Water Survey), and Dr. Jeff Hoover (Illinois Natural History Survey) for a tour of the Todd Fink trail out to the Heron Pond boardwalk. Learn about the ecology of this unique wetland and the work done to restore its hydrology. Registration required to attend and capped at 25 participants

Hike 3, Wildcat Bluff

Free

1:00-2:30 PM at Wildcat Bluff

Join Natural Heritage Biologist Christina Feng (IDNR) and Natural Areas Preservation Specialist Kevin Sierzega (Illinois Nature Preserves Commission) on a tour of Wildcat Bluff. Learn about the natural communities that exist at this interface between bottomlands and uplands and the management being conducted to restore this incredible landscape. Registration required and capped at 20 participants per hike.

Hike 4, Wildcat Bluff

Free

3:00 -4:30 PM at Wildcat Bluff

Join Natural Heritage Biologist Christina Feng (IDNR) and Natural Areas Preservation Specialist Kevin Sierzega (Illinois Nature Preserves Commission) on a tour of Wildcat Bluff. Learn about the natural communities that exist at this interface between bottomlands and uplands and the management being conducted to restore this incredible landscape. Registration required and capped at 20 participants per hike.

Reserve your Heron Pond 50th Anniversary Fundraising T-shirt by adding it at Registration.