Illinois trails · Little Grand Canyon
Little Grand Canyon
A 2.9-mile out-and-back in Illinois, with 384 ft of climbing. Reaches Main Lookout. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Elevation profile
Most of the climbing sits in the final third — 81% of the ascent, between mile 1.9 and mile 2.9. It gives back about 505 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Main Lookout (viewpoint)
Heads up
Getting there
LITTLE GRAND CANYON — parking nearby, restroom, water. 37.68047, -89.39496 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 5:59 a.m., the sun rises at 6:26 a.m. and sets at 7:28 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 7:55 p.m. (CDT) — 13 h 02 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 5.8-mile round trip takes roughly 2 h 31 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 8:57 a.m. — 10 h 31 min before sunset.
Nearby trails
- Godwin — 7.0 mi
- Little Cedar Lake — 7.6 mi
- Kinkaid Lake Trail — 10.9 mi
- Red Cedar Trail — 13.5 mi