Mission Statement

“Our purpose is to support and enhance educational and recreational opportunities contributing to the preservation, conservation, and use of the natural resources at Shabbona Lake State Park.”

Whoosh! You look up from your hiking boots as a dragonfly nearly collides with your shoulder. It continues on, past your shoulder, and settles down on nearby lily pad just a few yards out in the lake. Suddenly, the water explodes. The dragonfly disappears in the surge of water and after a few short seconds, all is calm again. Welcome to a typical evening at Shabbona Lake State Park. With 318 acres of lake and 1,550 acres of rolling prairie and forest, wildlife encounters at Shabbona Lake State Park are as common as campfires on a starry night.

Chances are if you enjoy nature or fishing, a visit to Shabbona Lake State Park has happened at some point in your life. Located about 60 minutes from Chicago, Shabbona Lake is home to four state records for Muskie and is well known for its fishing adventures, hiking trails, and campsites.

About 475,000 visitors make a trip to Shabbona Lake every year. This high number of tourists contribute to the rising growth and success of the Village of Shabbona and surrounding communities. To keep visitors returning each year, the overall health of the park and the lake must remain intact.

On September 6th, 2022, Friends Of Shabbona Lake State Park donated $336.76 to Shabbona Lake State Park to pay for sand for the playground swings areas and $695.00 for aggregate stones for the Kid’s Fishing Pond in the Campground.

Despite the craziness of 2020, Friends Of Shabbona Lake State Park was able to complete two projects in 2020 and we have started our first project for 2021.

Our first 2021 project is to have the trails digitized with GPS points, with the assistance of the DeKalb County Geological Department.  The trails were placed in an app which will show, on your cell phone, your location on the trail.  Click here to use the trail map.

In 2020 we repaired the Main Boat Launch ($4,700.00).  This project was completed with assistance of the Shabbona Lake Sportsman Club and several other clubs.

Our second completed project was purchasing Kayak Boat Docks.  Friends Of Shabbona Lake State Park received a whopping $4,200 Donation from the DeKalb County Community Foundation. “The grant was made possible through the Bill & Bonnie Mullins Family Endowment Fund, a donor advised fund held at the DeKalb County Community Foundation”.  These funds were used to purchase new Kayak Docks for Shabbona Lake State Park.  There has never been a designated docking system at the Park for kayakers to use.  With the growing popularity of kayaking, this will is great addition to the Park.

Help Replace Existing Boat Docks

Redo & Repair Kid’s Fishing Pond In Campground 

3 New giant 4′ X 6′ Friend’s Recruitment signs placed in Shabbona Lake State Park, along with brochure holders.

Major Shabbona Lake Projects Completed 

Shabbona Lake State Park, over the years, has been enhanced by many local Clubs and Foundations which have made this State Park the envy of other state facilities.  We are off to another great year. Major Projects are already completed.  Thanks to the Fox River Valley Muskie Club, the Quad County Hawg Hunters, the Shabbona Lake Sportsman Club, the Friends of Shabbona Lake State Park and a very generous Donation from the DeKalb County Community Foundation.

On Sunday 8/27/2017 Friends members Spencer Myers, Mike Tuman and Clint Sands installed over twenty new cleats on the public boat launch docks purchased by Friends of Shabbona Lake.  Before this there was very few places to tie up the boat to the docks.

In 2016 the Friends of Shabbona Lake received a $12,000 grant to repair a fish rearing pond located at Shabbona Lake State Park.  Kyler Excavating from Malta removed and replaced a drain and valve in the 5 acre rearing pond.  Kyler’s also reshaped the pond basin so that the pond would drain efficiently.  This work was done in two stages, in the Fall of 2016 and the beginning of 2017.  The funding for this project was from the DeKalb County Community Foundation Grant of $12,000. The Project is done.

The Shabbona Lake Sportsman Club, with help from members of the Friends of Shabbona Lake, assisted IDNR Fisheries Biologist David Wyffles, has constructed 15 new fish cribs to be placed into Shabbona Lake.  10 have already been placed in the lake as new fish habitat. The lake is a man-made impoundment constructed in the early 1970’s.  Originally there were 47 wooded fish cribs placed on in lake basin before it was flooded. Over the years some cribs have deteriorated. The cribs are sometimes referred to as “fish houses”, in which smaller fish can escape from larger fish.

Fox Valley Muskie Club ($250.00), Quad County Hawg Hunters ($750.00), Friends of Shabbona Lake State Park ($500.00) and the Shabbona Lake Sportsman Club ($500.00) all donated to help repair a Spillway Barrier Fence at Shabbona Lake State Park.  As the water leaves Shabbona Lake it exits down a concrete spillway.  Unfortunately, sometimes large fish also escape down the spillway into Indian Creek.  Years ago, a barrier fence was placed 200 yards downstream to allow the water to go thru, but it captures the large Muskie and Walleye in the 200 yard creek.  The captured fish are then returned to Shabbona Lake.  Kyler Excavating completed the repairs.

Friends has received $1,000.00 in Donations from the Bill & Bonnie Mullins Family Endowment to help repair the Kids Fishing Pond in the Shabbona Lake State Park Campground!!!

Friends received a $12,000 Grant from the DeKalb County Community Foundation to help repair the Smallmouth Rearing Pond!!!

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