Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route

A noble eagle overlooks the Illinois River while perched on top of a snowy cliff.

A Blue Heron scans its surroundings in a lake near the meeting of three great rivers, the Missouri, Mississippi, and the Illinois.

Beautiful fall colors decorate the winding road along the meeting of the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers.

A fiery-headed woodpecker (possibly a Pilated Woodpecker) takes a break from drilling into a tree to pose for a photo.

A tall, straight pine tree provides some green in this shot of residential Elsah in the wintertime.

Colorful catfish play alongside a booth in the Fin Inn.

A pyramid of round windows stares from the side of this barn along the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway.

This photo captures a view of a rustic lodge at Pere Marquette State Park on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route.

Shutters on the windows match the pine trees in this photo of Elsah in the wintertime.

Bed and breakfast and horses along the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route.

Information kiosks will enhance your understanding of the byway.

A playground entices younger travelers to the byway information site near Grafton.

Visitors stop on a winter day at the byway information center on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway.

Visitors view an information kiosk outside of Grafton on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway.

Information and pullout on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway.

View of rustic lodge at Columbine River State Park or other CCC era building on byway.

The gray brick front of the Shild House still stands after many years.

Scene of agricultural area on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway.

A rough stone pillar separates the entrance to the Eldred Caves.

Ivy branches climb the Samuel Gates House, a historic home along the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route.

A sailboat glides on the blue water against a backdrop of gorgeous red, yellow, orange, and green leaves in Alton, Illinois, on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route.

A guided tour takes place at the notorious McPike Mansion in Alton, Illinois, on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route.

The last of seven debates between Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln took place in front of Alton's city hall on October 15, 1858. Life-size statues of the two famous figures stand in downtown Alton.

Three Eastern Kingbirds chatter with each other as they perch on a small tree in Illinois.

A dark bronze statue of Abraham Lincoln stands thinking in front of a sign welcoming visitors to Alton, IL.

Two hikers stand on the top of a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River.

The colorful trees of autumn, a white shore and a bright blue sky frame the Meeting of the Great Rivers.

Snow dusts the trees and ground at a lakeside residence.

A group of friends picnic together on the green grass beside a gazebo with the confluence of the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers visible in the distance behind them.

Visitors read an inscription about the Piasa Bird petroglyph in the background.

The petroglyph of the historic Piasa Bird looks out over the Mississippi River.

The Meeting of the Great Rivers byway runs along the Mississippi River at the base of tall cliffs thickly covered in green trees.

The three angels of the Lovejoy Monument stand guard over the green trees and gravestones of the cemetery.

A family stands on a boardwalk's viewing platform, looking out over the green trees and the Mississippi River in the distance.

Two spires of the Hartford Tower stand before the pink and purple clouds of an Illinois sunset.

Four young boys crowd round an informational display in front of a replica ship from Lewis and Clark's expedition.

The gray-blue waters of the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers come together in the lush green land.

A street in Elsah on the Meeting of the Great Rivers.

This view shows a rustic lodge at Columbine River State Park or another CCC era building on the Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Route.

This photo shows another view of a rustic lodge at Columbine River State Park.

Find information about historic Elsah.

Winter in Elsah on the Great River Road.

A street in Elsah on the Meeting of the Great Rivers.

A man stands besides the 55-foot scale replica of the expedition's keelboat at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center.