Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve near Crete, Illinois, is an 898-acre protected landscape of mostly woods with prairie patches, rolling terrain, a small pond, and Plum Creek. It supports both conservation and recreation, with trails, picnic shelters, primitive campsites, winter sledding and skating when conditions permit, and a nature center for education. Dedicated as a State Nature Preserve in 1996, it contains diverse ecosystems including forest, floodplain, savanna, prairie, meadow, marsh, and seeps. Its ecological value is underscored by habitat for state-threatened or endangered species such as the eastern massasauga rattlesnake and the spotted coral root orchid.