LEROY - Saturday was the next to last day for 11 historic sites and seven state parks in Illinois. The 1,687-acre Moraine View Moraine State Park north of LeRoy with its 158-acre lake is one of them. The other park in Central Illinois slated to close after today is Weldon Springs State Park near Clinton. | List of closing parks, historic sites | VIDEO: Visitors react on final weekend

"It's gonna like change my life drastically," said Jim Rogers of Normal, who spends at least 30 days a year at Moraine View where he camps, skis cross country, fishes and hunts pheasant. "To me it's like the jewel of Illinois."

Camping, hiking, picnics, boating, and horseback riding were other activities visitors to the park on Saturday mentioned they would miss.

Mike Plumleigh of Bloomington either bikes or drives his family to the park more than a dozen times a year. "People are very sad," he said. "A lot of people want to come one more time before it closes."

Gibson's Restaurant & Bait Shop & Marina is a gathering spot for kindred spirits - a get-away close to home for many.

Jerry and Nancy Terven of Ellsworth each had a burger, but shared fries and a Pepsi for what might be their last meal together at Gibson's. Their memories of the park span a lifetime. They took their kids and now they take great-grand-children fishing there. They are there "I suppose 50 times a year," said Nancy Terven.

"If it stays closed very long, it will go to ruin," said business owner Judy Gibson, referring to the building that is owned by the state.

Her husband, Leon, said while the business is closing, one employee would be on duty at the park, and limited activities would be allowed, such as fishing. "Thank you everyone - from Judy and me - for patronizing us," he said.

The situation was similar at Weldon Springs State Park near Clinton where business has been good at Boondocks II Restaurant the last few weeks.

"We were hoping something would happen that would allow us to remain open and have a very good winter," manager Larry Stephens said Saturday. But at 2 p.m., the restaurant that employed 12 people closed its doors. "We won't open again until the governor says we can," said Stephens.

"We've had a lot of people come out knowing it could be their last meal here for awhile," said. "Some have been getting their picture taken in here and have talked about the fond memories they had of the restaurant and the park. The customers have been great with their support."

Earlier in the week, about 100 veterans posed for a photo at the Veteran's Point Memorial at Weldon Springs. Debrah Douglas, president of DeWitt County Homefront, helped organize the event.

"It's just been kind of crazy the last few weeks and since we don't know about the future, we felt it was important to gather as many as we could for one last opportunity to visit the memorial and take a picture for history," she said.

Back at Moraine View, Leon Gibson recalled seeing a coyote chasing three deer across the frozen lake about three years ago. But while timber gives four-legged critters plenty of room to roam, it is the two legged ones the Gibsons think about-the 400,000 to 500,000 people who visit annually.

"You see kids from apartment houses and they see the grass - they just go wild," he said.

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Historic sites and parks set to close

A dozen Illinois state historic sites and seven state parks will close Sunday as part of budget cuts made by Gov. Rod Blagojevich to help close a $2 billion budget deficit.

PARKS CLOSING:

-Castle Rock State Park, Oregon

-Lowden State Park, Oregon

-Illini State Park, Marseilles

-Hidden Springs State Forrest, Strasburg

-Moraine View State Park, Leroy

-Weldon Springs State Park, Clinton

-Wolf Creek State Park, Windsor

HISTORIC SITES CLOSING:

-Dana-Thomas House, Springfield

-Lincoln log cabin near Charleston

-Fort de Chartres, Randolph County

-Vandalia statehouse

-State center at Bishop Hill, Henry County

-Carl Sandburg birthplace, Galesburg

-Cahokia courthouse

-Hauberg Indian Museum, Rock Island County, but the adjacent natural area will stay open.

-Jubilee College, near Peoria

-Apple River Fort, Elizabeth

-Fort Kaskaskia, Randolph County

-Pierre Menard home, Randolph County

Local funds and volunteers will keep open at least temporarily:

-Bryant cottage, Bement

-David Davis mansion, Bloomington

Source: Blagojevich administration