Saturday, September 26, 20015.
I went to Shawnee Lookout Park in the absolute southwest corner of Ohio. The park offers great views of Kentucky, Indiana, the Oxbows of the Great Miami River (an important stop along the migratory routes of more than 200 species of birds), and a power plant with power lines extending out in all directions (No, this isn't something my soul craves, but it is kind of cool the first couple times you see it).
It is also has an old Indian fort (ceremonial, not for defense), many burial mounds, and a Watchamacallit. That is the remains of a stone-lined hole in the ground built by early 19th-century settlers used as a .................... so they could ............... well, no one knows what purpose it served. I say remains but the entire thing is still there, they just filled it in so people and animals would quit falling into it.
The 1.3 mile Blue Jacket trail does not stand out in my mind as anything special. In the spring before leaves are on the trees it has good views westward. At this time of year I didn't bother hiking it.
The 2 mile Little Turtle trail shares the same parking area (so I guess laziness is the only reason I didn't hike them both) and is on the other side of the road, just past the Watchamacallit with a sign telling you that nobody knows what it is. The trail starts out in early successional woods and slowly matures as you take a right at the fork in the trail and approach the Ohio River. As the trail goes along the cliff above the river there are some fairly large oaks (30" + diameter). If you somehow get lost and proceed beyond the benches and railing you are not supposed to cross there are some 40" + oaks. On this day there was a light misty rain driven by a moderate wind. I couldn't feel the rain until I reached the river overlook where it was unimpeded by trees. The wind was blowing all the leaves on the pawpaws in the same direction. They looked like flags. A couple minutes later it stopped raining and the wind died down. The view was better as I could see further but the day lost its magic.
The 1.4 mile Miami Fort trail is the most historical/educational. It should not be hiked in September. There are hundreds of walnut trees along the trail that will try to knock you senseless with their nuts. I survived the hike, but a week earlier I might not have been so lucky. This trail provides lookouts to the west (when there are no leaves on the trees) and the south. There are many informational signs along the trail explaining the way things were back in the day.
Shawnee Lookout is great for early spring and late fall hikes. I compromised and hiked in early fall. I live and you learn.
Doug
9/28/2015.
Monday, September 28, 2015
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
The purpose of this blog is not just to share where to hike in southern Ohio, but when to hike. Hopefully I can provide enough information that I can attract readers who can share their information and stories and help make finding the awesome hike easier.
My selfish reason for starting this blog is so that I can hit the spring wildflower hotspots at their peak. My original plan was just to see when the Arc of Appalachia is planning their Wildflower Pilgrimage and schedule my vacation a couple days before or after. Obviously, bloom times depend on the weather and not the calendar. I was late one year and early the next. I am out every weekend at that time of year, so I didn't totally miss nature's spring show. Still, it would be helpful to know where to go at any given time to maximize vacation time and the limited weekend hours.
My other selfish reason (What? Did I forget to mention I had more than one selfish reason?) is that I like to schedule a somewhat impromptu winter hikes during peak waterfall cone and icicle (stalagmite and stalactite if you prefer) season. I stare at the weather forecast for the Hocking area a couple times a week in the winter looking for rain followed by a good freeze and then a couple days of slightly above freezing with below freezing nights and I just wish I could go somewhere and read something from someone who has just been there. Damn, that was a long sentence. Hopefully this can be such a place for hikers to share their observations.
Three more paragraphs. First - a short biography. I live in Cincinnati and I am hiking in a local park almost every weekend that I am not hiking elsewhere. July and August are too damn hot, so I usually only sneak in an hour or so very early in the morning. I work outside all day all week and would rather sit in the AC and drink beer and wish my garden would weed itself during hot weather. I'll venture further from home in the spring and fall to Five Rivers MetroParks, Glen Helen and Clifton Gorge, The Arc of Appalachia and Fort Hill, Lake Hope and Zaleski State Forest, Hocking Hills state parks, state forests and nature preserves in that area, and any other park or preserve in between here and there that offers a couple hours of hiking.
My short-term goals for the blog are to list all the places I've been hiking with a brief summary and to provide links to those places. Starting with this fall's Chase of Color I will provide more detailed information about my hikes.
My long-term goal is to create a local phenological calendar for spring wildflowers. My long-term promise to myself is to walk every trail that I can find and record my observation here so other hikers can use that info to help them plan their hikes.
Doug.
9/9/15.
My selfish reason for starting this blog is so that I can hit the spring wildflower hotspots at their peak. My original plan was just to see when the Arc of Appalachia is planning their Wildflower Pilgrimage and schedule my vacation a couple days before or after. Obviously, bloom times depend on the weather and not the calendar. I was late one year and early the next. I am out every weekend at that time of year, so I didn't totally miss nature's spring show. Still, it would be helpful to know where to go at any given time to maximize vacation time and the limited weekend hours.
My other selfish reason (What? Did I forget to mention I had more than one selfish reason?) is that I like to schedule a somewhat impromptu winter hikes during peak waterfall cone and icicle (stalagmite and stalactite if you prefer) season. I stare at the weather forecast for the Hocking area a couple times a week in the winter looking for rain followed by a good freeze and then a couple days of slightly above freezing with below freezing nights and I just wish I could go somewhere and read something from someone who has just been there. Damn, that was a long sentence. Hopefully this can be such a place for hikers to share their observations.
Three more paragraphs. First - a short biography. I live in Cincinnati and I am hiking in a local park almost every weekend that I am not hiking elsewhere. July and August are too damn hot, so I usually only sneak in an hour or so very early in the morning. I work outside all day all week and would rather sit in the AC and drink beer and wish my garden would weed itself during hot weather. I'll venture further from home in the spring and fall to Five Rivers MetroParks, Glen Helen and Clifton Gorge, The Arc of Appalachia and Fort Hill, Lake Hope and Zaleski State Forest, Hocking Hills state parks, state forests and nature preserves in that area, and any other park or preserve in between here and there that offers a couple hours of hiking.
My short-term goals for the blog are to list all the places I've been hiking with a brief summary and to provide links to those places. Starting with this fall's Chase of Color I will provide more detailed information about my hikes.
My long-term goal is to create a local phenological calendar for spring wildflowers. My long-term promise to myself is to walk every trail that I can find and record my observation here so other hikers can use that info to help them plan their hikes.
Doug.
9/9/15.
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