This was our fifth and final trail to experience in the outstanding Edge of Appalachia Preserve System. Each has been unique and an unqualified success in our outdoors experiences. It is amazing that so many outstanding hiking venues are located so close together in Adams County, Ohio.
The Edge of Appalachia Preserve System includes 11 different preserves, over a combined 20,000 acres, and hosts over 27 miles of trails. It is expertly run under the joint management of The Nature Conservancy of Ohio and The Museum Center of Cincinnati. The close proximity of so many preserved acres increases the diversity of wildlife, both flora and fauna, seen along the hikes. The map below shows the extensive greenspace preserved by the System. In addition, the John and Marion Becker Cedar Falls Preserve & Helen C. Black Trail is just out of range on this map, north on highway 348.
We were blessed on this day, the Veterans’ Day observation date, to be hiking with two of our three daughters. They, like the photographer, were enticed with the possibility that we could see Stiff Gentian, the last wildflower of the season to bloom in Ohio. That would have been appropriate since we started the year hunting down Skunk Cabbage, the first wildflower to bloom in Ohio.
The trail is a classic loop path, with the trailhead on the west side of the parking lot, and the return on the east.
We were met in the parking lot by this fellow, who appeared to be a neighbor to the preserve. Truly a Walmart greeter kind of guy.
We were still at the trailhead when Caroline captured these photos – Cedar Waxwings just above our heads. They travel in flocks and it had been years since I had seen them. You know that it is going to be a good hike when your outing starts like this.
From the trailhead the path glides down into a wide valley. Fall leaf change was winding down, but the forest was still aglow with amber as seen in the title photo and below.
The low lying fall sun was over the ridge to our left, causing some interesting shadows on the forest floor.
The area was remote enough that we only heard the sounds of nature and, of course, our new friend who was guarding our rear.
This was a maturing wood of Beech, Hickory and Oak, with tree trunks that were straight and many limbless for the first 60 feet. Per the Edge of Appalachia literature, this is not an old growth forest as much of it had been cleared in the latter half of the nineteenth and first few decades of the twentieth centuries.
As we worked our way down the valley we started noticing small bluffs or outcroppings on the ridge to our right.
And arising amongst the limestone were specimens of White Cedar, a somewhat rare tree that occurs in pockets in Ohio, whose predecessors where brought down from northern latitudes 15,000 – 30,000 years ago, with the last glacial migration.
As we rounded the ridge point the trail climbed a mild grade and entered a White Cedar thicket.
When we emerged on the other side of the thicket we found the trail, and ourselves, perched on a bluff 60 feet above a wooded valley. Apparently our canine friend has heights issues because this is when he left us.
Adding to the thrill-ride experience was the somewhat treacherous nature of the trail, with small loose stones that rolled beneath our feet and exposed rocks and roots acting as trip hazards.
The photographer was happy to work her way down the descending slope.
We entered a that mildly sloping woodland was free of much understory, allowing views across the broad valley of Brush Creek.
Healthy, mostly deciduous forest rolled on for as far as the eye could see. Episodically we would see some Virginia Pines adding some green to the winter landscape.
One of the more interesting trees were the occasional large Redcedar, which were 50 feet or more in height. At this stage in development, the architecture of the tree has reached its full potential, which I would describe as “stately”.
Here we were heading northeast on a rather flat plane, that lies at the base of a ridge that featured a series of larger dolomite limestone bluffs.
To our left the trail looked down upon a large agricultural field that appears to be on preserve property.
Eventually the trail heads south and a good cardiovascular workout begins as you climb out of the valley, through a more narrow ravine, in close proximity to some limestone outcroppings.
In the ravine were some moss covered slump rocks, one of our favorite micro-ecosystems, which featured Walking Ferns.
The final stretch of the trail passes through Shiviner Prairie, a pocket meadow within the deciduous forest.
This empties onto an old homestead setting with an outbuilding. As we climbed the old farm lane back to the parking lot we saw an extensive grouping of the fern allele Ground Cedar. Vegetatively it resembles cedars, but due to its spore reproduction it is placed in the plant group with the ferns. Its spore forming structures, which were on display, are shaped like a club, hence the broad name for these cousins of the ferns – club mosses. It is a very slow growing evergreen ground cover that was almost eliminated in the late 1800s and early 1900s due to the loss of habitat from forest clear cutting and people collecting it for holiday decorations.
The spore forming club structures are called strobili – not to be confused with the Italian food stromboli, a cousin of pizza.
On first glance this hike seems to be about the expansiveness of the forest and views that are experienced. But as is often the case, if one slows down, there is much to be seen on the small scale. By most peoples standards we crawl through our hikes, averaging 1 MPH. This allows one to see the beauty of nature on the small scale, and capture it in photos. In the late fall and winter these are frequently the mosses, lichens, fruits, and fungi.
Mosses:
I particularly liked the marriage of moss and lichen on this old tree stump, doing the slow work of nature’s recycling.
Fruits:
Greenbrier – a semi-evergreen vine that is barbed as seen below.
Spicebush – given the numbers of birds in the forest I was surprised to see so many berries still on these shrubs. In my experience most Spicebush berries are consumed in the bright red stage, but the fruits do take on a raisin like appearance if allowed to age. The leaves of Spicebush smell like lemon when crushed.
Bear Corn – this is a parasitic plant that gets its nutrition off the roots of oaks although it really does not harm them. It is only seen in healthy, established woods. In the photo below the fruiting body holds a cluster of dried black berries which are eaten by wildlife, including Black Bears, Raccoons, and Deer, which then spread the seeds in their feces.
It is easy to overlook the beauty, complexity, and variety in acorns. This would just be a small sampling.
Fungi –
But these two specimens of Turkey Tail Fungi were the real stars of the day.
More animated sightings we had on our hike included this guy, who appears to have a naked acorn nut in his mouth.
And through the wonder of digital photography and magnification we can really appreciate this Seek and Find fly.
New Plant of the Day – Wild Yam – In the photo below we see the unique seed capsules of this plant. As I researched it, I realized that we have seen this plant many times as it has a very memorable heart shaped leaf. It has a parsnip like root that was used for many Native American medicinal treatments.
In summary, the Charles E. Eulett Wilderness Trail is another jewel in the crown of the Edge of Appalachian Trail System. It winds through a vast forest with a diversity of trees and other wildlife. While we did not see the Stiff Gentian that we were in search of, our time in the woods and pocket prairies was rewarding. This was the final trail for us to complete at the Edge of Appalachia Preserve System, but we know that in no way will it be our last visit there, for the experience is different each time you go, and the stage changes with the seasons. The presence of the pocket prairies entices me to return during the prairie season of late summer. I would encourage everyone to include in their New Years resolutions a trip to one of the Edge of Appalachia Preserves or other Nature Conservancy property. After all, resolutions do not only have to be about breaking bad habits or completing a to do list, and the visit might just bring some peace and joy to your new year.
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Photo credits to Peggy Juengling Burns and Caroline Burns Grizzle.
Overview:
Location – 499 Shriviner Road, 64 miles from downtown Cincinnati in West Union, Ohio. Our GPS had a little trouble finding the location. As you are heading east on OH-125, about 7.5 miles outside West Union, Ohio, the Lynx Road is on the left as you crest a hill, and Shiviner Road is a gravel road that arises off it.
Parking – gravel lot for 8-10 cars.
Trail Conditions – bare dirt with exposed rocks. The loop is 2.4 miles. We hiked it clockwise from the parking lot and I do think that is the right choice. For kids however counter-clockwise may be easier as terrain climb at the end would not be as severe.
Print Map Link – https://www.cincymuseum.org/sites/default/files/2014-Wilderness-Trail.pdf
Benches – none noted
Picnic Tables – several are undercover at the Creek’s Bend Overlook which is just a few miles away and noted on the first map above.
Facilities – also at the Creek’s Bend Overlook, a couple miles away from this trail.
Kids – the terrain can be challenging and it is a steady climb back up out of the valley. I would stress the need to keep an eye on kids when the trail wraps on the edge of the bluffs. I would lean toward 8 and over.
Dogs – prohibited.
Suggested Paired Hikes – the other four hikes at the Edge of Appalachia are excellent as well. Perhaps have a picnic lunch at the Overlook and try one of the others. The Lynx Prairie and Joan Portman trails would be my recommendation as the length and terrain of the others may be too much paired with this one.
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Great photos of the nature. I like the little squirrel 🐿️.
Officially it was chipmunk, a small member of the squirrel family. They do not have the big bushy tail of our squirrels and are smaller than your red squirrel as well. They have very animated behaviors and probably for that reason were used in a couple of different cartoon series in the States (Chip and Dale, The Chipmunks – Simon, Theodore, and Alvin).
Thanks for that clarification I didn’t know that animal 😊.