Our middle daughter texted us and expressed interest in an Easter hike, and even had a link to a venue – Ohio River Bluffs Nature Preserve. I was not familiar with the preserve, but I knew the parent organization well – The Arc of Appalachia – truly a peak performer of land conservation in southern Ohio. I went to their website to familiarize myself with the Ohio River Bluffs Preserve. I read, “…. then Ohio River Bluffs is surely the crowning gem of the entire Arc of Appalachia Preserve System. Nowhere else in the Arc is there such unrestrained wildflower exuberance.” I was sold!
We pulled into the parking area and noted that we were surrounded – by Blue-eyed Marys. They crowded this valley floor in numbers that I had never seen before.
We crossed a shallow creek using well placed limestone and entered on a trail that wove through a lot of wildflowers. The three of us were calling out their names, sounding like botanical auctioneers. In the photo below Dwarf Larkspur, Woodland Phlox, Blue-eyed Marys and Virginia Bluebells are easily identified.
Here is a photo composite of our first hundred yards: Blue-eyed Marys, Dwarf Larkspur, Woodland Phlox, Woodland Poppy, and Virginia Bluebells.
Soon the trail exited what I considered the streamside flood plain and began a slow climb uphill, and we had one exciting sighting after another:
Toadshade Trillium – it is also called Sessile Trillium due to the lack of stalk to the flower.
Yellow Woodland Violet – also called Downy Violet. It is considered uncommon.
Star Chickweed – it is prettier and more formal than the Common Chickweed that is a pest in our gardens.
The hillside was populated by Larkspur and Woodland Poppy – a beautiful contrast.
It would be hard to exaggerate the beauty of the slope that was covered with the purple of Larkspur,
extending for a half-mile or more, often sharing the stage with other wildflowers, such as Blue-eyed Marys in this stretch.
But it could also be with a healthy population of Rue-anemone as noted a short distance down the path.
Somewhat early in the hike, in the swathes of Larkspur, we would occasionally note a specimen of paler Larkspur. It was perhaps only one in a thousand flower spikes, though I did not do any formal sampling to confirm that. The photographer noted that it is easier to appreciate the detail of the flower anatomy in the paler specimens.
As we discussed the whitish Larkspur, fellow hikers who were coming from the opposite direction, noted that the pale variety was much more common a little further on the trail. As we continued, we noted what they were commenting on. Not abundant pale Larkspur, but rather the flower spikes of Wild Hyacinth, a rather rare spring ephemeral.
It would be an easy mistake to make given the similar shape of the flower spike and color of the flower. But the Wild Hyacinth has 6 flower petals, whereas Larkspur has 5, and the Hyacinth had a cluster of unopened buds at the tip of the spike. It is not easy to appreciate in the chaos of the crowded vegetation, but the leaves of the Wild Hyacinth are dramatically different than those of Larkspur, having a grass like appearance as noted in the photo above.
I described Wild Hyacinth as rare, which it is, but wherever I have found it, it has occurred in broad swathes – in botanical terms -“regionally rare, but locally abundant” – which it was here.
We selected a few photos of isolated wildflower specimens to share, to give the reader a better appreciation of their shape and beauty.
Dwarf Larkspur and Purple Deadnettle.
Yellow Corydalis and Ragwort.
Rue-aneomone.
Blue-eyed Mary and Woodland Poppy.
The photographer particularly liked this image because it so clearly demonstrates why they are called Virginia Bluebells.
The flowers of Jacob’s Ladder were just starting to open.
But the truth is that woodland flowers usually do not present themselves as isolated specimens, but rather grow intermixed with other species.
Here we have Dwarf Larkspur with Yellow Corydalis, Purple Deadnettle, and Blue-eyed Marys.
Sessile Trillium, Blue-eyed Marys, and Purple Deadnettle are noted in this image.
Here Dwarf Larkspur, Blue-eyed Marys, Sessile Trillium, and Solomon’s Seal were clustered together.
Two look-alikes of the spring woodland are Dutchman’s Breeches and Squirrel Corn. They are closely related and both are members of the Dicentra genus. I think of Dutchman’s Breeches as looking like an extracted tooth, while Squirrel Corn looks like a heart.
Another set of look-alikes is Solomon’s Seal and False Solomon’s Seal. Their leaves have a very similar appearance and arrangement along the stem. The flowers of Solomon’s Seal arises singly along the stem on the underside of the plant, while the flowers of False Solomon’s Seal occur in a cluster at the tip of the plant. The fruit of Solomon’s seal will be a series of blue berries arising along the stem, while that of False Solomon’s Seal will be a cluster of bright red berries at the end of the stem.
Odds and Ends:
In addition to the woodland wildflowers, the spring forest will also feature flowering trees. Walking on a hillside often gives a view into the canopy of trees that are below you, a perspective that you can not appreciate on flat ground. The first that we saw was a Yellow Buckeye.
This closeup view was fascinating.
Likewise, the flowers of Pawpaw trees were also at eye level. Their maroon-brown coloration makes them not as noticeable. They are said to put off a scent of decaying meat, which is helpful for attracting the Carrion Fly that pollinates them. We tried but did not appreciate the described odor. That may have been because they had just begun opening up. The scent gets stronger as the flower ages.
Ellen was toting a water bottle in her hand when she noted an insect on it. It was a nymph of an Assassin Bug. It has hairs on its front legs that act like velcro and assist in capturing prey. Overall they are considered beneficial insects as they often feed on insects that damage garden and crop plants. Its coloration is fascinating.
True to her form, Ellen also found a small orb spider in a web suspended trailside. Orb spiders are the group of spiders that weave the typical spider web.
The photographer was intrigued by the seed pods of the Dwarf Larkspurs that were already pollinated.
We spotted this Bumblebee feeding on the nectar of a Larkspur. As is often the case, a flower’s anatomy will determine who is able to reach its nectar and therefore pollinate it. In Dwarf Larkspur’s case, it is the long tongued Bumblebee as well as Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. Interestingly, the Larkspur is at peak bloom in early and mid-April when the hummingbirds return to our region.
In summary, our Easter outing at Ohio River Bluffs Nature Preserve was outstanding and featured an almost unimaginable wildflower display. The Bluebells were perhaps waning but the Dwarf Larkspur was coming on strong. In addition there was a broad assortment of flowers to catch your attention. I suspect that others will come on to complete the spring ephemeral season, especially the Jacob’s Ladder. If you are not able to get there in the near future, I would encourage you to put a reminder in your phone for the last week of March (peak Bluebells) or the first two weeks of April (peak Larkspur) for 2027. I guarantee that you have never seen a display like this preserve has to offer. Kudos to the Arc of Appalachia for protecting this gem.
Footpathsblog.com posts are released every Sunday morning and some bonus content is added periodically. Please click on a social media icon above to follow for future posts and to make sure that you catch all our reflections on, and adventures with, the great outdoors.
Photo credits to Peggy Juengling Burns.
Overview:
Location – 400 Gilkison Hollow Rd, Manchester, OH, 70 miles from downtown Cincinnati.
Parking – gravel lot for 14 cars.
Trail Conditions – bare dirt. Grades are mild overall.
Print Map Link – https://static1.squarespace.com/static/640b875d14fa1852d6031793/t/68f4f315a8b72d37218ab450/1760883477681/Ohio+River+Bluffs+Hiking+Guide.pdf
Facilities – none.
Benches – One concrete bench along the trail noted.
Picnic Tables – none.
Kids – I would suggest 6 and over.
Dogs – prohibited.
Suggested Paired Hikes – This preserve also offers the 0.5 mile Blue-eyed Mary Trail.
Links: