Date: 03/05/2023 – Distance: 7.7 mi – Elapsed Time: 4.75 hr – Ascent: 901 ft – Descent: 1068 ft – Difficulty: Medium
Continuing my search on the Wildflower Parade, I decided to visit to my second favorite place in Ohio. John Bryan State Park is situated along the Little Miami State and National Scenic River near Yellow Springs, Ohio. Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve is directly adjacent to the State Park and is similar, but with more dramatic features. The cliffs are intense, and the wildflowers are amazing, especially considering the early spring like conditions have the wildflower parade a few weeks ahead of last year. I spent a few days in the parks while camping.
I started the day off with a hearty breakfast burrito from Underdog Cafe and espresso from Dino’s Cappuccinos. Highly recommend both.I started from the State Park campground.Many of the spring wildflowers are small and you have to look closely for them, like with this Speedwell. The flowers are about 1/8 inch. You can often find this one in your lawn.I started off on the North Rim Trail.I took a right here because I wanted to go into the gorge first.Purple Cress.The cliffs here are a magnesium infused limestone called dolomite.At this intersection, I made a sharp left turn away from the road going to the South Shelter.This trail leads down to the river and is called the Pittsburgh-Cincinatti Stagecoach Trail.The river was swollen from recent rains.The South Gorge Bridge.I crossed over it to get on the South Gorge Trail.River is pretty high, but not over it’s banks.Lots of brush damned up on the upstream side of the bridge. Water snakes often bask on the logs.White Cedar aka Arborvitae.There are beavers here too.Harbinger of Spring is a beautiful tiny flower and difficult to spot among the leaf litter.Snow Trillium is pretty rare and there were a ton of them on this trail. There is a Hepatica at the bottom of the pic as well.Some of the side streams coming down the cliffs are pretty cool as well.Hepatica come in several shades, from white, to pink, light blue, and even a deep violet.Cool bridge.Another side stream.The parks are always growing, thanks to generous donations.I just wanted to show how many Snow Trilliums there were here. Look close.Tiny and only a couple inches tall.Ramps are coming up as well. Wild Leeks are edible, both the leaves and bulb. I have not tried them, but I guess they taste like a garlic onion. The flowers come in summer long after the leaves have disappeared.The further you go up this gorge, the cliffs get more shear and the gorge more narrow.Virginia Waterleaf.I was trying to capture the wild Hydrangea flow from last year.Stonecrop is a succulant.Virginia Bluebells are coming up as well.Cool water flowing over moss.There are a couple boardwalks over some of the more wet areas.Puttyroot Orchid leaves.Close up of the leeks. Notice the leaves they come up from the center without a stem. A close look-a-like is Lily of the Valley, which can make you very sick and even cause cardiac arrest. It’s leaves however are on a stem. The best way to tell them apart is by the smell of the crushed leaf as leeks smell like onions or garlic.You can see the new leaves coming up on this Hepatica as well as the mottled leaves from last year dying back.Slump blocks are large pieces of rock, which have broken off the cliff. Some are huge like this one, and it’s split in three places.Another large slump block. The wildflowers love to grow on these.The cliff is getting bigger.Looking upstream.Hepatica.Look how the water flows over these rocks and moss. I’ve even seen it coming over the steps before.Another cool side stream.The North Gorge Bridge.Cutleaf Toothwort.Spring Beauty.A few rules in the State Nature Preserve.Spring Beauty lives up to its name. Very delicate.Wow.Entering into the Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve.There is always good information on the kiosks.This is brand new.Close up of the map.Harbinger of Spring.Duchman’s Breeches.Toothwort.Snow Trillium.Beautiful Hepatica.Some Canadian Geese taking in the sun.Violet Hepatica.Pink Hepatica.The Blue Hole.A little history about the Blue Hole.Coming up on the old Paper Mill. You can see some foundation just right of center.A little history of the Paper Mill.More of the foundation. The river is raging.About the slump blocks.The cave is pretty big.Wouldn’t want to be here when one of these breaks away.Amphitheater Falls.Another view of Amphitheater Falls.This slump block is named.Some say it looks like a boat.As the gorge narrows, the river current gets stronger.And the cliffs more dramatic.That’s weird. It looks like a Grape Hyacinth, a common garden flower.Wow. Notice how the White Cedars hang on the cliff.The gorge is getting more narrow.The trail ascends out of the gorge.The Bear’s Den Nature Center.Some cool Daffodils near the Nature Center.Looking downstream from the top.Closeup of the White Cedar aka Arborvitae.This is the Eastern Red Cedar.The trail continues up the gorge on the rim, called the Narrows Trail. Honey Bees in a Red Cedar.I’m not sure I believe this story.The gorge is very narrow here.You can literally feel the power of the rushing river here.Incredible, and the ground rumbles.Looking downstream.Another mill location.The mill spanned the gorge here. When the water isn’t so high, you can see the old postholes.Stay away from the cliff edge. You would die in there.The Civilian Conservation Corps built this wall in the early 1930s.The trail ends at Clifton, Ohio.More new signage.Geology.Good graphic of how the gorge was formed.Flowers and Animals.Another good map.No pets.This is also a good map of the whole river gorge through both parks.$50 fine. There are plenty of signs too.Giant Swallowtail lives here.Only a few of the wildflowers.1967.Another reminder.Heading back on the Narrows Trail.It’s kind of hard to believe this is the same river.Snow Drops.Some more wildflowers.Funny how nature reclaims the scars left by man.Violators.This tree used to be in the campground, way before it was a state park.I needed a snack. These Honey Stinger Chews are really good.Nutrition info.I’m continuing to head back on the rim.Two more violators. I saw 6 dogs today in Clifton Gorge.I decided to take the Orton Trail for a bit, since I hadn’t been on it in awhile.Those bushes are invasive Bush Honeysuckle. They take over.They are trying to clear them out, but it’s a long and difficult process.There is a memorial.Edward Orton was a prominent naturalist in the area.He loved this area.Along the Rim Trail there are areas designated for rock climbing. Notice the eye bolts in the rock.There are several color named areas along the cliff, and they are graded according to difficulty.Cool waterfall.The trail is joined by a Storybook Trail, which was built last year.Parking at the North Rim Trailhead.Snow Drops.Coming back into the campground. This pollinator garden was built last year.
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