Dennis Profant: 1956 – 2015
I was saddened to learn that Dennis Profant has passed away. Dennis Profant was a well respected natural resources professor at Hocking College. He was also part of the community of Ohio nature bloggers. He authored the blog, Field Biology in Southwest Ohio.
Some of his fellow, Ohio nature bloggers have published their own tributes:
Wahkeena Preserve: In Memoriam
Ohio Birds and Biodiversity: Dennis Profant, 1956-2015
He will be greatly missed. "The life of the dead is retained in the Read more ➜
This past weekend we visited the Fallsville Wildlife Area in Highland County. The wildlife area contains a stream valley with a large waterfall. After recent rains it was running quite well. The wildlife area and the falls are named after the town of Fallsville, OH. The town is long gone, but the name lives on.
We parked off of Careytown Rd. about a 1/4 mile south of the local ODNR Wildlife Area Headquarters. A small dirt road is shown on maps as Township Road 432. The road widens 
Saturday we visited three waterfalls in Miami County. Below we show what the waterfalls look like and describe their locations.
Ludlow Falls
First up was Ludlow Falls in the village of Ludlow Falls. We parked in a dirt parking lot across from the post office. The 15 ft (4.5m) high falls on Ludlow Creek is located under a highway bridge. A short path leads from the lot to the falls.
FYI, the village, creek, and falls are named after Israel Ludlow, a surveyor who helped found 
Spring is a great time to see Ohio waterfalls. Many Ohio waterfalls dry up in the summer heat. But in spring, with melting snow, saturated ground, and rain showers, these waterfalls can be quite spectacular. Below is a list of some of the Ohio waterfalls we've visited categorized by geographic region.
Central Ohio
Hayden Falls (Franklin County) - an easily accessible waterfall in the city limits of Columbus
Honey Run Falls (Knox County) - a waterfall across from a park with hiking 
This past Saturday was cold and the ground had a thick cover of snow. Perfect weather to go see polar bears in central Ohio.
We were at the Columbus Zoo which features a polar bear exhibit. It has a large open area for the bears and a fish stocked pool (chilled in the summer) with an underwater observation room for visitors. The two female bears were snoozing and the male was calmly surveying the terrain.
Many of the zoo's animals are indoors for the season, but several of 
"What are these flower petals?" I asked Deb. They were all over the trail; large petals striped with white, green, and orange. It was mid-May and we were spending a week at Pipestem Resort State Park in West Virginia. It was a hikers paradise. We spent every day on a different trail and that day we were following a trail from the lodge on the rim of Bluestone Gorge all the way down to the river. The striped flower petals were everywhere. Deb didn't know what they were. We kept a lookout for a flower 
Last Saturday we participated in the winter hike at Clear Creek Metro Park. This 5,382-acre Metro Park is located on the border of Hocking and Fairfield Counties; it features 14 miles of hiking trails.
The day was cold, near freezing with an overcast sky. We arrived early about 9:20 AM for the 10 AM hikes and were greeted by park staff and volunteers who provided maps and routes for a variety of hikes. There were a variety of hikes available ranging from 1 to 7 miles and of varying 
Ramser Arboretum is a 680-acre arboretum in Knox County that is privately-owned, but open to the public (except during deer-gun season). It features more than five miles of hiking trails that may be used by cross country skiers during the winter.
The entrance contains a gravel parking lot, picnic tables, a port-a-potty and a kiosk with information and post cards with a map of the trails. A relatively short drive from Columbus (30-40 minutes), Ramser is a nice spot for a walk in the 
In reviewing 2014, we've come up with our annual TrekOhio highlights!
Best Hike of the Year
We've excluded the Hocking Hills Winter Hike, which otherwise would probably win best hike every year. Beyond this annual hike, below are our favorites for this year.
Deb: My favorite hike for the year was the one that we took at the Headlands Dunes State Nature Preserve. Living miles from the ocean, it is easy to forget that Ohio has beach dunes, but thanks to Lake Erie, we do. The hike is very 
Dawes Arboretum located in Central Ohio consists of 1,800 acres of formal gardens, fields, ponds, and forests, including eight miles of hiking trails. Among its facilities are a visitors center, rest rooms, picnic areas and shelters. The meticulously maintained formal gardens are a popular venue for weddings.
The arboretum was established by Columbus residents Beman and Bertie Dawes. They purchased an old farm in Licking County, renamed it Daweswood and planted trees and established gardens.