Champaign County Parks & Nature Preserves

The following list of parks and preserves includes those managed by federal, state, county, and non-governmental agencies (such as the National Audubon Society, the Nature Conservancy, various historical societies, etc.).

We have tried to collect information on the activities and facilities available at various parks, but things may change without us knowing about it. So please double-check the information at the official site (click on the park’s name to go there).

Cedar Bog (Ohio Historical Society)

• 980 Woodburn Road, Urbana, OH
• GPS coordinates: N40.055607,W83.792328
• Location: Cedar Bog is 4 miles south of Urbana on U.S. Rte 68, then west on Woodburn Rd for 1 mile to signed entrance and parking lot.
• Park size: 427 acres
• Total trail length: mile–long boardwalk
• A fee is charged to access the site.
• Cedar Bog isn’t really a bog, but instead is a fen (the difference is explained in our TrekOhio post). Not only that, it is one of the most exemplary fens in Ohio including both woods and prairie. There are numerous orchids here as well as many other flowers.
• The Cedar Bog Association maintains a related website. Among other things the association publishes a schedule of events, lists of what flowers bloom when, and information on the species of wildlife that make their home at Cedar Bog.
• Location on Google Maps
• TrekOhio photos and descriptions of Cedar Bog

Davey Woods (State Nature Preserve)

• Lonesome Rd., St Paris, Ohio
• GPS coordinates: N40.138379,W83.90455
• Location: 7 miles west of Urbana on U.S. Rte 36, proceed 1 mile north on Neal Rd, then 1/2 mile west on Smith Rd, and northwest on Lonesome Rd (Township Highway 66) to the preserve entrance
• Park size: 103 acres
• Total trail length: 1.4 miles
• Dogs not permitted
• No restrooms are provided.
• The park has a parking lot and two loop trails: one is 1.4 miles and the other (which overlaps with the former trail) is 0.6 miles
• Although there is a sign at the parking lot that appears to give the preserve’s street number (7661), if you enter 7661 Lonesome Rd into Google Maps, it pinpoints this address as occurring almost immediately after turning onto Lonesome Rd from Smith Rd, when the parking lot is actually a considerable distance northwest of this point.
• Included in Wikipedia’s list of old growth forests
• Location on Google Maps
• TrekOhio photos and descriptions of Davey Woods

Kiser Lake State Park (State Park)

• 4889 N State Route 235, Conover, OH 45317
• GPS coordinates: N40.196733,W83.977926
• Park size: 531 acres, including a 396–acre lake
• Total trail length: 4 miles of hiking trails, plus 7 miles of bridle trails
• Dog friendly
• Bridle trails
• Fishing (check the official site to see if there are any restrictions)
• Hunting when in season with license. Please visit park web site for details.
• Good site for bird watching
• Camp sites
• Cross country ski trails
• Restrooms
• Boats with motors are not permitted on the lake; however, sailing is popular, as is canoeing and kayaking. Boats can be rented at two sites on the lake. There is a public beach (600 ft) that is open in the summer. Winter activities include sledding, cross–country skiing, ice skating, ice fishing, and ice boating, weather permitting.
• Campground Map
• Park Map for Kiser Lake State Park
• Location on Google Maps
• TrekOhio photos and descriptions of Kiser Lake State Park

Kiser Lake Wetlands (State Nature Preserve)

• Location: Located at the north end of Kiser Lake Road (County Road 19) at the headwaters to Kiser Lake
• Park size: 51 acres
• Locate within Kiser Lake State Park. The Grandview Heights portion of the preserve is a prairie fen, but it is only open with a written permit; Grandview Heights is located in the south central part of Kiser Park. The Headwaters Section of the preserve is located in the southeast part of the park. The Headwaters Section is open to the public and it has a boardwalk going through a wetland meadow.
• TrekOhio photos and descriptions of Kiser Lake Wetlands

Siegenthaler–Kaestner Esker (State Nature Preserve)

• GPS coordinates: N40.234542,W83.85384
• Location: From Rosewood follow SR 29 east 8 miles to Calland Road, proceed north on Calland Road 2.5 miles, then east on Couchman Road .5 mile to preserve entrance
• Trail map
• Park size: 37 acres
• Total trail length: About a mile, but it is not a loop, so you will have to double–back at least part of the way.
• Dogs not permitted
• No restrooms are provided.
• The terrain of this park was shaped during the last ice age, and it features a number of ice–contact formations, including glacial landforms including eskers, kames, outwash valley and a kettle pond. Besides the trail the only amenities were the parking lot and a kiosk.
• Location on Google Maps
• TrekOhio photos and descriptions of Siegenthaler–Kaestner Esker

Last Update: 2017-07-24 16:32:02