Kiwanis Riverway Park

Hello Everyone! 

This month the cabin fever has started to set in and I needed to do something outdoors. I like to find trails and get lost in the woods. I have a bit of a crush on Dublin, Ohio and I enjoy having excuses to head over there. I know they have some local parks to check out and I landed on Kiwanis Riverway Park. It's a little nature preserve trail along the Scioto River that is also a wetland. We bundled up and headed out to find it. 

We couldn't find it. We passed it twice. If you check out the map at the above link, it is literally right after the giant roundabout. There's no sign from the street. After caving and asking Google Maps, it wanted us to turn at a driveway with offices. After going downhill, we finally saw the lovely green Dublin-style sign. Later, we found out you could park under the bridge (at the roundabout) and take a set of stairs down to the trail. 

At the beginning of the trail from the parking lot, I saw a cute box with some activities in it. Upon inspection, it's The Dublin Arts Council Patterns in Nature Project. Free booklets and crayons were provided along with a spot inside to return used booklets. If you're also into Geocaching, the booklets include those because there are a few on this trail. The Kiwanis Riverway is also known as a great bird watching site as well, so there are plenty of activities going on. 

This is definitely a wetland (if you haven't gotten to the part of the trail with the cattails). Not an extreme wetland, but there are definitely some high water areas. I got my boot stuck in some deep mud on the trail twice. Don't think I was off-roading. We could see all along our walk where the water had gotten so high that there were dead fish when the water receded back to the river. It was fascinating, actually. I was looking for wildlife tracks in the mud. 

The boardwalks themselves are beautiful. Surprising sturdy with all the high water issues. I loved walking along the river and watching the rushing water next to me. We saw ducks, geese, various birds, and signs of a beaver. I wish it were longer. It's about half a mile long. Even though it was very cold out, we took a second lap because it just didn't feel like enough time to take it all in. 

For all my ghost walk fans, I happened upon a green orb in a couple of my pictures. I was standing still and these pictures were taken seconds apart. You can see it in the bottom left corner of both pictures. It moved in the second photo, yet stayed the same size and color. Green orbs are supposed to represent nature and healing spirits, so I was a bit excited after seeing these. 

As someone who likes to take trails into the woods for the peace and quiet, unfortunately this park isn't up there with the best. I love that it's a wetland. It's beautiful, it's different, and I love walking along the rushing river. However, it is right next to a main street so you hear the traffic. You hear the planes overhead. You can see the office buildings behind the trail as you're walking. You don't get the full immersion of nature's peace away from the city noise. I'd love to know what some of your favorite trails in Ohio are (or anywhere, really)! Let me know in the comments!