California Woods Nature Preserve (Blog Hike #123)

Trails: California Junction, Trillium Valley, Moon Ridge, and Twin Oaks Trails

Hike Location: California Woods Nature Preserve

Geographic Location: east side of Cincinnati, OH (39.07702, -84.41888)

Length: 2 miles

Difficulty: 5/10 (Moderate)

Dates Hiked: August 2002, June 2013

Overview: A moderate to difficult hike along heavily forested ridges.

Park Information: https://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/cincyparks/visit-a-park/find-a-parkfacility/california-woods-nature-preserve-center/

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=718696
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: On the east side of Cincinnati, take I-275 to Kellogg Avenue (exit 62).  Exit and go west on Kellogg Ave.  Take Kellogg Ave. 1.2 miles to the preserve entrance.  The entrance is just past California Golf Course and just before Salem Rd.  Turn right to enter the park.  Proceed 0.2 miles to the park’s nature center and park in the nature center parking lot.

The hike: Managed by Cincinnati Parks, the 110 acres of California Woods Nature Preserve contain some of the best, most mature hardwood forest in Hamilton County.  The preserve is nestled in a tight, dark ravine that seems secluded despite the fact that the preserve is surrounded by city.  The outward facing walls of the ravine remind you that the city is nearby, but the interior part of the ravine is fairly quiet, with only an occasional airplane from nearby Lunken Airport flying overhead.

            As you would expect in a nature preserve, the park is void of facilities except for a small nature center, restrooms, a small picnic area, and 8 miles of trails.  The preserve is laid out with a creek and park road running north-south through the middle and trails on either side.  None of the trails are marked, and some of them needed some maintenance on my most recent visit.  The eastern half of the preserve features a 0.5 acre reconstructed tall grass prairie, but the most interesting trails lie on the western side of the ravine.  Indeed, both of the designated national recreation trails, the California Junction Trail and the Trillium Valley Trail, are located in the western half of the preserve.  This hike takes you along both of the national recreation trails and along other scenic trails in the western half of the preserve.           

Trailhead: California Junction Trail

            From the nature center, walk south along the road back toward Kellogg Avenue.  Pass the entrance to the Trillium Valley Trail (we will come back to that later) and look for the sign marking the beginning of the California Junction Trail on the right.  Turn right onto the dirt path.  In quick fashion, the trail curves left and climbs moderately out of the main valley before reaching a T-intersection that forms the loop-portion of this trail.  This description will turn left here and use the right fork as the return trail.

            The trail narrows somewhat as it begins a level grade with the hill on the right and valley on the left.  If the name California Junction conjures up railroad images, there is good reason for that.  A short line railroad used to occupy this treadway, back in the days when California Junction (now just called California) was a railroad stop on the eastern fringe of Cincinnati.  The railroad then left the Ohio River and climbed into the surrounding hills on the trail that we walk today.  The legacy is evident by the gentle grade of the trail and by the depressions in the hillside, places where dirt was extracted during the construction.           

Old railroad grade-California Junction Trail

            As the trail curves right, the sights and sounds of Kellogg Avenue become fully apparent downhill to the left.  The Ohio River then comes into view along with a couple of marinas full of boats in the summertime.  All along, the trail has been imperceptibly descending along the railroad bed.  This comes to an abrupt end at a pile of sticks where the trail turns right, leaves the railroad bed, and climbs moderately to a small trail shelter.  Less than 200 feet further, the trail rejoins the railroad bed, still heading downhill.  In another 0.2 miles the trail closes the loop.  Turn left on the entrance route to descend back to the park road and complete the California Junction Trail.           

Trailhead: Trillium Valley Trail

            Turn left on the park road and retrace your steps back to the Trillium Valley Trail, which exits to the left.  This trail begins alongside a small stream, but soon begins climbing a steep, narrow ravine.  The trail curves right and continues climbing along a tributary of the main ravine.  This is an east-west ravine, and the north facing slope here would be ideal for wildflowers in late March and early April.

            The trail climbs from the ravine rather steeply to arrive at a sycamore tree with two main branches that split apart close to the ground like a field goal post.  500 feet later, the Trillium Valley Trail ends at a ridgetop junction with the Ravine Trail, which goes right, and the Ridge Trail, which goes left.  Turn left and begin the aptly-named Ridge Trail.  The east side of the ridge features open forest with good-sized maple beech trees and little understory, but the Ridge Trail soon crosses over to the west side which is heavily encumbered with honeysuckle.           

Main creek at California Woods

            Ignore side trails that exit to the right heading for the park road and stick with the Ridge Trail as it gradually descends along the ridgeline, occasionally crossing some small drainages with the aid of bridges.  After about 0.5 miles on the ridge, the trail begins descending more steeply and eventually arrives at a trail junction along the creek.  A left turn would connect to the trails on the east side of the park road and extend the hike.  This description turns right and in 0.2 miles returns you to the nature center to complete this hike.