Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary (Blog Hike #138)

Trails: Tulip Poplar, Woodpecker, Cardinal, Wildflower, and Beech Trails
Hike Location: Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary

Geographic Location: southwest of Connersville, IN (39.58998, -85.22506)

Length: 2 miles

Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)

Dates Hiked: October 2003, June 2015

Overview: A quiet hike through mature second growth hardwood forest.

Sanctuary Information: https://indianaaudubon.org/mgbs/

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=940420
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From Connersville, take SR 121 south for 4 miles to CR 350S.  Take a soft right on CR 350S. Take CR 350S west 3.1 miles to the sanctuary entrance, a gravel road that goes straight ahead while the paved county road takes a hard right.  Descend on the gravel entrance road and park in the main parking area on the right, which is reached just after passing the red Markle barn and just before the road is gated.  The trail starts at the vehicle gate.

The hike: As I sat down to write about my experiences on this trail from a chilly morning in mid-October, I had a hard time putting into words why this hike had such vividness to me.  Perhaps it was the time of year, as the last few yellow and orange leaves clung to the trees.  Perhaps it was the solitude I experienced on these trails, as for the entire time I was the only person hiking in the sanctuary.  Or perhaps it was the remarkable similarity this area has to the forests I grew up around such as the woods behind my childhood home or those at Governor Bebb.  In any case, the hiking I did at Mary Gray was a truly enjoyable experience.

            Indeed, Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary is the place to go for just a quiet walk in the woods.  The sanctuary is owned and maintained by the Indiana Audubon Society, one of the oldest conservation groups in a state without a stellar history on conservation.  The sanctuary’s name was given by Alice Gray as a memorial to her daughter Mary who had preceded her in death.  The initial gift of 264 acres occurred in 1943, with subsequent gifts and purchases bringing the current total to 660.  Thus, this land has been used as a sanctuary for longer than most in Indiana, as the mature forest makes evident.

            The sanctuary has several structures and picnic areas for activity, the most striking of which is the classic red Markle Barn you drove past on your way in.  The trail system at Mary Gray, laid out by Dr. Earl Brooks, the sanctuary’s first director, is well-developed and offers many hiking options.  The service road, which continues past the vehicle gate, gives an interesting tour of the isolated southern part of the property.  This description will give a grand circle tour of the more developed eastern section of Mary Gray while offering several options to shorten or lengthen the hike if so desired.

Vehicle "gate" at trailhead

            Begin at the vehicle "gate," picking up an information brochure and trail map at the information kiosk beside the gate.  Follow the gravel service road through a shallow ravine, soon arriving at the “Yellow Brick House,” an old homestead that sits to the right of the road.  Ignore several side trails that exit right and proceed downhill with a tallgrass prairie on the right.  The 10-foot high grass was all that remained of the previous summer’s growth, but the color here should be excellent in the mid-to-late summer months.

Past the prairie, look for the wooden bridge to the left of the trail that crosses a creek rather than using the road and getting wet feet.  All of the creek crossings at Mary Gray are done by wooden bridges, although some of the bridges are narrow and old.  All of the bridges got me across safely on my visit, though.

Wooden bridge on Tulip Poplar Trail

            Immediately after crossing the creek, turn left onto the Tulip Poplar Trail (Trail #3) and leave the road behind.  Trail #3 follows the creek you just crossed upstream through some nice beech/ maple forest with some poplar trees, as the name suggests.  Some old fencing along the trail reminds us of the land’s agricultural past.

0.75 miles from the start, the trail curves left to cross a couple of ravines, heading north.  The trail is well-designed, so none of these grades are too steep.  As the Markle Barn comes into view ahead and to the left, turn right onto the Woodpecker Trail, which crosses another creek before climbing gently toward the park’s eastern boundary.  Note that going straight at this junction will short circuit the hike by taking you back to the parking area in only an additional 0.2 miles.

Markle Barn

            The Woodpecker Trail attains the highest point of the hike as it turns north and parallels the park boundary fence on the right.  An active hay field is visible to the right.  Along this boundary, some storm damage has created an opening in the canopy, providing for a dense understory and creating one of the better bird viewing opportunities on this hike.  Oddly enough, most of the forest in Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary is too dense to allow you to see very many birds.

At the next trail intersection, continue straight to begin the Cardinal Trail.  Begin heading downhill, intersecting the gravel park entrance road at 1.25 miles from the start.  Turn left and walk a very short distance on the road, looking for the Wildflower Trail that exits to the right.  This trail is Trail #1, and this intersection is marked by a wooden post bearing a yellow “1.”

Begin walking north on Trail #1, crossing another stream, and then paralleling the stream on the right.  After 0.2 miles of walking along the creek, the trail makes a wide curve left, now in the very northeastern corner of the preserve.  Ignore some side trails that exit left to the campground, and proceed gently downhill to cross another stream and intersect the Beech Trail, Trail #2.  Turn sharply left on the Beech Trail, which parallels the creek downstream and comes out of the woods near the park ranger’s residence.  A walk to the left and across the grass will return you to the parking area and complete the hike.