Rentschler Forest MetroPark (Blog Hike #48)

Trails: Pumpkin Vine Trail and Cascades Trail

Hike Location: Rentschler Forest MetroPark

Geographic Location: northeast side of Hamilton, OH (39.42080,-84.50427)

Length: 1.9 miles

Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)

Dates Hiked: 2002, June 2013

Overview: Two very different loop trails offering a good overview of natural environments, plus a small waterfall.

Park Information: https://www.yourmetroparks.net/parks/rentschler-forest-metropark

Hike Route Map: http://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=142671
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From the intersection of SR 129 and SR 4 in Hamilton, take SR 4 north 2.1 miles to Indian Meadows Dr.  Turn left on Indian Meadows Drive, and note that SR 4 by-pass goes right at this intersection.  Drive Indian Meadows Dr. 2 blocks to Reigart Road and turn right on Reigart Rd.  Where Reigart Rd. forks, keep to the left.  Pass the gate house and climb a small hill to where another park road goes off to the left.  Turn left here and proceed to a small parking lot by the Walsh picnic shelter.

The hike: Rentschler Forest is located on 258 acres of rolling land donated to Butler County Metroparks about 30 years ago.  The land lies between some new housing developments on the south and the Great Miami River on the north.  The park features numerous picnic shelters, including one dedicated to a Judge Walsh near this trailhead.

            The park also features two hiking short trails.  The 0.9 mile Cascades Trail takes you through mature forest and a creek valley, while the 1 mile Pumpkin Vine Trail takes you through young forest and past an old homestead.  These trails used to combine nicely via a 0.1 mile connector trail, but on my most recent visit the connector trail had become overgrown to the point of being impassible.  Thus, you will need to hike the two trails separately rather than using the combined route described here.  I recommend coming here during the wet season so that the waterfall on the Cascades Trail will be in top form.           

Pumpkin Vine Trail

             Start at the sign near the parking lot that says "Pumpkin Vine Trail trail entrance."  Head slightly downhill past a row of hedgeapple trees.  Hedgeapple trees are often a sign of past human habitation.  Not to disappoint, after crossing a sewer line clearing, the trail comes to the remains of an old building.   Part of the building is constructed of rocks while the remainder consists of old concrete.  The southern portion of this building is built into the ground, possibly as an old food cellar.

            Ignore a wild trail that goes left and continue winding through young forest before coming out at the sewer right-of-way again.  Note that this portion of the trail gets rather narrow in the summer.  If you look to the left, you will see what remains of the Miami-Erie Canal.  During the early to mid-1800’s, this canal connecting the Ohio River to Lake Erie was one of the most important transportation routes in Ohio.  Mules would walk along either side of the canal propelling the boat along.  By the end of the Civil War, the railroad had replaced the canal as the preferred means of transportation, and the canal fell into various stages of disrepair.  The old mulepath still visible on this side of the canal is slated to be turned into a paved bike path in the next few years.  A right turn on the sewer right-of-way will return you to the parking lot and complete the first trail.

Trailhead-Cascades Trail

            Next start at the sign near the parking lot that says "Cascades Trail trail entrance."  There may be a trail guide for the Cascades Trail available at this point.  Though a little outdated, the guide still provides some good information about the natural features of the area.  The trail enters young forest behind the trail sign and begins curving right.Your trail guide will now come in handy.  With the boundary fence on the right, the scenery slowly changes from shrubs to mature forest, which is dominated by oak with an occasional wild cherry and hickory.  Where a shortcut trail goes left, keep to the right and cross a long wooden footbridge, now in the tall timber.  This boundary between mature and young forest is crossed twice more before the trail begins its descent to Kennedy Run, aided by some wooden steps.   

Cascades Trail in mature forest

            At the bottom of the hill, the trail meets Kennedy Run just above a small but pretty waterfall.  Water drops about 8 feet from a limestone shelf into a large, deep, muddy pool.  When I was here in the middle of a summer drought, the waterfall was but a trickle, but the plunge pool was still full of water.  In all, this waterfall is pretty typical of many waterfalls in southwest Ohio.            

The Cascades

            For the next several hundred yards the trail follows the creek through a mature floodplain forest containing some decent-sized sycamores.  The creek is on your right and the hillside only feet away on your left.  Post 11 on your guide marks a large buckeye tree, which can be distinguished because its leaves occur in groups of five.

            Upon reaching the entrance road, the trail makes a sharp left turn and ascends out of the floodplain.  At the top of the hill, the shortcut trail enters from the left.  The trail next crosses another long wooden bridge and meanders through some young forest before coming out into a white pine planting.  White pines can be distinguished by their needles, which always grow in clusters of five.  You can tell that the pines have been planted by man because they are arranged in a perfect row and column configuration.  From the end of the pine forest, only about 100 feet remain to return you to the parking area and complete your hike.