DNR
Home PageHikers' Comments on Fern Ridge Trail
Graham Cave State Park
| Month Hiked | Comments from participants of the 2007 Trail of the Month Program | |
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October 2007 | Fall color made this a nice hike - plus this was the first hike in a long time that I remember was pleasant temperatures! The fern ridge was really neat. |
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September 2007 | When I was hiking on this trail, I enjoyed the moss and ferns growing from the rock formations. We saw three new wildflowers that we'll have to look up when we get home. |
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September 2007 | Loved this one! Beautiful and peaceful. |
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September 2007 | It is a great family outing. I really liked all of the rock formations throughout the trail. Watch out for the tree roots. Overall a very easy hike. |
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August 2007 | I barely saw this trail due to the fact that I had tons of spider webs all over my face. |
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August 2007 | The trailhead was a little tough to find, but once on the trail it was quite pretty. The rock formations reminded me of some of the parks in southern Illinois where I grew up. We saw a turkey on the way out of the park today. |
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July 2007 | Great trail but by all means check out all the trails in the park. |
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July 2007 | We have stopped here often. This trail is very nice but be sure to make plans to do all the trails. They are interlocked and take you all over the park. During the wet rainy time of the year, there is a nifty waterfall near the cave. |
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July 2007 | I enjoyed this trail, mainly because I took my 75-year-old mother with me and we spent the day together. It was short enough for her to walk with me. It did not loop, so we walked to the end and then back to the beginning. It was a beautiful day and we had a wonderful time. |
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July 2007 | This trail did not loop so we walked it and then turned around and walked back again. It was a fairly easy trail for this 75-year-old lady. I do not do a lot of walking and did this with my daughter. If I can walk it, anyone can! It made for an enjoyable day, as the weather was nice, not many bugs, and the path was easy to follow. |
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July 2007 | I liked the big rocks on this trail. We thought it was a paved trail so we took the baby in the stroller. We ended up carrying the baby and the stroller! Good thing it was a short trail. |
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July 2007 | Enjoyed the large boulders along this trail - we stopped several times to take pictures. The cave was interesting, too. |
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July 2007 | This hike was not as hilly as one might expect. The rock outcroppings are very interesting with evidence of the early April freeze damage. |
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June 2007 | Liked the cave and the playground at the end of the trail. |
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June 2007 | Short trail with nice views of exposed rock outcroppings. Definitely make the side trip to Graham Cave. |
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June 2007 | Short hike with a nice playground at the end for children. |
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June 2007 | I experienced interesting rock ledges and formations along the ridge. |
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June 2007 | This hike starts behind the playground. The hike was in the shade all the way with one or two very steep places. We startled a snake that took shelter in a root system of a fallen tree by the dry creek bed. |
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June 2007 | It's not a hard trail to hike but you need to watch where you are walking because of the roots on the trail. We walked over two well-constructed bridges. Ferns were just starting to grow. My wife saw about a 30-inch black snake in a dead tree. |
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June 2007 | Pleasant walk. A turtle (sorry I don't know what kind) guarded the Trail of the Month clue sign! |
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June 2007 | A nice gentle climb along some interesting rocks that can be climbed. Then we looped around and saw the "cave." Interesting history. |
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June 2007 | Beautiful trail. Not too difficult. Pretty deck at the wet season waterfall. Beautiful rock outcroppings! Even a rock seat at the summit! |
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May 2007 | This was a nice short trail. There were some steep areas but they were short and it was mostly easy level ground. It was a very pretty and well-shaded trail. |
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May 2007 | This is a short trail that would best be hiked in dry weather. It has some interesting rock formations and plant life along the way. This trail can be combined with other trails in the park to make a longer hike. This would be a great trail to take kids along. |
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May 2007 | Up one side of the hill and down the other. The trail then levels off along a wet weather creek. The top of the hill has rock outcroppings. The trail can be slippery after rain, and watch your step as there are a lot of exposed roots to stumble over. |
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May 2007 | Be prepared to be a mud puppy and a mountain goat on the same trail. I loved the rocky outcroppings and the waterfall. |
