These Middle Georgia trails are a short drive from Macon, let visitors learn about nature

Across a stretch of grass near the entrance of Dauset Trails is a lotus pond where footsteps are accompanied by small splashes, as nearby frogs hop into the water.

It’s one of head animal caretaker Madelyn Brown’s favorite spots in the park, and one of the Dauset Trails Nature Center ’s many easter eggs.

The park, only about 45 minutes from Macon, was founded in 1978 by Hampton Daughtry and David Settle. Dauset came from the combination of their last names. It’s a private non-profit, and admission is free because it runs off money from the Daughtry Foundation. Daughtry’s dream was to have a free place where people could go to learn about the outdoors, said Brown.

“Education is a big part of what we do,” said Brown.

The organization hosts school trips throughout the year, and sometimes they have 1,000 kids on the grounds at a time, Brown said. But they prioritize public education for everyone.

“It’s very important that whenever guests come around — if they’re not here on the school program — we make sure that we ask them: what kind of questions do you have?” said Brown.

What can visitors learn about?

As part of its mission to educate the public, Dauset Trails takes in animals native to Georgia that are injured or orphaned, and unable to return to the wild. The trails’ animal trail has barn owls, bison, raccoons, otters, a bear, snakes and many more animals that visitors can see and read about.

Dauset Trails’ bald eagle lost his left wing after being hit by a car. He had a previous station as an ambassador animal at Busch Gardens in Florida, but his wing imbalance started causing problems with his ability to perch on arms, so he came to Dauset Trails to retire.

Along with numerous animals, one of the Dauset Trails maintenance men, Jeremy Hilderbrand, decided to make a “Tree ID Trail” where plaques teach visitors to identify 31 trees by their leaves and bark.

For Leigh and Rachel Lovelette, Blake and Merricat Edwards and Brayden Gibsy, the trails were worth a two-hour drive from Columbus. They packed food and sat at the wooden picnic tables outside before heading in.

If animals aren’t your thing, Dauset Trails also has 30 miles of hiking and biking trails, a children’s garden, and tent camping at $5 a night. They have a blacksmith that comes out the first Saturday of every month, and they hold a syrup festival every fall where they sell their syrup at a working farm.

Brown said she spends her days rehabilitating, feeding and cleaning up after animals.

“I wouldn’t trade it for anything, I love it,” said Brown.

Sign Up for Local Breaking News