It was a sunny, early spring day when I drove up to Putnam County to visit one of my favorite nature parks.
The DePauw Nature Park used to be the site of an active limestone quarry from 1917 to 1977. Hanson Aggregates, who owned the quarry, donated most of the land for the park to DePauw University in 2003 and additional acreage was purchased by DePauw over the last few years.
The property consists of 520 acres of forest, fields, and an old abandoned quarry. There are over 10 miles of hiking trails at the park and some incredible scenery.
I chose to hike the “Quarry Rim” trail. This trail has become my favorite at the park.
Not only does this trail follow the rim of the quarry along with other connecting trails, it has a cut-across trail that takes the hiker across the bottom of the quarry. The trail is considered easy to moderate in ease of hiking.
I arrived at the trailhead and took off on my chosen trail for the day.
The path I followed was plenty wide enough and had lots of big rocks lining the trail. On the other side of these rocks were steep drop offs. The view of the old quarry was very scenic.
While hiking at this park, you will have a good chance of seeing either turkey vultures or black vultures or both! You might see them flying overhead or roosting along the cliffs. More than quite of few of these birds of prey make their home at this park. They won’t bother you and they are fun to watch.
The turkey vultures are over 2 feet tall and have a 6-foot wing span. They have bald, featherless heads and reddish-colored beaks. They roost in family groups. A group of vultures is called a “committee.” It's amazing to watch them fly.
Black vultures are shorter and more compact than the others and also have featherless heads except theirs are black. They have whitish-gray wing tips. They prefer more wooded areas to live in, but can often be found near turkey vultures.
It is a well known fact vultures are scavengers and feed off carrion. I myself have often gotten a creepy feeling when I see several flying overhead. But even vultures have their purpose and, to tell the truth, they are quite intelligent. Just saying. But I really did enjoy observing the antics of these birds.
I started back on my hike and followed the rim trail for a while until it intersected with the lower quarry trail. At this spot, I had a great, panoramic view of the quarry. There were lots of beautiful trees and plants as well as wildflowers growing down at the base of the quarry.
There were many cedar trees growing around the floor of the quarry, as well as interesting rock formations. There was also a big pond which made up the deeper part of the quarry. The cliffs and rocks above gave the quarry the appearance of a deep canyon.
Further down the trail was a great overlook from where I could see a wonderful view of the quarry. Benches were strategically placed at just the right locations.
Before I knew it, it was time to go home! It was a good day and had been a very good hike.
This is a special place to hike if you are looking for something different. The landscape is just beautiful. If you are interested in finding out more, there’s a nature center located at the park that is open to visitors. You can acquire a trail map there. Admission is free.
To get to this place: From Spencer, take U.S. 231 north to Greencastle. Make a left at Veterans Memorial Highway. Go 1 mile and turn right on South Jackson Street, then in 400 feet turn left on West County Road 200 South. Then go 0.7 miles and turn right on West County Road 225 South. In 0.4 miles you have arrived!
A quote for your week: “We have forgotten what rocks and plants still know — we have forgotten how to be — to be still — to be ourselves — to be where life is here and now.” — Eckhart Tolle, spiritual teacher, self-help author
Until the next trail! Susan
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