The Riches of Ritchey Woods Nature Preserve

Located in the heart of Fishers, Indiana, this well-kept and beautiful nature preserve is a fantastic place to take children on a hike (or a good place to go on a date, which is what we did). There are a little over two miles of trails over the 127 acre preserve. They range from a bit moderate to the wonderfully flat & simple Blackbird Trail at the entrance to the park.

There’s an abundance of picnic tables, including some under a large picnic shelter (this cannot be reserved and is open on a first come, first serve basis) and (glory be, for the parents of small children!) public restrooms. There wonderful trail map at the entrance to the preserve and paper copies you can bring along with you. Not all of the trail signs have markings on them, so there is a bit of guesswork involved, but we also didn’t have the trail maps with us and were there for the sheer joy of discovery (which meant that seeing the tiny pioneer cemetery was a wonderful surprise).

Multiple signs make it clear that this is a nature preserve first and foremost: they’ve found over 45 rare and at-risk species in the park and want them to thrive. So it is imperative to stay on the human trails (avoiding the deer trails!), which also means staying out of the water way (helpful park signs tell you other safe places for water play in Fishers).

Staying on the trails still gives you an beautiful glimpse at a flood plain forest and some grasslands. Cheeney creek bounds the property and it is clear that rainy seasons mean rivulets of water feeding the forest floor. Fungi & beautiful small plants cover the undergrowth & my husband was delighted to see a Buckeye tree.

We loved visiting it on a lush, green summer day, but I also imagine the woods must be glorious in autumn! I will definitely be going back with my children and nature sketch books!

If you’re planning a visit, these two links are helpful:
1) The Play Fishers Park Info Site

2) DNR’s info site (they have a smaller property size listed, but it’s not as up to date as the previous site)