Thursday

7:00 pm. Welcome & Orientation;

7:15 pm The Flora of Ohio’s Deep South. A visual presentation of some of the common, rare, and regionally significant species of wildflowers native to the Ohio River Valley, Meet at the Tremper Manor House

8:15 - 9:00 pm: Optional - Exploration of Tremper Mound’s Vernal Pools

Friday

8:00 am Breakfast at the Manor House - Enjoy a warm breakfast and pack your lunches for the day - we will have all the components you need. Please bring a daypack to carry your lunch in, a lunch bag, and a filled water bottle.

9:00 am - 4:00 pm:  Field Trip to Ohio Hanging Rock Preserve  - We will hike the 4-mile Lake Tight Trace Trail at this lush preserve renowned for its botanical diversity and its multitude of narrow ravines. The beginning of this trail, in particular, winds through a richly floriferous valley filled with wildflowers and maidenhair ferns. We will also explore some of the off-trail botanical highlights along Skull Creek Hollow. Lunch will be at the preserve, possibly on the trail, so we recommend that you bring a large plastic bag or other waterproof “tarp” to sit upon so you don’t get a wet bottom during our rest breaks.

8:00 pm: Optional - History of Tremper Mound presentation and Guided Tour 

Saturday

8:00 am: Breakfast at the Manor House - Eat and pack lunches for the day

9:00 am - 12:00 pm: Guided Caravan through Shawnee State Forest to Access the Forest’s Floral Hotspots. - We will caravan enjoy some “roadside botany”, pulling over at different points of the roads to take a look at variety of different flora.

1:00 pm - 4:00 pm: Field Trip to Kamama Prairie Preserve - We will finish the weekend visiting one of our most botanically rich and ecologically unique preserves, hiking the Prairie Fire Trail and looking at late spring flora of the dolomite barrens.

Depart for home.