California Woods Nature Preserve — Attraction in Cincinnati

I’ve been waiting a while to review California Woods because I wanted to have the right words to express how much I love this place. It’s kind of out of the way for a lot of people I think, which means there’s never too many people here. I like it that way because you can always come here to enjoy solitude.

A lot of parks I go to don’t have trees that are very large. This place has massive trees. They make me feel so small and evoke a sense of wonder in me. There is a such depth to the topography as well. The high ridges and deep ravines create this sense of contrast of altitude which makes the forest seem so expansive, while the canopy above makes it feel like sanctuary. It’s so nourishing for the soul.

And if you have the chance, walk the meadow trail to see the big wild meadow where hummingbirds, dragonflies and butterflies abound. It’s magical! Also, walk across the rocks and pause to hear the babbling brook. There’s so much variety hear. I couldn’t fit it all...

park looks lovely, but huge sign says “no dogs”. if you have a well behaved dog, it’s mind boggling that outdoor spaces would deter people from recreating with their pets. this isn’t a national park. i didn’t end up walking around, there are more welcoming parks around. NOTE: it’s a narrow single lane in/out, so be aware of opposing traffic. there were multiple vehicles, parked in different spots, with people just sitting in the front seat, but saw no one walking around. i know that’s not unheard of, but to me, there was a...

Severely overgrown. Couldn't drive my car down the one lane road without hitting weeds/growth. Not similar to any other Hamilton county parks I've been to... although I see it's a nature preserve. We saw three trails and two of them had large closed signs on them. We did not get out of the vehicle...it was that welcoming. We did see about 8 other cars mostly at the building at the end of the road. We had small children and a stroller, did not look possible to do anything with the...