Yellow Springs and the Ohio River Valley

Our Ohio stop was in quirky Yellow Springs, which is just outside of Dayton. It’s very artsy, welcoming, and just plain full of spunk. This is the first thing I saw when we pulled into town:

The downtown is full of quaint shops, inviting restaurants, and vibrant color. By this, I mean there seems to be whimsical, funky, art everywhere. I like it.

We stayed at John Bryan State Park, which was quiet and scenic. We had a nice little spot with plenty of room to spread out. The best thing about our Ohio visit is my good friend, Karen, lives in nearby Huber Heights, so we got to spend some time with her while there. I hadn’t seen her since the girls were tiny, and she recently got married, so it was nice to catch up and meet her husband, Zack.

One thing we noticed on the way into town was this massive field of sunflowers. They were beckoning me, but having the fifth wheel in tow, we couldn’t stop at that time. So, I Googled “Yellow Springs Sunflowers” and learned all about the Tecumseh Land Trust, which is “dedicated to preserving farmland through partnerships with landowners.” Whitehall Farm, where the sunflowers are located, is 950 acres and has been preserved by a permanent easement through Tecumseh Land Trust. The public is invited to stroll the sunflower fields and take photos. Of course, after settling in at the campground and getting a good night’s sleep, we got up the next morning and went straight out to see those sunflowers.

After traipsing through fields of sunshine, we decided to explore more beauty in the area. The Glen Helen Nature Preserve is a wooded glen that was donated to Antioch College in memory of alumnus Hugh Taylor Birch’s daughter, Helen, in 1929. It’s 1,000 acres of wildflowers, limestone cliffs, waterfalls, trees, birds, and other wildlife.

We stopped at the Raptor Center, which focuses on raptor rehabilitation and public education. Of course, Ray, who is a new birder, was very interested in this place. The public cannot visit with the birds that are being rehabilitated, but there are several residents, birds who cannot return to the wild for various reasons (injuries). There are owls, hawks, vultures, and Eagles, who live there permanently.

We also stopped in at the nature museum, where the girls learned about wildlife in the area and looked at some exhibits. They had a bird blind, where we sat and watch some beautiful birdies eat from the feeders outside.

We took a short hike, visited the ‘yellow springs’ that the nearby town is named after, and just enjoyed a couple of hours in nature.

While we really loved experiencing the gorgeousness of the state park where we were camping and the preserve next door, the real highlight was hanging with Karen. She had to work during the day, so we saw her in the evenings.

She introduced us to a couple of the local restaurants, and took us to a really cool dairy farm in the area for ice cream. Young’s Jersey Dairy is a crowd pleaser. They have animals that the public can visit, play areas for the kids, a restaurant, ice cream, putt-putt, and other entertainment. We fed goats and ourselves!

It was so great visiting with Karen, meeting her guy, hanging out at her YMCA (thanks for the passes), and catching up. Jayden even commented, “Your friend, Karen, is so nice. All your friends are nice, Mommy.” Agreed!

After leaving Yellow Springs, en route to Erie, PA, we stopped in the northernmost tip of West Virginia for a couple of nights. Another state park stay, Tomlinson Run State Park (New Manchester, WV) was a pleasant surprise for us!

The state park was very woodsy. Our site was the kind of spot we like to park the Cruiser. We had a big chunk of land, a fire pit, and seclusion from other campers.

This tiny piece of West Virginia is part of the ‘panhandle’ and the Ohio River Valley. We did a little exploring, going into nearby towns Chester, New Cumberland and Weirton. We drove along the Ohio River, had some lunch at a local joint, and stopped at a little roadside tourist spot, “The World’s Largest Teapot.”

West Virginia is just starting to see the first signs of Fall, and I’m sure the leaves will all be nice hues of red, orange and yellow in a few more weeks. Back at the state park, we were happy to learn that a fair was going on: The Hancock County Old Time Fair. So, we were lucky enough to eat some tasty food, listen to a pretty good Country/Rock band, and see some exhibits. Back at our campsite, we had S’mores (a pretty regular event), while listening to the last set the band was playing up the road. On to PA!