Spending a Day with the Kids at Miami Whitewater Forest – Harrison, OH

 

It was a beautiful day and we were all a little antsy to spend it outside.  After a quick search, we decided on Miami Whitewater Forest in Harrison, Ohio. My two younger sisters wanted to tag along and we were excited to spend the day with them. The park wasn’t horrible to find with GPS but it is very large and easy to get turned around in. We chose to spend the $15 to get a year pass because we want to visit some other Hamilton County Parks this summer.

Our first goals of the day were to find a picnic table to have a snack before hitting a trail for some family-friendly hiking.  We pulled over to consult the map they provided us.  We voted to start with Timberlakes Trail. There is a parking lot, restroom, and picnic tables near the trailhead.

This is a beautiful trail. It goes near the water and up into the trees. It’s 1.4 miles and rated moderate which seemed appropriate. We were able to do it easily with my almost three-year-old walking. There were a couple of areas with wood/dirt stairs that were too hard for her to do completely alone. We watched squirrels and chipmunks running around. We saw a couple of toads hopping in the underbrush. It’s a well maintained and very clean trail.

We were hot and in need of a break after finishing the trail so we drove to the visitors center. This place is small but cute. There was a room with local animals in the back. The turtles were my girls favorite. They had crayons and paper out to draw. We spent a few minutes coloring and enjoying the air conditioning before heading out back to walk along the edge of the lake for a while. They rent boats here but we had other plans.

We visited Harbor Snack bar next to the visitors center. We sat on the picnic tables behind it while sharing some nachos and a couple of Icees. There were many birds in the area to watch. Octavia giggled watching them pick up crumbs of dropped food.

We hit the playground next. It’s quite nice and the kids played for an hour or so. There is a lot of construction going on next to the playground. There used to be a water playground there but it’s currently gone. I’m not sure if they are replacing it or putting in something else. I’m curious to see what the future holds.

We decided to end our day with another trail. We chose the Tallgrass Prairie Trail. It’s moderate and comes in at 0.6 miles. Octavia was getting tired so we figured something fairly short was the way to go. I’m so glad we went on this one! It’s so pretty! You walk through the woods for a few minutes before entering the prairie portion. I want to visit here again later in the summer after everything has bloomed. I’m sure it’s beautiful with all the flowers. The trail leads you back into the woods on the other side and across a cute little bridge. It felt so tranquil out there. We were the only people on the trail.

It’s so nice to spend the day surrounded by trees, letting all the stresses of everyday life melt away. There is comfort in nature. To relax and unwind while walking in the woods and playing outside feels like such a treat in our busy world.