Aurora Sanctuary State Nature Preserve
Portage County, Ohio · 2 trail miles in ODNR's guide
Our take written by Nature Awed
Aurora Sanctuary in Portage County is a bird sanctuary acquired by the Cleveland Bird Club, the predecessor of the Greater Cleveland Audubon Society.
Its trails cross mature and second-growth hardwood forest, three ponds, river floodplains and fields, and ODNR lists hawks, owls, osprey and bald eagles among the birds seen. The Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland owns and manages it, with 2 miles of hiking trails.
Our plain-language reading of the ODNR text quoted on this page. It adds no facts of its own.
Verify current visiting hours and access restrictions with ODNR's page for this preserve and ODNR's permit page before relying on this summary.
What ODNR says about it
The site provides a diversity of habitat types for breeding and migrant birds. A variety of hawks and owls have been observed here, such as great-horned and barred owls, as well as other raptors, such as osprey, bald eagles, red-shouldered, Cooper's and sharp-shinned hawks.
The preserve features several miles of hiking trails providing access to a wide variety of habitat types-- mature and second growth hardwood forest, three ponds, river floodplains and fields. Seasonally, there is an abundant diversity of native wildflowers as well as excellent birding opportunities. The Preserve acquired in 1941 by the Greater Cleveland Audubon Society's predecessor, The Cleveland Bird Club, is the oldest bird sanctuary in Ohio.
Trails
2 miles of hiking trails
In ODNR's preserve guide
| Address | 896 East Pioneer Trail, Aurora, 44202 |
|---|---|
| Trails (miles) | 2 |
| Visitor information | Owned and managed by the Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland • clevelandaudubon.org |
Aurora Sanctuary Portage 896 East Pioneer Trail Aurora, 44202 2 Owned and managed by the Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland • clevelandaudubon.org
Access permit
Aurora Sanctuary State Nature Preserve is not on ODNR's list of preserves that require an access permit, and its ODNR page as quoted here doesn't call for one. ODNR also says: An access permit is required to leave trails within a state nature preserve.
(ODNR: State Nature Preserves Access Permit).
The land on ODNR's map
| LANDS_NAME | COUNTY | PROP_TYPE | SUM_CALC_ACRES | MANAGING_AGENCY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora Sanctuary State Nature Preserve | PORTAGE | Dedicated Nature Preserve | 165.86 | Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland |
| Mapped acres | 165.86 (our sum of the parcels ODNR's GIS layer maps under this name) |
|---|---|
| Access permit | No whole-preserve permit requirement identified in the sources we check; named-area or activity permits may still apply |
| Centre of mapped land | 41.3097, -81.3123 (our calculation; not an entrance or parking lot) |
Statewide rules
Ohio Administrative Code chapter 1501:17 sets rules for nature preserves and natural areas under ODNR's supervision or its designated custodian, on pets, drones, picnics, collecting and more. Can I…? quotes them rule by rule, with their exceptions.
Pets are prohibited at all state nature preserves, except Blackhand Gorge State Nature Preserve where leashed pets are only allowed on the multipurpose paved trail.
Check before you go. Verify current hours, access and trail information on ODNR: Aurora Sanctuary State Nature Preserve and ODNR: State Nature Preserves Access Permit; our checker last found the quoted words there on October 14.
Nearest other preserves
Straight-line miles between the centres of mapped land (our calculation), not driving distance.
- Novak Sanctuary State Nature Preserve · Portage County · about 1.4 miles
- Centerville Mills Falls Dedicated Nature Preserve · Portage County · about 2.9 miles · permit
- Tinkers Creek State Nature Preserve · Summit and Portage counties · about 4.3 miles
- Tummonds State Nature Preserve · Portage County · about 4.7 miles
- Beck Fen State Nature Preserve · Portage County · about 5.8 miles · permit