Caesar Creek Gorge State Nature Preserve
Warren County, Ohio · 2.3 trail miles in ODNR's guide
Our take written by Nature Awed
Caesar Creek Gorge is a meltwater-cut gorge in Warren County whose walls rise 180 feet above the creek and expose Ordovician limestone and shale rich in fossils. Over two miles of the creek run through it to the Little Miami State and National Scenic River.
Wooded hillsides, floodplain wildflowers and prairie species on the cliffs fill out the preserve, which has 2.3 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 preserve's prime feature is the gorge that was formed by great volumes of glacial meltwater cutting down through the bedrock to expose Ordovician limestone and shale rich in fossils. The steep walls rise to 180 feet above the river. More than two miles of Caesar Creek flow through the gorge to the Little Miami State and National Scenic River. The stream and its banks support a wide variety of plant and animal life. Many of the aquatic insects and small fish found here, such as darters, indicate excellent water quality.
The preserve also contains diverse habitat ranging from successional fields to heavily wooded hillsides with beech, maple, hickory and oak. A luxuriant herbaceous flora covers the floodplain, and a variety of prairie species is found on the shallow soil of the cliffs and in old fields. Adjacent to the preserve are 135 acres of Scenic River land, a river access site and the Corwin M. Nixon covered bridge. This forested land maintains bank stability, serves as an example of good floodplain land use and provides recreational access to the Little Miami State & National Scenic River.
Visiting
Open 1/2 hour before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset
Stay on designated trails
Pets are not permitted
No restrooms
Verify current visiting hours and access restrictions with ODNR's page before relying on these hours.
Trails
2.3 miles of hiking trails
In ODNR's preserve guide
| Address | 4080 Corwin Rd, Oregonia, 45054 |
|---|---|
| Trails (miles) | 2.3 |
| Visitor information | Adjacent to Caesar Creek State Park and Little Miami Scenic Trail |
Caesar Creek Gorge Warren 4080 Corwin Rd Oregonia, 45054 2.3 Adjacent to Caesar Creek State Park and Little Miami Scenic Trail
Access permit
Caesar Creek Gorge 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caesar Creek Gorge State Nature Preserve | WARREN | Dedicated Nature Preserve | 500.98 | Division of Natural Areas and Preserves |
| Mapped acres | 500.98 (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 | 39.4865, -84.0898 (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: Caesar Creek Gorge 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.
- Halls Creek Woods State Nature Preserve · Warren County · about 8.8 miles
- Travertine Fen State Nature Preserve · Greene County · about 10 miles
- Culberson Woods State Nature Preserve · Clinton County · about 12 miles
- Zimmerman Prairie State Natural Area · Greene County · about 17 miles
- Sharon Woods Gorge State Nature Preserve · Hamilton County · about 22 miles